Tōyō Miyatake
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Tōyō Miyatake (宮武東洋,[1] Miyatake Tōyō; 1896–1979) was a Japanese American photographer, best known for his photographs documenting the Japanese American people and the Japanese American internment at Manzanar during WWII.
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[edit] Life
Miyatake was born in Kagawa, Shikoku in Japan in 1896. In 1909 he migrated to the United States to join his father. He settled in the Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles, California.
With an interest in arts - most notably, photography, which he studied under Harry K. Shigeta[2] - Miyatake began associating with the local arts community. In 1923 he bought his photo studio. Miyatake encouraged fellow photographer Edward Weston to exhibit his work and Miyatake is credited as giving Weston his first gallery showing.[citation needed]
At the time Miyatake met his future wife, it was his brother that was courting her. He began spending time with her under the guise that he was using her as a model. His brother was crushed and it is said that he "died of a broken heart" at an early age.[citation needed]
Before WWII, Miyatake's photography won awards[citation needed] as he photographed various personalities.
During WWII Miyatake was interned at Manzanar relocation camp in the Owens Valley. He smuggled a camera lens into the camp and constructed a camera body from wood. The pictures he secretly took at the camp are the only ones that show the plight of US Citizens detained in the camps during the war.[citation needed]
After the war, the family returned to Los Angeles, where their home had been entrusted to some of their white friends during the internment. Unlike many families who lost their homes, the Miyatakes were able to resume their life and also provided shelter to a few less fortunate internees and their families. In post-war Little Tokyo, many residents were unable to afford Miyatake's services and some opted instead to barter goods to have him photograph weddings and portraits. With his wife Hiro running the front office, she once negotiated his services for a Steinway piano and another time, she negotiated for a litter of poodles.[citation needed]
After the death of his wife Hiro in 1971, Miyatake moved from his home on Third Street in East Los Angeles to live in neighboring Monterey Park, with his daughter and her family.
He remained active in the studio throughout this period. In the early morning, Miyatake could be seen walking around Monterey Highlands Elementary School for exercise. The last image he captured on film was taken at this park. The film was discovered and processed after his death.[citation needed]
Before his death in 1979, Miyatake and Ansel Adams produced a book together called Two Views of Manzanar, a compilation of their photographs during the internment.
[edit] Offspring
All of Miyatake's children were involved in photography and the family business. Archie, the eldest son, ran the family studio after Tōyō's death in 1979. Robert Miyatake worked in the studio and later opened his own photographic color lab in South Pasadena, California. Richard (Tabo) worked in the family studio as well and left to work in photographic production. Youngest child and only daughter, Minnie, also worked in the studio performing clerical and business-related duties. A handful of Miyatake's grandchildren continue the tradition to this day.[citation needed]
[edit] Toyo Miyatake Studio
The Toyo Miyatake Studio moved in 1985 to San Gabriel, California, where it still operates today. The studio is now managed by grandson, Alan Miyatake.[3]
[edit] Miscellaneous
One of Miyatake's prized possessions was his white 1957 Ford Thunderbird, which now belongs to his youngest grandson, Mark Takahashi.[citation needed]
Miyatake was easily recognizable in Little Tokyo, wearing his trademark black beret and bowtie.[citation needed]
In the TV movie Farewell to Manzanar, Pat Morita portrays Zenahiro, a character based on Miyatake.[citation needed]
[edit] Books by Miyatake
- Ansel Adams and Toyo Miyatake, Two Views of Manzanar, Los Angeles : Frederick S. Wight Art Gallery, UCLA, c. 1978.
- (Japanese) Shashinka Miyatake Tōyō no sekai: Renzu ga toraeta ningen no kiroku: 50-nen no nichibei-kōryū-shi (写真家宮武東洋の世界：レンズがとらえた人間の記録：50年の日米交流史). Tokyo: Bungeishunjū, 1980.
- (Japanese) Miyatake Tōyō no shashin: 1923–1979 (宮武東洋の写真：1923～1979). Tokyo: Bungeishunjū, 1984.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Biographic Dictionary of Japanese Photography also gives 宮武東洋男, but does not give the reading of this, or say which was registered as his legal name.
- ^ Biographic Dictionary of Japanese Photography.
- ^ Toyo Miyatake Studio
[edit] References
- (Japanese) Nihon no shashinka (日本の写真家) / Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Photography. Tokyo: Nichigai Associates, 2005. ISBN 4-8169-1948-1. Despite its alternative title in English, this book is in Japanese only.
