HATA Yoshio: Miracle Forest EXPO ’70

HATA Yoshio

Saturday, October 5 – Saturday, November 2, 2024
12:00–19:00(Wednesday – Friday), 12:00–17:00(Saturday)
By Appointment only on Tuesday

We are pleased to announce the HATA Yoshio’s solo exhibition Miracle Forest EXPO‘70 at The Third Gallery Aya from October 10th to November 2nd.
The 1970 World Expo was held in Osaka. Next year 2025, exactly 55 years later, another World Expo is to be held in the same city. The site, which was carved out of the Senri Hills, now retains only a few traces of that time—such as the Japanese Garden, Taro Okamoto’s Tower of the Sun, and the Japan Folk Crafts Museum.
HATA Yoshio photographed the “Expo Forest,” a man-made woodland that has grown on the former pavilion grounds. We will be surprised by the diverse flora and fauna that have thrived over the past 55 years. He also tries to analyze the reason for such an exuberance of a man-made forest. This work must be the latest example of documentary photography. The fact that the World Expo, a symbol of industrial society, has offered a regenerated forest within the urban area after 55 years gives us hope for the future in these complex modern times.

Artist Statement

EXPO ’70 Osaka was a national event that demonstrated to the world Japan’s rise as an economic power after emerging from the ruins of the immediate postwar period. With the theme of “Progress and Harmony for Mankind,” it was a festival that highlighted cutting-edge science and technology and celebrated the equality of all people.

Almost all the pavilions, which were iconic symbols of the Expo, were dismantled after the 183-day event, leaving only the yellow soil of a barren vacant lot. Initially, the plan was to develop a business center there, but public opinion was critical of the festival’s focus on economic growth, which had led to the destruction of the natural environment and satoyama (lit. “village-mountains,” a Japanese term applied to the border zone or area between mountain foothills and arable flat land) in the name of development. This sense of disillusionment fueled a movement to restore nature at the Expo site, leading to the creation of a forest.

Over the past 50 years, the initially fragile human-cultivated forest has grown and transformed into a dense, vibrant woodland where people can enjoy the changing seasons and find a peaceful retreat. The regeneration of this forest in the midst of a city is a unique and remarkable achievement, embodying the contemporary concept of nature positivity (conservation and restoration of nature).

The call to “protect and create forests” aligns with the SDG of the Sustainable Development Goals set forth by the United Nations, and addresses 21st-century challenges like global warming and biodiversity loss. Today, the conservation of existing forests alone is insufficient to meet urgent environmental needs. Creating new forests is vital for restoring nature and achieving harmony between humanity and the earth, ensuring a sustainable future.

However, creating forests is a long-term endeavor that requires patience and continuous effort. I hope that the publication of the photo book Miracle Forest EXPO ’70, marking its 50th anniversary, will inspire and encourage those involved in nature conservation and restoration projects.

Hata Yoshio

Outline

1950 Born in Kyoto
1973 Graduated from Doshisha University, Faculty of Law
1979 Published Voices of the Wind —Mount Osore in Camera Mainichi
1984 Curated the works of Eugene Smith and Aileen Smith Minamata in Osaka Human Rights Museum
1986 Directed the exhibition Works of Eiko Yamazawa in Yurakucho Asahi Gallery, Tokyo and ABC Gallery, Osaka
1987 Directed the exhibition Contemporary Photography of America in Osaka Prefectural Information and Culture Center
Conceptualized and produced the Expo'90 Photography Museum in The International Garden and Greenery Exposition, Osaka, Japan
1990 Produced the publication and exhibition Tomatsu Shomei / Sakura, Sakura, Sakura in Brain Center and Loft Forum Umeda, Osaka
1991 Donated EARTHSCAPE photography collection of the Expo'90 Photography Museum to Osaka Prefecture
1992 Opened the "Photography Library" for photography books and contemporary art catalogs
1993 Appointed Associate Professor of Photography Class, Design Department, Seian University of Art and Design (became Professor in 2000)
1996 Established the Intermedium Institute and IMI "Graduate School" program and became General Manager
2002 Appointed Professor of Media Informatics, School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University
2008 Established the Science Video Society and became Executive Director and Secretary-General
2012 Produced Disaster Prevention Digital Encyclopedia, a media mix project in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake
2018 Appointed Director of the Osaka International Media Library (a general incorporated association)
Appointed General Director of the "University of Photographic Expression E-School" (Video/Music Courses)
2021 Began lifelong photography work in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of "Miracle Forest EXPO ‘70"

Prize

1986 Received the Sakuyakonohana Award (Osaka City Award for Emerging Artists in Culture and the Arts)
1994 Won the Grand Prix for Directorial Work at the Kyoto International Film Festival Hi-Vision Festa '94

Solo Exhibition

2024 Miracle Forest EXPO '70. The Third Gallery Aya, Osaka, Japan
1990 Hanako the Biomechaloid. Osaka Human Rights Museum, Osaka, Japan
1988 biomachine. Gallery Haku, Japan
1986 THE SIGNAL. Pine Hill Gallery, Seoul, Korea
1984 MODERN DOWN —The Closure of a 68-Year-Old Spinning Factory—. Gallery DOT, Kobe, Japan
THE SIGNAL. Gallery Wide, Tokyo, Japan
1983 Visual Play —Costumes of Shimabara Tayū—. Kitano Circus, Kobe, Japan

Group Exhibition

1997 The Age of Reproduction. Hara Museum ARC, Shibukawa, Japan
1992 3rd Rotterdam Photo Biennale. (Invitational Solo Exhibition HANAKO. Schiedam Municipal Museum, Schiedam, Netherlands)
1985 24 Hours in Japan —Through the Eyes of 100 Photographers from Around the World.

Publication

2024 Miracle Forest EXPO‘70. Osaka: Brain Center
2014 Produced the Japanese edition of Basic Facts about the United Nations. Osaka: Kwansei Gakuin University Press
1990 HANAKO: Days Spent with the Biomechaloid "Hanako". Osaka: Brain Center
1985 Columbus making a west wind arise : portraits of young artists. Osaka: Brain Center
1980 Youth Without a Jersey Number. Osaka: Brain Center

Public Collection

The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, Japan
The Museum of Modern Art, Wakayama
Osaka Human Rights Museum, Osaka, Japan
Schiedam Municipal Museum, Schiedam, Netherlands
PAGETOP
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