Motoichi Kumagai

Motoichi^[1] Kumagai (熊谷 元一, Kumagai Motoichi, 12 July 1909 – 6 November 2010) was a Japanese photographer and illustrator of books for children, known for his portrayal of rural and school life.

Born in Ōchi (会地; now Achi), Shimoina District, Nagano Prefecture, Kumagai worked from 1930 to 1933 as a teacher. He had his first work for children published in the May 1932 issue of the magazine Kodomo no Kuni.^[2] In 1936 he bought a Pearlette camera (a Konishiroku derivative of the Vest Pocket Kodak), with a simple meniscus lens, and started to use this to photograph village life; his first photograph collection was published two years later by Asahi Shinbunsha.^[2] In 1939 he went to Tokyo as a government photographer and was later sent three times to Manchukuo; after the war, he returned to teach in his village.^[3]

A book of photographs of school life published by Iwanami Shoten in 1955 won a photography prize from Mainichi Shimbun.^[2]

Kumagai published books of works for children as well as books of photographs. His photographs are held in the permanent collection of the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography,^[3] and a volume of the series Nihon no Shashinka is dedicated to his work. He received various honours for his work, especially since around 1990.^[2] The village of Achi created a gallery, Kumagai Motoichi Shashin Dōgakan, for the permanent exhibition of his work.^[4]

He died in 2010, in a nursing home in Tokyo, of natural causes.^[5]

Books by Kumagai

• (As illustrator.) Gakkō ehon: Shūshin no maki (学校ヱホン 修身ノ巻). Tokyo: Suzuki Jin Seidō, 1936. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Ōchi-mura: Ichi nōson no shashin kiroku (会地村 一農村の写真記録). Tokyo: Asahi Shinbunsha, 1938. Reprint. Achi: Kumagai Motoichi Shashin-hozon-kai, 1985. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Itachi to kodomo いたちと子供. Tokyo, 1941. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) 氏神さま. Tokyo: Kōdansha, 1942.
• (As illustrator.) Yama no mura (ヤマノムラ). Tokyo: Kyōyōsha, 1942. (Japanese)
• Ano mura kono mura (あの村この村). Tokyo: Hakubunkan, 1943. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) (山国の風土記). Tokyo: Sanseidō, 1943. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Yoi ko no mura (ヨイコノムラ). Tokyo: Nōsangyoson Bunka Kyōkai, 1943. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Furusato no ehon: Fuyu no maki (ふるさとの絵本 冬の巻). Tokyo: Miyajima Shoten, 1946. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Furusato no ehon: Natsu no maki (ふるさとの絵本 夏の巻). Tokyo: Miyajima Shoten, 1947. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Furusato monogatari (ふるさと物語). Tokyo: Kōdansha, 1949. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Kaiko no mura (かいこの村). Iwanami Shashin Bunko 84. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1953. (Japanese) Reissued. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1988. ISBN 4-00-003528-2.
• (As photographer.) Minami Shinano no nōson no fujin (南信濃の農村の婦人). Iwanami Shashin Bunko 121. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1954. (Japanese) Reissued. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1988. ISBN 4-00-003526-6.
• Mura no fujin seikatsu (村の婦人生活). Tokyo: Shinhyōronsha, 1954. (Japanese) 2nd ed. Tokyo: Shinhyōronsha, 1956.
• (As photographer.) Ichinensei: Aru shōgaku kyōshi no kiroku (一年生 ある小学教師の記録). Iwanami Shashin Bunko 143. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1955. (Japanese) Reissued. Iwanami Shashin Bunko Akasegawa Genpei Serekushon. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 2007. ISBN 978-4-00-028209-3.
• Nōka no shiki(農家の四季). Tokyo: Ie-no-Hikari Kyōkai, 1961. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator and writer.) Warabe-uta(わらべうた). Tokyo: Rironsha, 1966. (Japanese)
• Inadani o kaku (伊那谷を描く). Iida, Nagano: Shūbunsha.
  • 1. 1967.
  • 2. 1968.
  • 3.
  • 4. 1970.
  • 5. 1972.
• Mura no shashin sensei (むらの写真先生). Tokyo: Ie-no-Hikari Kyōkai, 1968. (Japanese)
• (As writer and illustrator.) Nihon no kaki no ki (二ほんのかきのき). Tokyo: Fukuinkan, 1969. (Japanese) Reprinted until at least as recently as 1994; later printings are ISBN 4-8340-0204-7.
• (As illustrator.) Shizen no naka de (自然の中で). Muku Hatojū Zenshū (i.e. the collected works of Hatojū Muku) 11. Tokyo: Popura-sha, 1969. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) 山の風っ子. Tokyo, 1969. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Aru sanson no Shōwa shi: Shinshū Achi-mura 39-nen: Shashin-kiroku-shū (ある山村の昭和史 信州阿智村39年 写真記録集). Nagano: Shinano-ji, 1975. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Gen jiito fushigi na mura (源じいとふしぎな村). Shinsaku Ehon Nihon no Minwa 10. Tokyo: Akane Shobō, 1975. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) 胸にともる灯. Tokyo: Chikuma Shobō, 1975.
• (As writer and illustrator.) Kaiko (かいこ). Tokyo: Fukuinkan, 1976. (Japanese)
• (As writer and illustrator.) Shinshū imadani no okashi (信州伊那谷のお菓子). Nagano: Shinanoji, 1980. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Furusato to Nōgyō o Minaosu Nōkyō Ehon Shirīzu (ふるさとと農業を見直す農協絵本シリーズ). Iida, Nagano: Iida Chūō Nōgyō Kyōdō Kumiai. (Japanese)
  • Ishi no kataribe: Mura no rekishi o kangaeru hon (石の語り部 むらの歴史を考える本). 1981.
  • Mura no ishibumi: Nōkyō no rekishi o kangaeru hon むらの碑 農協の歴史を考える本). 1982.
  • Irori: Nōka no kurashi o kangaeru hon (いろり 農家のくらしを考える本. 1983.
  • Morai buro: Nōka no kurashi o kangaeru hon (もらい風呂 農家のくらしを考える本). 1984.
  • Kobashi yasumi (こばし休み むらの仕来たりを考える本その1). 1985.
• (As writer and illustrator.) Shinano warabe uta (信濃わらべうた). Tokyo: Arisu-kan, 1983. (Japanese)
• (As writer and illustrator.) Tanabata matsuri (たなばたまつり). Tokyo: Fukuinkan Shoten, 1985. (Japanese)
• (As writer and illustrator.) Kaiko (かいこ). Tokyo: Fukuinkan Shoten, 1985. ISBN 4-8340-0473-2. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Kowashimizu (こわしみず). Kiyose, Tokyo: Kiyose-shi Kyōdo Hakubutsukan, 1985. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Furusato o minaosu ehon (ふるさとを見直す絵本). Tokyo: Nōsangyoson Bunka Kyōkai, 1986. (Japanese)
  • 4. Mushi fūji (虫封じ). ISBN 4-540-86054-2.
  • 5. Ishi no kataribe (石の語り部). ISBN 4-540-86055-0.
  • 6. Mura no ishibumi: Kyōdō kumiai no rekishi (むらの碑 協同組合の歴史). ISBN 4-540-86056-9.
  • 7. Irori (いろり). ISBN 4-540-86057-7.
  • 8. Morai-buro: Nōka no kurashi 2 (もらい風呂 農家のくらし2). ISBN 4-540-86058-5.
  • 9. Kobashi yasumi (こばし休み). ISBN 4-540-86059-3.
  • 10. Mura matsuri (むら祭り むらの仕来たり2). ISBN 4-540-86060-7.
• (As illustrator.) Inadani no sanson seikatsushi (伊那谷の山村生活史). Matsumoto, Nagano: Kyōdo Shuppansha, 1988. ISBN 4-87663-107-7. (Japanese)
• (As photographer and writer.) Furusato no Shōwa-shi: Kurashi no hen'yō: Gurafikku repōto (ふるさとの昭和史 暮らしの変容 グラフィック・レポート). Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1989. ISBN 4-00-009832-2. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Kumagai Motoichi sakuhinshū: Ichinensei to sono ato (熊谷元一作品展 一年生とその後). JCII Photo Salon Library 13. Tokyo: JCII, 1992. (Japanese)
• (As artist.) Kumagai Motoichi no sekai: Gashū (熊谷元一の世界 画集). Matsumoto, Nagano: Kyōdo Shuppansha, 1992. ISBN 4-87663-180-8. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Shōnen no Inadani (少年の伊那谷). Nagano: Shinano Mainichi Shinbunsha, 1992. ISBN 4-7840-9206-4. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Mura no ichinen (村の一年). Shashin de miru Nihon Seikatsu Zubiki. Tokyo: Kōbundō, 1993. ISBN 4-335-50019-X. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator.) Bāchan no Inadani no mukashibanashi (〓ばぁちゃんの伊那谷の昔ばなし). Iida, Nagano: Minami Shinshū Shinbunsha, 1993. ISBN 4-943981-04-6. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Kumagai Motoichi shashin zenshū (熊谷元一写真全集). Matsumoto, Nagano: Kyōdo Shuppansha, 1994. (Japanese)
  • 1. Senzenhen (戦前編). ISBN 4-87663-248-0.
  • 2. Sengohen 1 (戦後編 1). ISBN 4-87663-249-9.
  • 3. Sengohen 2 (戦後編 2). ISBN 4-87663-250-2.
  • 4. Inadani no matsuri (伊那谷の祭り). ISBN 4-87663-251-0.
• (As writer and illustrator.) Omoide no Komaba (思い出の駒場). Matsumoto, Nagano: Kyōdo Shuppansha, 1994. ISBN 4-87663-266-9. (Japanese)
• なずな花咲く. Iida, Nagano: Minami Shinshū Shinbunsha Shuppankyoku, 1996.
• (As photographer.) Kumagai Motoichi (熊谷元一). Nihon no Shashinka 17. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1997. ISBN 4-00-008357-0. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Kiyose no 365 nichi (清瀬の365日). Kiyose, Tokyo: Kiyose-shi, 1999. (Japanese)
• (As writer.) Natsukashi no shōgaku ichinensei (なつかしの小学一年生). Tokyo: Kawade Shobō Shinsha, 2001. ISBN 4-309-72708-5. (Japanese)
• 50-sai ni natta ichinensei (五十歳になった一年生). Funabashi: Kumagai Motoichi to Ichinensei no Kai, 2001. (Japanese)
• Sansoku no waraji (三足のわらじ). Iida, Nagano: Minami Shinshū Shinbunsha Shuppankyoku, 2003. (Japanese)
• Utsushi-tsuzukete 69-nen: Ōchi-mura–Achi-mura: Shōwa, Heisei (写しつづけて69年: 會地村-阿智村 昭和・平成). Achi-mura, Nagano: Kumagai Motoichi Shashin Dōgakan, 2003. (Japanese)
• (As writer and illustrator.) Jiicha no kodomo no koro (じいちゃの子どものころ). Tokyo: Fuzanbō Intānashonaru, 2005. ISBN 4-902385-12-0. (Japanese)
• (As illustrator and photographer.) Ichinensei no toki sensō ga hajimatta: Warera kokumin gakkō funsenki (一年生のとき戦争が始まった われら国民学校奮戦記). Tokyo: Nōsangyoson Bunka Kyōkai, 2005. ISBN 4-540-04358-7. (Japanese)
• Shashinka Kumagai Motoichi to media no jidai: Shōwa no kiroku/kioku(写真家・熊谷元一とメディアの時代 昭和の記録/記憶). Tokyo: Seikyūsha, 2005. ISBN 4-7872-7205-5. (Japanese)
• (As writer and illustrator.) Kodomo sekai no gen-fūkei (子ども世界の原風景). Iida: Shin'yōsha, 2007. ISBN 978-4-88242-191-7. (Japanese)
• (As photographer.) Shinshū Shōwa no gen-fūkei: Kumagai Motoichi Hakuju kinen shashinshū (信州・昭和の原風景 熊谷元一白寿記念写真集). Nagano: Issōsha Shuppan, 2008. ISBN 978-4-902842-41-8. (Japanese)

Notes

1. ↑ Motoichi is the reading of 元一 supplied by Kumagai Motoichi Shashin Dōgakan (although this uses Kunrei/Nihon rather than Hepburn romanization and thus spells it Motoiti) and Nihon no shashinka (日本の写真家) / Biographic Dictionary of Japanese Photography (Japanese) (Tokyo: Nichigai Associates, 2005; ISBN 4-8169-1948-1). According to Keiko Suzuki (鈴木佳子, Suzuki Keiko), "Kumagai Motokazu" (Japanese), 328 Outstanding Japanese Photographers (日本写真家事典, Nihon shashinka jiten; Kyoto: Tankōsha, 2000; ISBN 4-473-01750-8), p.114, the reading is Motokazu Kumagai (Motokazu Kumagai).
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Kumagai chronology, Achi village website.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Suzuki, "Kumagai Motokazu", p.114.
4. ↑ Map, address, telephone number, etc.
5. ↑ "熊谷元一さんが死去 (Kumagai Motoichi's death)". Minamishinshu. 9 November 2010. 

External links

• Website of the Kumagai gallery (Japanese)