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“Night Order” captures the orderly, empty streets of Tokyo under the declared state of emergency in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Impressed by the sight of restaurants and bars agreeing to close their doors – despite the financial hardships and mutual competition – in order to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Japanese photographer Shunichi Oda began taking photographs of the quiet streets and empty bars of Tokyo at night. Focusing on two different styles – documentation and expression – Oda records the situation from position that documents the strangely deserted megalopolis objectively while also capturing the warmth, gentleness and enjoyment of the new circumstances. His colorful, vibrant, almost three-dimensional photographs were shot in the nightlife centers of Tokyo, from “Omoide Yokocho” and Kabukicho in Shinjuku to backalleys and bars in Shibuya, all strangely, fascinatingly abandoned.

“Behind the scenes of these photos lurks the reality of a world hurting from a pandemic, and the challenges that human beings must face. I wish that this book will inspire the fantasies of future generations so that the same hardships do not befall them.” (from Shunichi Oda’s afterword)

All texts included in Japanese and English translation.