Four Japanese photographers - Eri Makita, Mami Kiyoshi, Yuki Onodera and Yu Hirai - discuss with the collector Sophie Cavaliero their work and the place that their works hold in the history of modern and contemporary Japanese photography.

On 30 September, the Bibliothéque nationale de France (BnF) will present “Scenes, Signs, Sensations”. This Japanese photography collection spans eight decades, from 1945 to 2025. Bringing together around 100 artists, including internationally recognised figures, it presents 300 works comprising 250 photographic prints and 50 rare books.

The BnF collection contains nearly 4,000 Japanese photographic prints by around 200 artists and photojournalists. The Department of Prints and Photography holds the collection. Japanese photographers who settled in France also helped develop it. These collaborations began during the second half of the 20th century.

“Scenes, Signs, Sensations” explores several themes and aesthetic movements. The exhibition depicts rural and urban life alongside Japanese festivals and traditions. Many works also feel theatrical, playful, and poetic. In particular, featured photographers include Daido Moriyama, Eikō Hosoe, Ken Domon, Hiroshi Hamaya, Shōji Ueda and Rinko Kawauchi.

Organisée dans le cadre des célébrations du bicentenaire de la naissance de la photographie, cette exposition retrace, à travers 300 œuvres — dont 250 tirages photographiques, majoritairement en noir et blanc, et une cinquantaine d’ouvrages rares issus des collections de la BnF — l’évolution de la pratique photographique au Japon, depuis 80 ans.