in)(between. ShaShin Book Award 2014 “THE AWARD RESULTS” :English

008 Hiro Tanaka 「Dew Dew, Dew Its」
Pop and bright aesthetically and thoroughly speaking a real discovery of an universe that has been very often photographed and yet succeeded in making it new and very contemporary in his book.

008 Hiro Tanaka 「Dew Dew, Dew Its」
Fast paced, highly colourful, a raw book that stands out as it intelligently interweaves different sequences “bands on stage, landscape, social scenes,” and takes you to the US in a way that is not only entertaining but also uncovering!

008 Hiro Tanaka 「Dew Dew, Dew Its」
I like this book for its chaotic scenes, concerts and difficult aftermath, the sense of moving from one city to another, always tired and hangover from the night before. Tanaka captures these moments by making direct use of flash, which intensifies the action; it gives me a real visual perception of energy. Soft cover in landscape format works very well with these diptychs well studied; the discrete model and print quality are impeccable.

033 Mi-Yeon「Alone Together」
Clearly emotional. A lot of tenderness escapes from the book and catches the reader. The Efficiency of images renders them needless of words to express any emotions or aesthetic pleasure, High standards of printing and editing that hold together a well-defined authentic particular world.

033 Mi-Yeon「Alone Together」
This is one of the rare books that have photographs in it where every single of them is so impressive; one loses itself and forgets to have a book in hand. Classically black and white work about “loneliness.” Beautiful and touching.

033 Mi-Yeon「Alone Together」
The feeling I get and I like from “Alone Together” by Mi-Yeon is that I feel that it does not really concern the people she photographed. I feel that she tries to make them transparent, to suspend them in the air to make them merge into the landscape to form another kind of presence at the end. We follow throughout this beautiful coffee table book (well printed and hold together by a delicate design) pictures without any relationship with one another, the delicate sight of a sensitive young person.

035 Jun Fujiyasu 「DZ dizygotic twins」
Content and format are consistent with the scientific approach of the topic. The idea clearly matches the flow of the choice of images; a black and white statement describing the story behind the pictures.

035 Jun Fujiyasu 「DZ dizygotic twins」
This immediately grabbed my intention. Fascinated by similarity but at closer examination revealing so many little differences that make you go on and on and dig deeper to even find more variants of the “same”. Strikingly simple idea!

0035 Jun Fujiyasu「DZ dizygotic twins」
I like this one because it is disturbing. I took me a little time for actually appreciate it. I had to look at it back and forth several times. Its form is quickly acceptable, elegant layout, paper, and printing of quality, images perfectly aligned as blocks over the pages.It is this rather strict photographic writing, almost medical that required my reading from in-between the photographic lines to grasp the detail and sensitivity, strong fraternal history.

146 "The Slug Book Addendum"
by Masahiko AGAKE
Mainly because of the black cat (just kidding!). I found a real world in this book in which I wanted to immerse myself snorkelling, aiming to experience strange sensations. To me the contrast yields the same effect as the touch of velvet and the shots’ composition is effective immediately including me in his universe. The flow and the selection of the photos are extremely consistent. The choice of cover like those old posters (that I like) takes us back to a former time while having a contemporary composition.

To find one or even three books that are best out of nearly 150 is impossible for me. Instead, I made a shortlist of 18 books, which more or less have all the quality to be under the best three. These books stand out for me either because they surprised me by concept, by quality, by darkness or even by humour. I can recommend every single one of them to be part of a good PhotoBook-library!

052 “A Glimmer of Light”
by Takashi KURAYA
My Best Of goes to 052-“A Glimmer of Light” by Takashi KURAYA,I already knew the book (I have bought in Tokyo last summer), This is the first book of a young photographer; I love the narrative style and sensitivity with which he tells the intimate and familial history. The book is well printed and the layout efficiently holds together the images. I look forward to seeing his future work.

002 - 道の記 MICHI NO KI, 　
by Manabu SOMEYA

002 - 道の記 MICHI NO KI,
by Manabu SOMEYA

002 - 道の記 MICHI NO KI,
by Manabu SOMEYA

006 - Butterfly had a dream,
by Atsushi FUJIWARA

005 - NANGOKUSHO - ode to the southern lands of Japan, by Atsushi FUJIWARA

005 - NANGOKUSHO - ode to the southern lands of Japan, by Atsushi FUJIWARA

008 – Dew Dew, Dew Its,
by Hiro TANAKA

008 – Dew Dew, Dew Its,
by Hiro TANAKA

006 - Butterfly had a dream,
by Atsushi FUJIWARA

033 - Alone Together,
by Mi-Yeon

016 - Rut in Time,
by Ikuko SUZUKI

008 – Dew Dew, Dew Its,
by Hiro TANAKA

035 - DZ　dizygotic twins,
by Jun FUJIYASU

033 - Alone Together,
by Mi-Yeon

033 - Alone Together,
by Mi-Yeon

051 – Macaroni Christian,
by Kazuyoshi USUI

035 - DZ　dizygotic twins,
by Jun FUJIYASU

035 - DZ　dizygotic twins,
by Jun FUJIYASU

072 – Mt.Fuji,
by Naoki ISHIKAWA

051 – Macaroni Christian,
by Kazuyoshi USUI

052 - A Glimmer of Light,
by Takashi KURAYA

079 - TOKYO KINGYO 東京金魚, 
by Michiko MAKINO

063 - Particle of consciousness,
by Hideki TAKEMOTO

119 – Bus Stop,
by Shuichiro SHIBATA

110 - Camp,
by Tomoaki HAYAKAWA

088 - Straight Eye,
by Minoru HOHTSUKI

120 – My life without you,
by Yuko YAGASAKI

127 - The Asian monsoon,
by Yasuhiko MIYAJIMA

092 - Ego-Identity,
by Hisashi MURAYAMA

146 - The Slug Book Addendum,
by Masahito AGAKE

146 - The Slug Book Addendum,
by Masahito AGAKE

104 - Tsugaru,
by Masako TOMIYA

109 - Rinderon,
by Hideaki KUMAZAWA

114 - Tokei,
by Katsuhito NAKAZATO

119 – Bus Stop,
by Shuichiro SHIBATA

127 - The Asian monsoon,
by Yasuhiko MIYAJIMA

139 - Dawn/Draw in,
by Rie AMEMIYA

146 - The Slug Book Addendum,
by Masahito AGAKE

147 - NEW YORK,
by Yasutaka KOJIMA