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●Acknowledgement First of all, we could not realize this workshop without the support of Mr. Carl Mirwald. He is Hashiguchi’s friend and supported his work in Berlin. ( He is on the cover of Hashiguchi’s book, “New Berlin Story : Volume two”. He is described as “Fritz” in the book.） He teaches art at the Gymnasium in Germany and suggest us to hold the workshop at his school. At first, we tried to hold the workshop only within the scale that we could handle. But because of the great contribution of Ms. Keiko Goerish-Oshima who approved of the aim of our activity, we could get the sponsorship from Willkommen bei der Deutsch-Japanischen Gesellschaft in Augsburg und Schwaben e. V. and the Japanese Consulate in Munich. (Willkommen bei der Deutsch-Japanischen Gesellschaft in Augsburg und Schwaben e. V. bore the travel fee for Hashiguchi and Hoshino, the expense for the opening and so on. The Japanese Consulate bore the hotel fee for three staff and promotional cost.）Hypovereins Bank（Hypobank）provided the exhibition site. Regarding the other expenses such as the cost for production or travel fee, we used the contribution from the APOCC members. All staff participated at their own expense (We could provide them with part of their hotel fee equally). Canon provided the equipment and materials used in the workshop such as camera, printer, ink and papers. The exhibition print for Hashiguchi and Hoshino were provided by Fujifilm. The exhibition print for the participant in Tokyo workshop were provided by Ms. Mikiko Shibahara, photographer. All student staffs are from Kyoto Seika University. They participated in this workshop at their own expenses. Prof. Ken Nishi, philosopher, Faculty of Humanities, helped us a lot with the contact to the students and coordinating the schedule of exam. Last but not least, we received a lot of support from APPOC supporter and many people who has interests in our activity. We would like to express our sincerest gratitude to everyone who gave us considerable cooperation for this workshop. ●About Augsburg Augsburg is located in the Bayern Bundesland, southern Germany, and it is an old town that has the history from the Roman Empire. It’s on the Romantic road and in the distance of 50km, about 1-hour’s distance by train, from Munich. Many Japanese tourists visit there. The old part of the town has a beautiful landscape with a stone pavement centering on the city hall. It is a small, but beautiful town. The population of the Augsburg is about 500 thousands, and 10% of total is the foreigner. ●About the Gymnasium The processor of Jacob-Fugger Gymnasium is Augsburg State School of Economy and 70% of whole students are boys. Because of the advantage of the economy, many graduates go into the financial profession. Before the Nazis took power, one-third of the students were Jewish. In Germany, students divide into three kinds of school, Gymnasium, Real Schule, and Haupt Schule, according to the result of nation-wide exam. To enter the university, they must graduate from Gymnasium. In Germany, school fee of national university is free, so not every student can enter the university. Therefore, students have to compete hard to get the opportunity. This time, 23 students, 16 boys and 7 girls, of Jacob-Fugger Gymnasium participated in the workshop. Classified by the grade: 9th grade -4 10th grade -7 11th grade -8 12th grade -3 Graduate -1 ●The departure day The most difficulty before the departure is the check-in of the laggage. We have to carry enormous amount of luggage for every workshop. Our luggage for this workshop is the equipment for the workshop (23 digital cameras for students, battery charger, 5 cameras for staff, 2 digital single-lens reflex cameras for Hashigushi, 3 printers and a transformer), 3 computers, about 50 photographs of Hashiguchi and Hoshino and photographic collection as the gift for supporter. While our luggage was put on the scale one after another, we kept staring at the figure on the scale with our heart beating. Finally, the person at the check-in counter said, “It seems we had informed from the Consulate in Germany. We accept this luggage without over-charge.” It seemed that the Consulate in Munich had informed previously, we didn’t have to pay overcharge. We really appreciated their cooperation. ●Days before the workshop We met Ms. Fumiko Toda at the hotel on July 17. She lives in Berlin and studies art management. After the brief meeting withCarl at the cafe, we had dinner and went to bed early. Next day, we learned how to use camera and printer. We need to be acquainted with the use of all equipment before workshop. Staff learned the use of digital equipment very quickly. In India, we allowed students to take photo till five o’clock. After that, we collected cameras and CF cards, and print photos at the hotel. We could do this because most students live near school. However, in Augsburg, some students live far from the school. Therefore, we decided to allow them to bring camera home and collect it next morning. ●About the task of staff We’d like to introduce the workflow of the staff. Collect camera from student. →Pull out battery and CF card. Each person in charge recharges the battery and prints photos (index print and photo print). →Write student’s name, number, camera number, date and data number on every photo. →After the print out, transfer the data from CF card to the computer. (Because we gave one CF card per one students, we have to delete the data everyday.) →Put the photos into each student’s bag in order to hand to them next day. →After print out and data transfer finished, other staff confirm and check on the list. →Another staff reconfirm, just in case. →Everything completed, set the battery and delete CF card data. →Go to bed. |
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| 23 Participants of Photography Workshop (Click the bell mark  to see each participants’ work.)
Our workshop started on the last Sunday before summer vacation because students of Gymnasium are busy studying and had no extra time except the last week of the first semester. 23 students, 16 boys and 7 girls (4 students in 9th grade, 7 in 10th grade, 8 in 11th grade, 3 in 12th grade and one graduate), participated in this workshop. We began preparing for the workshop from 1 o’clock. We removed all desks and put chairs in circle. Surprisingly, students began to come in soon after that. We confirm each student’s name and made name plate by packing tape. To memorize each one’s name quickly, we wrote their name in Katakana and staff’s name in alphabet. Workshop began at two o’clock. “First of all, we would like to ask you some questions to know each of you.” We began our workshop by asking them some questions. It is not only for us to know them, but also for students to know what their friends think. We asked them following questions:
What impressed me most was that many students answered their most important thing was family. Because my image of “Germany” and “German” was people living freely in Berlin, apart from parents and hometown. So I imagined that many people has opposition towards family or family as community. Also, when we held the workshop in Japan and asked the same question, as far as I remembered, there were no participant who answered family was most important. Though it may be the character of the conservative southern Germany or due to the environment where students live, we cannot rely on preconception. Without break, students kept listening to the friends’ story for two hours. We didn’t need to explain how to use camera because most students had used it before. We made following rules for the workshop. ●Each students is responsible for their own camera. Don’t handle it roughly. ●You may turn on the display, but keep it in mind that it will consume battery a lot. Stop shooting the photos when you use up battery. ●Don’t delete the photo even if you don’t like it, because something important may be included in what you think useless and something you don’t notice may come out on the photo. ●Take the photo of what remained in your mind or what makes you stop. Because the aim of this workshop is to find what you’re interested in and what is on your mind, don’t try to take good photos. ●The number of photo you can take per day is equally 25. Though digital tends to be thought as unlimited, please be conscious that there is a limit. ●Tomorrow, we will print the photos you took, and discuss it in the afternoon. Then you will go to photo shooting again. You don’t have to hurry, but if you finish earlier, please come back to the classroom and return the camera. We will stay here till 5 o’clock everyday. If you lives near the hotel, you can return your camera at the hotel. We finished the 1st day of the workshop.
Jakob-Fugger Gymnasium is in a quiet residential area, about 10 minutes from the Augsburg station on foot. Our hotel was near the station, so we bring all equipment to and from school everyday. Students gathered with the camera. Now, we’ve got to get down to business. Staffs check each camera with the list, remove the CF card to print, transfer the data to computer and recharge the battery simultaneously. In order to return camera to students quickly and also to avoid wasting paper and ink, rapidity and accuracy was required. While printing the photos, we had discussion with the students. We let them answer our questions freely by raising hand. Hashiguchi：Yesterday, when I asked “what do you think of from the word ‘photograph’ ?”,you answered that it is “ to stop the time”, “to remember”, “ to keep the emotion” and so on. Then, how do you define ‘art’? Joachim：I think it is the process of expressing something consciously by using tools like paint or camera. Peter：I think it is one way of communication. We can express the emotion without the word. That’s the Art. Benny：Art is individually different. It is something doesn’t need to be understood or liked by others. Andrea：Art is to express something can’t be explained by words. Someone may say that art is to put colors on the canvas, but other people will not admit it as art. We each have different definition of art. Christoph：It is the expression of emotion. It’s same in music or creating something. I think the process of expressing the emotion of the moment is art. Patrick：we can show something to people and make them moved by art. Hashiguchi：What I think beautiful, what Sarah thinks beautiful and what Dominic thinks beautiful are all different. I think that art is the emotion moved in your mind when you see something. What every one says beautiful is not necessarily beautiful for you. Please take the photos, remaining what makes you moved. Then, we decided to show the photo taken by the participant in the Tokyo workshop. They are in the same age and same condition. Each of them expressed their own world in the photos. We showed them because we think that the photos will tell what we would like to say more fluently than words. They were carefully looking at the photos of what Japanese people in the same age looked at and found out. Joachim：The detail I haven’t cared so far became the main character in the photo. It is interesting. Hashiguchi：What is not important to Joachim may be important to Louis, and what is not important to Louis is , on the other hand, important to Joachim. I would like you to find it. Melanie：What’s interesting to me is the difference between them. Someone took the photo of what I can notice, but others took the photo of what I didn’t notice. Andrea：It’s interesting that something trivial looks like meaningful. Hashiguchi：What is important to the photograph is the relationship with the object. Whether it is the object or people, distance to the object and the relationship is everything. Please keep it in your mind. After lunch, we handed the photos to students. We let them put photos on the desk, select them in one’s own point of view and make their own story. Then, looking at the photos, we have a conversation with each student, such as “why you throw away this photo?” or “This is your character” and so on. We’re going to do this over and over everyday. It will become the core of this workshop.
3rd day began by gathering the photo data and printing. As soon as printing finished, students start selecting the photos. But it takes so many time to print the photo of 23 students, we asked them to help us to prepare the frame of our (Hashiguchi and Hoshino) photos.
○Katharina is a beautiful girl who said “I like red because it is conspicuous. I like to attract other people’s attention” on the first day. However, contrary to her speech and behavior, her photos are very calm, somehow lonely and like the dusk of autumn. When Hashiguchi said “You are not only the beautiful girl”, we seemed to see tears shining in her eyes for a moment.
○Peter took the photos of his life with girlfriend. It was the world like movie. ○Dominic took the photos of his little sister. ○Bernhard went for a ride on his motorbike and took the photos of change of the appearance from sunset, night, to the morning like the road movie. We could clearly understand how he spent a day, seriously focusing on the photo. ○Benny went to the ruins of the former American military base. He took not only the photos of ruins, but without noticing, the light shining into it. ○Andrea is from the Kurds but stay at Nadine’s house because of family reasons. At first glance, it seemed that there are just the photos of her and her friend or the photo of something pretty lined without any order. But when rearranged it, distinctive, stinging tension run through her photos. Next day, she took 75 photos, three times of our limit, saying that “I know I shouldn’t do this, but I just couldn’t stop it”.
Today was the last day for students to take photos. In our workshop, usually, we spend at least 5 days to take photos, next 1 day to select, and last 1 day to exhibit. It is the minimum ideal of the time schedule. However, in Augsburg, as the opening party was fixed on Thursday, we should finished taking photos by Wednesday and start selection in order to make it for the exhibition. We had such a time limit. Also, it was the end-of term excursion day. It was the last week for the class at Gymnasium and students were going to receive the score on Friday. Carl, as the art teacher, couldn’t force them not to go on a excursion to participate in workshop. We decided to leave the participation to their own decision. When the results came out, it’s 8 people who went on an excursion. ・ Students who finished photo shooting start printing and selection for the exhibition. ・ After they finished selection by themselves, Hashiguchi help the selection by discussion. It is not simply to add the photos of 3rd day to the previous one, because the new photos may change the world they have created so far. Looking at the whole photos carefully, they select the photos again. ・ When selection finished, students will make the exhibition plan. The way of presentation is also important part of the work. They write the arrange plan, put the mark on the index, and hand it to us. That is all the work students have to do.
We asked Ms. Toda and Ms. Miyasaka to take some students who finished selection to Hypobank, the exhibition site, to confirm the number or size of the panel, exhibition place, and to check the wire. As we didn’t have time to eat lunch, everyone continued their work eating some bread or apple. Returned to the hotel, Ms. Ando, Ms. Ito and Ms. Miyasaka print the photos of students who went on the excursion, and the photos for the exhibition. With the help of Ms. Toda and Ms. Inoue, Hashigushi and Hoshino put the mat to the photos at the corridor. We could went to bed at nearly 4 o’clock in the morning.
●About our meal during the workshop During the workshop, only pleasure for the staff is meal. It is widely different from the places of workshop. We think that we can learn their culture through meal. In Bangalore, 2000, with the suggestion from the NGO, we asked the catering service and eat it with the students. We still remember that students who got in line for another helping many times and younger children who couldn’t participate in the workshop were looking enviously at the participant eating fully. In Vishakapatnam, 2002, school provided lunch (curry) to the student who couldn’t bring lunch from home. We could have the same delicious lunch together. Before the lunchtime, a lot of mothers gathered with the lunch for their children, and the street stand of ice candy also came. Students who have younger brother or sister had lunch with them. Everyday, lunchtime was lively like festival. In East Delhi, we held the workshop at temple. Most girls who participated in the workshop usually learned sewing there. Their sewing teacher cooked our lunch everyday. During the workshop, we could smell the good spice flavor. One day, we knew that it was a little girl who was cutting the vegetable in the kitchen, and also, that it was a mother of the participant who cooked that lunch. We really appreciated such a warn-hearted lunch. In Augsburg, school cafeteria and shops were closed due to the end-of the term. Because there weren’t any stores around the school, we reluctantly bring some bread or cheese from breakfast table to school. Regrettably, we couldn’t have happy lunchtime in Augsburg. As we still had a lot of work at the hotel, we had dinner near the hotel everyday. In Augsbrug, we ate Kebab (Turkish food) and Chinese day after day.
As the Opening party was going to start at 7 o’clock, we had to exhibit all the photos of students in Augsburg and Tokyo and photos of Hashiguchi and Hoshino till 7. We started to set up the hall from 8:45. Following is our workflow of the day. ・For students participated in an excursion yesterday, receive the photos of 4th day, and select the photos for exhibition. Hashiguchi help their selection through conversation. After the selection, write the exhibition plan, mark on the index and hand to us, and wait for the print. As one of the printers became out of order due to the overwork yesterday, we had to print with other two printers. ・At the same time, set the photos of Hashiguchi and Hoshino in a frame and prepare for exhibition. ・Students who have finished exhibition plan and print help the students who haven’t finished with selection and setting. ・After the frame setting, we asked Ms. Toda and Ms. Miyasaka to go to the exhibition hall for setting up. Students who are ready for the exhibition also go to the hall by themselves and start the setting. Other staff continues printing and helping the students with the selection. At this point of time, it was already afternoon. After all students finished selecting, Hashiguchi and Hoshino went to the exhibition hall. Ms. Ando, Ms. Inoue and Ms. Ito stayed in the classroom and continued printing.
After 6:30, Ms. Keiko Goerish-Oshima, who gave full support for this workshop, arrived with the staff of Japanese restaurant “Manyo” that is in charge of catering for the opening reception.
It was the long day and we all were totally exhausted. Return to the hotel, I couldn’t do anything but fall asleep on the bed. But… I woke up at about 4 in the morning, as remembered very important thing to do. Tomorrow, students will receive the score and go into vacance. Therefore, tomorrow will be the last day we can meet them. In India, we gave the printed photos and bring back only the data. But in Germany, as almost every student have computer at home, we decided to give each student not only the photos but also the CD of their photo data. So, I have to burn a CD-ROM for them. I took bath and sat in front of the computer again. I couldn’t sleep in the bed at this night.
Today was the last day we could meet all students. We could not believe that we had the opening party of the exhibition last night. Gradually, we really felt that the workshop was almost closing.
We took some time to exhibit photos again. Because students were to receive the scorebook of this semester at school, we didn’t have much time. Also, as Carl have told us that students were planning to hold a fare-well party for us, we let the students who had finished the display return to school and we will go after them later. Staff returned to the school again with the printer to print some photos again. When we arrived at the classroom, students had already been waiting for us with white sausages and pretzel, local special dish of the Southern Germany, and beer. It was the first and the last time for us to sit around the table with them. We suddenly became sad. We asked students to tell us what they feel right now after finishing the workshop? Benjamin: “It was really concentrated and meaningful time.” Sebastian: “Thank you for everyone. That’s all I can say.” Louis: “I have learned so many things for a week. I’d like to express my gratitude to the assistant. ” Michael: “I didn’t expect that photograph itself was such a deep thing. What we can take so easily is actually something so deep… I became interested in photos.” Simon: “I really had a good time.” Sarah: “It was a very short week for me. Thank you very much.” Peter: “It was really fun and I learned a lot. I think I will look at the photos differently from now on. And I have one more thing to ask Joji-san. Would you tell me what kind of criteria you used to select photos?” Hashiguchi: “It’s difficult to put this into words. I use intuition.” Bernhard: “You looked at photos and discovered it from totally different view point. It made me confused sometime, but I think it’s good to know that photo is very hard to deal with.” Peter. L: “I’d like to express my appreciation to the staff who helped our workshop. If there is a chance, I’d like to participate again.” Andrea: “I came to look at photos in totally different way. I could confront photos emotionally.” Daniela: “I was deeply moved in a good sense. First of all, I’d like to express my appreciation to the staff who helped us devotedly without making complaints and allowed us to do anything we like. I can’t do it like you. I was surprised that we both showed our emotion honestly and those emotions became connected. For the last couple of days, while I was walking in the town, my viewpoint changed and I felt like taking photo again. Thank you very much.” Nadine: “I have not enough eye for photos. I learned to look at it from the different viewpoint.” Katharina: “Recently, I came to look at the detail of the daily life that I hadn’t noticed before. I feel that my life has gained in breadth.” Dominic: “I had a lot of fun. Whatever I look at, I can find the motif.” Patrick: “When you asked what do you imagine from the word ‘photograph’ at the first discussion, I answered “fact” and “reality”. However, through this workshop, I came to look at photos in a different viewpoint. I noticed that I can see one’s nature through photos.” Previously, Patrick and Bernhard asked us, “Will you receive a reward or consideration by doing this workshop?”. When we answered, “We can’t receive a reward from anybody. We do this as a volunteer and our staff came here with paying the cost of passage and the expenses during the stay by themselves”, they were stuck for a word for a moment and said “thank you very much”. Joachim: “I have seldom taken the photos so far. I think I could discover something for the first time. I was really surprised that I could take such a deep thing and discover so many thing by using such a simple equipment.” Benny: “I haven’t been concentrated to face to something for a long time. I met adult who deals with me so kindly and seriously for the first time. It was just like we knew each other from a long time ago. I have never met such affectionate person like you. Thank you so much.” Each staff made a last speech. As it was after the words from students, some staff was filled with emotion and broke into tears. Peter, Bernhard, Peter. L and Benny turned their face down and wipe away tears. Just as seeing them, I became almost cry, but tried to control myself by taking memo. Hashiguchi said, “Though I’m easily given tears in such a situation, I will try hard to make the last speech.” Hashiguchi: “I think that everyone found out something new by exhibiting the photos. We used camera to confirm our emotion and original form of emotion in this workshop. From tomorrow, please try to communicate with yourself, your friends and your town without camera or photo. I’m sure you can meet something different. You can take photo or create something without camera. Replace the camera with something universal. Please care for the sense you developed through this workshop in your daily life.” “And also, though I have told you many times, you sometimes have anxiety by comparing yourself to others. But, please be confident, because all of you have something brilliant in yourself. Also, please don’t forget that whether you have such a brilliant thing, it will easily disappear if you stay lazy and don’t confront something consciously.” We left the classroom and took photos with students. Hashiguchi took a portrait of each student. Like this, the fulfilling week with the students ended.
For me, this workshop was a good opportunity to look at the people’s emotion and the motion of their feeling. I have been doing a part time job at the university library for three years. My most favorite job was to organize the bookshelf of the photographic collection, where I saw the photos of Mr. George Hashiguchi for the first time. Whenever I got there, I turned the pages of his book little by little with my heart beating. I was attracted by his photo because I could catch a glimpse of individual “living” from every human being who came out in his photo. I became interested in “human being” after I entered the university. Since I rarely experienced the warmth or charm of people in my childhood, I always try to find out the existence of people or distance to me and look for something. I have traveled to many places and met various people. And by looking at the way they lives, I tried to find out the way human should be or the way of my life. The reason I was attracted by Mr. Hashiguchi’s photos is, I think, they linked to what I thought in such point. One day, Mr. Hashiguchi held the report session about the India workshop at Kyoto Seika University and I got the chance to hear the live voice of “Mr. Hashiguchi who took those photos”. As I heard about the India workshop, I felt something special in this activity. I was interested in the activity that students look at their everyday life by using camera and think about it again. I can’t explain it well in words, but their activity linked to my sense or emotion that I tried to find out. I hope that this workshop will be considered as important and will continue from now on, and also, I have the feeling that I could have participated in it if I had a chance. Then, 6months after that, fortunately, I heard that they were looking for volunteer staff for the workshop in Germany. The student staff didn’t know what our job would be at the workshop till we arrived at Augsburg. At the workshop, I was in charge of printing and organizing the photos of students and processing the photo data. I also supported the setting of the exhibition site. Though it was only three days for students to take photo in this workshop, the photos they took always reflect their character, some story and emotion variously. These were born as the photos from the printer we handled. It was exciting for both students and us. Actually, our work was really hard. But I was often attracted by the world beyond the students’ eye and it made me think about their feeling or intention. Looking at the change of their inside and comparing it with my sense of value, I feel that something can’t described in words was born in myself too. I didn’t have a chance to listen to the student’s feeling towards their photos due to the language barrier. However, since each photo told their emotion that can’t explained in words, I could look at their feeling by just standing in front of the photos. It was an amazing space. When I put everyone’s photos on display, I found each student’s world expressed on the wall and I felt closeness to them. I couldn’t believe that I met them for the first time just few days ago. I think it is because of the well-filled time we shared each other. My job at the workshop was just simple but I also learned a lot from the preparation and the work after the workshop. Including those time, every process of the workshop was the workshop for me. I can’t express the difference of myself before and after the workshop. But I feel that my uncertain feeling that had been inside of myself and its existence was lighted up. I know that I will keep searching to go beyond this, but I hope I can find out something by taking various actions and organize little by little to express it well some day.
I participated in thins workshop as a staff. I moved from my hometown Chiba to Kyoto to attend the university. The reason I took part in this workshop was a leaflet that I received at the philosophy class by Professor Ken Nishi, philosopher. It was the invitation of volunteer staff for the workshop in Germany. I have known about the workshop by looking at the website of APOCC. When I saw the website, I was moved because it was the workshop that practice what I have been thinking about. As soon as I received that leaflet, I sent in an entry by e-mail. The reason I participated in this workshop was, in a word, that I would like to be involved with the people who try to “make a relationship”. I have been avoiding to have relationship for a long time. Although I actually live a life in the relationship, I didn’t notice it and, in a way, tried to stay out of it. For me, to participate in the workshop was the practice of the relationship. My job at the workshop was, mainly, the printing. Since we print the photos of 23 students with 3 printers, we had to process it efficiently. We wrote the student’s name, number and camera number on the photo and input the printing data on the printer. It was simple but we couldn’t take our eyes off. Therefore, we didn’t know what kind of conversation did Mr. Hashiguchi and Ms. Hoshino have with the student at all. We could borrow the single-lens reflex camera and have some time to go to the river or walk around the town. But I spent this time in a half-hearted feeling, because I didn’t know how to treat it, whether it is a part of my job or totally free time. Looking at the photo I took then, I noticed that there were no photos of people. That is because I was reluctant to ask people to take photos. Also, as I have looked at the students’ photo for a long time, I felt like influenced by their work and couldn’t take the photo at all. We didn’t have time to take photo during the workshop. When I look at the other staff’s photo, I found that they took a really different photo even though they spent the same time as me. I think I have closed myself towards various things without noticing. I felt that I looked at people separating from me, with the feeling like “I don’t understand others and I don’t want to feel that I understand.” It was reflected in my photos. Since my attention was attracted by my inside conflict, I didn’t feel that I could understand each other with the student at Gymnasium. I wrote previously that my reason of participation was to practice the relationship. That is not only to look at myself but also to share something with someone. But it couldn’t go well. It’s because I couldn’t do it by myself that I would like to look at the relationship between the people in a place that strangers explore the emotion through taking photos. And, I could see certain change in their photos. There were some students who came to see us off at the station, and they said “thank you for coming”. I think I could see Mr. Hashiguchi, Ms. Hoshino and other staff exchanged their feeling with the students. Though I couldn’t get an real impression, I could believe there was something. That is what I got from this workshop. I would like to express my gratitude to Mr. Hashiguchi and Ms. Hoshino who allowed me to participate in their work. And, to the other staff, I could work there because of you. Thank you very much. I will continue to develop this experience and what I learned that I can’t write enough here from now on.
Report of the workshop in Augsburg by Mio Miyasaka During the workshop, I was mainly in charge of printing and support for setting the exhibition site. It was my first summer vacation in the university, and I was looking for something to do. I’d like to be a cartoonist and “children” is one of my themes. I was interested in the point “the photo for children” at first, and started to read “Classroom of Conversation”. Though I imagined 10-15 years children in my mind, they were actually in the same age with me, 19 years old. And when I finished reading, I came to have the feeling that I’d like to be in the place and help to create this place. I was empathized with their aim, “to share the pleasure of living through the expression, not through the object”, and it made me think what is the “expression” again. Also, it helps me a lot with my theme. Like this, there were some reasons to participate. But most biggest reason was, “I just couldn’t stop it”. There are people doing such activity and I have a chance to take part in. I would like to help to create this place with them. When my participation decided, Mr. Hashiguchi told me, “Try to participate without preconception. If you don’t understand during the workshop, you will understand naturally later”. I didn’t understand the meaning of his words at that time. But after the workshop began, I didn’t have time to look back what happened every day. It seemed to be long, but actually, when I realized, the exhibition has already started. By seeing many audience has come to the place where I had worked some time ago, I felt at a loss because I had a feeling of being neglected, not a feeling of achievement. Next morning, I still had strange feeling, I didn’t know whether it ended or not. When I stand in front of everyone at the farewell party, suddenly I remembered many things during the workshop, and I really felt it was, at last, ended. Then, I became full of various feeling that can’t be explained in a word such as happy or sad, and I couldn’t say anything but moved to tears. But when I looked up and saw everyone’s face, I felt that they understand my feeling even though I couldn’t express it in words. I didn’t create any work directly by taking photos. But I found that I could create the space of exhibition with them by supporting them to take photos. At the moment, I could communicate with the students through the photos. I think I couldn’t feel like this without actually participating in the workshop. I couldn’t understand it just by reading book. Such experience is the biggest thing I’ve got through the workshop. It’s amazing that, through the photo I printed everyday, the students who was unfamiliar to me at first became the one in front of me, not someone on the name list. Right now, I have some feeling to every one of them. I think it is same for the students. The students apart from each other on the first day became friends and helped me together. I wish I could speak with them more, but I will never forget that I could know them through the photos even though I couldn’t understand their language. I really appreciated the opportunity to walk through the town that I may just pass by in a usual trip, and to meet them living there. It was a really precious experience for me, not only as an individual but also as the one trying to express something, to look at the process of creating the work and to actually create something by myself. I learned a lot from Mr. Hashiguchi and Ms. Hoshino’s attitude as professional. Now, I have a new question, which is “what is to express for me?” and still searching for the answer. It’s the question I should always confront with from now on, and I’m sure this experience will be some help. Thank you very much.
・Title：The report of the workshop in Germany ・Place：Kyoto Seika University cafeteria (Yuyu-Kan) Yuyu-Kan 8:00～20:30 Last day : ～13:00 ・Date：December 15, Monday ～ December 20, Saturday ・Related exhibition：screening of the color slide “The workshop from our point of view” December 18, Thursday 18：10～ at Leimei-Kan（the opposite side of Yuyu-Kan）classroom #202 ・planned and organived by: Ayumi Inoue, Ayumi Ito and Mio Miyasaka. - Kyoto Seika University 137 Kino-cho, Iwakura, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8588
We tried the artwork through the camera with boys and girls living in a different culture or religion in Tokyo, 4 cities in India and Augsburg. And from this workshop in Augsburg, We could become confident of our method. Since it is the first experience for the children in India to communicate with foreigner and to take the photo with camera, workshop was full of refreshing surprise. Of course, I’m sure that, beyond the fact that it is rare to meet each other, we could have equal relationship as human with them. It is true that we could have a lot of good chance to think about ourselves by communicating with them. However, I always felt the difference in culture we could experience in a daily life. Though that is the very reason why there must be something we can do, I always felt that I would like to relate them equally beyond the difference in age. While thinking like that, I held the camera workshop, same as India and Tokyo, in Augsburg last summer. They live in a more matured culture than us and the expressional work or art exists very close to them. In other words, they are the people who have a surplus in their life. They live in a highly competitive society and a strict class society in which people can’t slide easily. We tried to communicate with them who live in such a circumstance through the camera this summer. There was certainly a language barrier between us. However, although I don’t remember when it happened, I noticed that, from one moment, the feeling such as “they are German and I try to communicate with foreigners” has gone away from my mind. People I faced with were not German or foreigner, but was Andrea, Melanie, Benny and Patrick, and I didn’t care about their ages. Each one’s appearance was, to me as Japanese, like prince or princess in a story, but, although its common, I could feel that they each have some problems that they can’t tell others through the world they have created in their photos. When I told them what I noticed from their photos, the students who had been pretended to be nothing began to speak from their heart. I think that they maybe realized that they had controlled their emotion unconsciously or consciously in order not to be eliminated from the society they belong to. Though the self-discovery is also the beginning of distress, it is true that at least some students discovered the existence of the closed, original emotion that was not influenced by anyone. Meanwhile, since the social problem was apparent in India, in the developing countries and the area with the conflict, I think that they would easily get attention by people or society. However, in the developed countries like Japan, U.S.A, and European countries, since the society have become complicated, their problems are not easy to see. Even though there are no hunger or disaster, it doesn’t mean there is no problem at all. I could realize such an obvious fact through the workshop in Augsburg. I could confirm that our workshop was effective in wherever places as far as there are people and their life. We gained one more thing in Augsburg. That is the emotion we have when touching something exists in everyone. The boys and girls in India showed their various worlds to me and made us surprised. I think I did look at what they expressed honestly, but I can’t give my words that such surprise didn’t include unconscious prejudice like “children in India took photos like this”. However, in Augsburg, though language is different, since our cultures are close to each other, I think I could look at the world they expressed more naturally. At the farewell party on the last day, Hoshino told them. “You don’t have to be in a hurry right now by looking at other people’s work, because people who think themselves to have nothing will never be in a hurry. Something will be born in some kind of form in the future. Keep trying and wait until the time comes. “ It’s just like Hoshino to say, “keep trying and wait” By sharing the time with students in four cities of India, Tokyo and Augsburg in Germany which has a different religion, culture and social circumstances, I realized that the expression or art are not only in some special people, but it depends whether they could have such a chance till now or not. And, to create such opportunity or chance is the role of us and everyone supported APOCC.
While I wrote the report of the workshop in Augsgurg, I kept thinking about APOCC’s vision for the future. As I described previously, we established APOCC to continue our artwork. Thanks to everyone’s cooperation, we (Hashiguchi and Hoshino) didn’t have to bear the cost for the workshop in Augsburg. Since we had spent a lot of time and money by ourselves so far, it really helped us a lot. However, it is true that we could finish our workshop successfully with the help of the staff who participated in our workshop at their own expenses. Not only they beard the cost, they worked very hard from early morning till late at night. I felt, and still feel guilty to staff who participated at their expenses. However, on the other hand, I think over and decide that to buy the experience by money is the necessary process for the people looking for the way of living from now on. I’m thankful that they have participated very seriously. They still help us with filing the report. During the workshop, we, not only the students but staffs as well were in the excitement. It’s like a “festival” in a sense. Therefore, I feel that the time after the festival is really important. As well as the communication with the students participated in the workshop, we will realize what we feel and think by relating to them as time goes by. Otherwise, the workshop will end just as the “festival”, which means only the work. What we should pay attention mostly in the artwork like we do is that we must not let us just finish the program. Though it seemed, at a glance, to repeat the same activity such as taking photos with camera, the feeling of the participant changes everyday. It is same for us. In order to communicate with people who each have a different emotion, we use our strength and we can’t eliminate necessary steps. And such a circumstance means that two kinds of workshop are in progress. One is the communication with the students in Augsburg, and the other is the workshop that staff participated at their own expenses make this experience to one’s own thing with helping the workshop. We would like to keep this form from now on. Now, I will move the subject back to the future of APOCC. From the beginning of this year, we started preparation for the next workshop. It will be held in around July again, at, probably, Varanasi, India. (Regarding the contents of the workshop, we will inform you later including some new option). What I want to tell you here is that we can’t hold the workshop many times in a year. Although the workshop itself is only one month, we need plenty of time in order not to end it just as the event without lower the quality. When we established APOCC, we would like to hold the workshop at as many places as possible and communicate with many people. However, at this point of time, we assume that it will be a realistic decision to hold the workshop once per year. In Augsburg, except the supporter, Canon provided the camera and other equipment. Above all, my friend and the art teacher Carl Mirwald helped us a lot. Also, Willkommen bei der Deutsch-Japanischen Gesellschaft in Augsburg und Schwaben e. V. and the Counsil in Munich offered the financial support. Regarding our next India workshop, we’re going to accept the offer from the Japan Foundation. What I would like to mention is that thankfully, many people and organization have helped us. We’d like to value the fact that we could have already held the workshop what we like to do. Meanwhile, one foreign affiliated corporation sympasized with my idea or way of living and offered some help more than one year ago. I really appreciated their offer and had meetings to accept it. However, as I mentioned before, I came to be sure that we could continue our workshop in a current condition. It would be best for APOCC to become large and have economic comfort, but it will involve some risks. I’m not sure, but there is some possibility that the quality of the workshop will change. However, we hope that we will be able to pay a salary to the people who help us without any compensation right now. (I think it is the very important issue to continue our activity.) As some of you may have already noticed, we have moderated our approach to increase the supporter of APOCC. That is because our ability is limited and we’d like to use such a limited ability to communicate with the people who participated in Augsburg workshop at their own expenses, not to expand APOCC. That is, in a long span, human resources will be more important and necessary than anything else. Let me remind you once again that what we would like to do right now is not to expand APOCC, but to hold the workshop steadily as far as we can with respecting everyone who currently support our activity, and wait for the growth of the staff. Since almost a year ago, I have received some requests from the Agency for Cultural Affairs and request for the workshop and the photograph exhibition from the European countries as well. And there are actually many people who have interests in my work or the activity of APOCC. With the respect for those facts, I would like to achieve the steady results with the people who support APOCC right now, and enrich the staff. Thank you for your continuous support.
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