MORIYAMA-7

Daido Moriyama is a Japanese photographer known for portraying the contrast of traditional values and modern society in post-war Japan. He was born on October 10, 1938, and often visit the city of Yokosuka, which is home to an American naval base. His black and white pictures can make one feel unsettled or dark. The photograph I choose was named “Stray Dog” and as the name says, the photograph was of a rugged and abandoned dog. It was taken in 1971 in Misawa. The studium of this picture was the dark side of urban life. A lot of Moriyama’s pictures feature this element and idea of darkness and urban life. The picture is a bit grainy and blurry which adds to that unsettling feeling. It reflects a harsher perspective of the reality than we assume. Unlike other photographers that may take pictures to convey messages, Moriyama is more so of an explorer. From his pictures, you see the exploration into the different less-seen parts of the city. The punctum of this picture for me was the unnerving nature and piercing look of the dog. If I were to see this picture within matters of seconds and had to visualize it in head, I would depict a wolf. A wild beast. At the same time, the stare of the dog made me feel like it was looking into me. This made me believe that Moriyama might have taken a picture like this to draw a connection between humans and this lost creature. To put it in other words, from this picture I believe that like this dog, we wander in this harsh society looking for a place that would welcome me. In this big world that holds countless possibilities and danger, we are lost. We would have a similar aggression like this dog had in this picture as we would to strangers. There is also this other perspective that the dog is like those who don’t fit in. In our impression, dogs are adorable creatures and man’s best friend but this stray dog overthrows that idea. This is another idea that frequently appears in his photographs, the “different” ones. Perhaps the word outcast is too harsh in this case but in my experience, this stray dog can also convey a similar meaning. In Moriyama’s photographs, I find that he often depicts the messy and bold views in society and to me, there is a lot of beauty in it like “Stray Dog”. It highlights the erotics and the unconventional beauty of society. Not to mention, his pictures are mysterious and contain this thrill of not knowing what will happen next.