328 Outstanding Japanese photographers.

The curators at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Japan’s largest museum devoted to photography, have compiled this excellent collection of biographies of almost all the most famous and important Japanese photographers, both living and deceased. There are 328 biographies in the book. Why 328? That’s the number of Japanese photographers whose works are in the Museum’s collection. One page is devoted to each photographer. Along with the biography, one B/W photo (from the Museum’s collection) taken by the photographer is inserted. This book is therefore the most comprehensive compilation of biographies ever. The biographies include all the basic facts you would expect–birthdate, birthplace, education, employment history, etc. However, it does not list past exhibitions and publications. Of course, that would require more space, time, and research, luxuries that this cash-strapped Museum lacks. The book states that the information was mainly gleaned from previous materials such as exhibition catalogs. The big drawback of this book is that nothing is in English, not even the photographer’s names. Only the book’s title is provided in English: “328 Outstanding Japanese Photographers.” An English version of this book is probably a pipe dream.
source: www.artecontemporanea.com