Gallery Review: Daido Moriyama at Bruce Silverstein
Tights, 2017 Gelatin silver print © Daido Moriyama, Courtesy of Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York
Bruce Silverstein Gallery boasts their recently announced representation of Daido Moriyama with their current show, Within the Shadows, a solo exhibition featuring a wide survey of the photographer’s work. Moriyama is closely associated with post-war Japanese counter culture and specifically the Provoke Movement which examined Japan’s socio-political situation. The works displayed in Within the Shadows represent various points in his career by pulling from disparate series such as Hunter and Light & Shadow to name a few. This selection specifically aims to celebrate Moriyama’s distinguished ability to bring high drama to the everyday and his voyeuristic point and shoot technique. It is well known that Moriyama photographs in the style of a beat poet, citing Jack Kerouac’s On The Road as a frequent inspiration. This reference shows in a photo such as On the Table, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 1990 but not as much in Tights, 2017, a later work. Though, for an artist who has famously challenged the very existence of photography, it is not off-brand for him to explore every pole of his medium.
Gelatin silver print © Daido Moriyama, Courtesy of Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York
The show at Silverstein Gallery can be appreciated by anyone from a seasoned Moriyama fan to a fresh-eyed gallery hopper. The allure of his photographs is objectively captivating. While remaining a singular feat of the artist, his work triggers the excitement associated with French New Wave cinema. Moriyama’s world-renowned visual language and aesthetic tableau is certainly refreshing during this busy week of openings.
Stray Dog, Misawa, 1971 Gelatin silver print © Daido Moriyama, Courtesy of Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York
On the Table, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 1990 Gelatin silver print© Daido Moriyama, Courtesy of Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York
Within The Shadows runs until October 19 at Bruce Silverstein Gallery, 529 West 20th St.
