WHY

Why Japan?

As a European of my age and education I had some basic knowledge of Japan, her history, literature and culture, and as an art historian an eye for Japanese art and aesthetics. However many years ago when I watched a retrospective show of Yasujiro Ozu’s films I was fascinated by the way his pictures embody the Japanese concept of Mono No Aware, an awareness of the impermanence of things - and I was hooked at last.

The Japanese society has certainly changed since the 1950s when Ozu created most of his classics, nevertheless I wanted to search for traces of his themes and pictures - some day...