Kyoichi Sawada was born February 22nd, 1936 and died October 28th, 1970. He is a Pulitzer Prize winning photographer who took many gruesome and painful documentary-style photographs during the Vietnam war (bio).
The photo above is one of his two photos selected as the "World Press Photo of the Year" in 1965 (world press). The other photo won in 1966 and was the image of a Viet Cong being dragged behind a personnel carrier.
Kyoichi was killed October 28th, when the car he and his news bureau's chief were riding in was shot while riding through Vietnam. Both were dragged to a field and shot repeatedly (journalists memorial).
This photographer was a journalist/documentary style photographer and did not directly represent Japan with his photography work. Although one might want to point out that by taking such direct photographs of victims during wartime, he himself is a criminal for not helping the individuals that are the subjects of his photography. However, in no way does this represent Japan. From previous photo-history study, I have come to understand that there are many photographers from around the world who do this exact same style of hands-off photography. He tries to act as the un-seen force documenting the actions and events of the Vietnam war. His subjects are the victims of the war, the innocents that have been infamously harmed by the events and mistakes of both parties taking part in the war.
I believe that this type of photography work is extremely difficult, because the photographer has to be torn between capturing the perfect shot and helping the people he is victimizing by taking pictures of them. It is cruel, in many ways, to be the hands-off photographer who takes the picture and lets "nature take its course." It provides the public with solid image of the horror of war, and yet, leaves the photographer with a sense of guilt. That is to say, only if the photographer really is completely hands-off.
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Interesting choice. Sawada certainly has some powerful images. The challenges he faced in his type of photography are not that different than what anthropologists face in similar settings. Tough moral and ethical decisions must be made. I'd like to read more of your thoughts on this subject.
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I miss him. A great combat photographer but a soft-spoken quiet man.... always deep in his thinking. I was his colleague at UPI's Asian headquarters in HK in the late 60's.
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