Monday, April 13, 2026 – Wednesday, May 3, 2026
After graduating from the Tokyo College of Photography (now Tokyo Polytechnic University), Matsumura Kumi (1947-) made her first visit to Okinawa, then under the administration of the United States, in 1968. The following year, she decided to move there, just as Okinawa prepared for its reversion to Japan in 1972.
Okinawa was then being used as a base for bombing runs in the Vietnam War, and the contradictions inherent in the US-Japan Security Treaty relationship were churning just below the surface. As a young photographer, Matsumura exposed herself to the groundswell of reversion and turned her camera toward documenting the various manifestations of this emerging reality.
The antibase movement, strikes by the base workers’ union Zengunrō, the training drills of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, the Airakuen leper colony, daily life and festivals on the outer islands, Expo ’75 (the Okinawa International Ocean Exposition)… At a time when there were very few female photographers in Japan, Matsumura also wrestled with her identity as a Yamatonchu (Japanese mainlander) as she accumulated a massive store of photographs of Okinawa. They display a passion and breadth in their condensation of 1970s Okinawa from all conceivable angles, ranging as far as photographing Okinawa emigrants in South America.
The American bases that were legacy of the Pacific War dragged Okinawa into the folds of a new war in Vietnam. The emigration of Okinawans to South America can be traced to a severe economic depression during World War I, and to land seizures by the US military during the postwar occupation. In this light, what Matsumura captured through her lens can be seen as people planting their legs firmly on the ground, while bearing the scars of war.
In 1983 Matsumura published a book of essays, Kataomoi no Shattā: Watakushi no Okinawa 10 Nen no Kiroku (The Shutter of One -Sided Love: The Record of My 10 Years in Okinawa), before taking a break from both Okinawa and photography for many years. She resumed photography in 2006, and her first photobook, Kono Saki no Shimajima e: 1969-1980 Nen (Beyond, the Islands: 1969-1980 Okinawa) is scheduled for release in 2026. This exhibition at her alma mater is Matsumura’s first solo show and is a milestone on her journey of reencounter with Okinawa.
Born in the city of Tokushima in 1947. After graduating from the Tokyo College of Photography (now Tokyo Polytechnic University) in 1968, she began her career as a photographer. After a trip to Okinawa, she decided to move to the island, where she spent 3 years before returning to Tokyo. In 1975, she returned to Okinawa for about 18 months, traveling throughout the archipelago. After a hiatus from photography, she resumed work in 2006. Since then, she has again focused on Okinawa. She has published Kataomoi no Shattā: Watakushi no Okinawa 10 Nen no Kiroku (The Shutter of One -Sided Love: The Record of My 10 Years in Okinawa; 1983). Her first photobook, Kono Saki no Shimajima e: 1969-1980 Nen (Beyond, the Islands: 1969-1980 Okinawa) is scheduled for release in 2026.
