Akihiko Okamura: The Memories of Others | Photo Museum Ireland
British soldier carrying a door, Bombay Street, West Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1969. © Estate of Akihiko Okamura / © 佐藤純子
Written by Trip Avis
War photography is characterized by its solemn, respectful, and melancholy tone. A photojournalist’s mission is ambiguous: do they seek to glorify the victor with a propagandist slant or condemn the violent hostility of either combatant? Whether intentional or not, the medium conveys the severity of the conflict and the tragedy of human loss for the gain of a ruling regime. As a Japanese expatriate living in Ireland, Akihiko Okamura defied this dour conception of conflict-adjacent photojournalism. During the Troubles, which lasted for thirty years and were marked by religious and ethnic conflict, he developed a strong connection to his adopted homeland. He depicted life in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland with sensitivity and nuance. Okamura’s extensive photographic efforts in Ireland have gone largely unrecognized until now; Photo Museum Ireland brings his singular, devoted, and genre-defying work to the forefront: “[Okamura’s] gentle, muted palette operates in counterpoint to the violent situation in which they were produced; they are remarkably out of sync with the conventional, black-and-white, “heroic” photographic representations that have come to define this period.”
Street memorial on Lecky Road, Derry city, 1971, marking the site where Desmond Beattie (19 years old) was shot and killed on 8 July 1971by the British Army. Seamus Cusack (28 years old) was shot dead near this spot about twelve hours later. These men were the first people shot dead by the British Army in Derry. © Estate of Akihiko Okamura / © 佐藤純子
Amid war—a situation marred by death—life continues. Despite the oppressive upheaval of conflict, people continue with their lives as best they can: there are groceries to be bought, chores to be done, revels to enjoy, and games to be played. One may argue that war heightens the urge for normalcy. This jarring, potent blend of conflict and continuing living is apparent in the Street Memorial on Lecky Road, Derry City, 1971, marking the site where Desmond Beattie (19 years old) was shot and killed on 8 July 1971 by the British Army. [...]. The photo depicts two young girls standing amidst the ruins of burnt-out buildings, dressed in knee-high white socks. As they innocently regard Okamura’s camera and the makeshift memorial on the dusty Derry road, the girls float like angels over the gloomy scene, serenely removed by the blissful ignorance of youth. The photograph forces viewers to confront the idea of childhood amid the Troubles, unsheltered by increasingly commonplace violence that surrounds them.
British soldiers resting at a wall, Divis Street, West Belfast, Northern Ireland, c.1969. © Estate of Akihiko Okamura / © 佐藤純子
Okamura's photographs contrast an idyllic life with a harsh reality. This is the case with British soldiers resting at a wall, Divis Street, West Belfast, Northern Ireland, c. 1969; a socio-political agenda is derived from this aesthetic duplicity. The citizens of Northern Ireland were uncomfortable and disturbed, and some expressed their dissent violently due to the oppressive British rule. Meanwhile, Her Majesty’s government sought to maintain a regal, nationalistic pride over their subjects, whether they liked it or not. The cigarette advertisement in the images conjures this idealized glamour—while Okamura slyly pokes fun at it: sharply dressed people on horseback look down almost haughtily on the weary soldiers and the littered streets of Belfast. Is this ‘real pleasure’ what they’re fighting to impose?
Women crossing through British Army barricade, Northern Ireland, c. 1969. © Estate of Akihiko Okamura / © 佐藤純子
Okamura’s photographs came from a place of admiration, interest, reverence, and even love. In helming The Memories of Others, Photo Museum Ireland recognizes the striking impact of Okamura’s long-obscured oeuvre on the field of war photography: “His profound, personal relationship with Ireland allowed him to develop a new method of documenting conflict: poetic and ethereal moments of peace in a time of war.” Okamura was not simply preocupied with the rubbernecking nature of injured bodies and scorched earth; instead, he sought to capture the life that abounded, undeterred, on the Emerald Isle.
