shashasha

"From the beginning of the 1980's into the 90's - Showa Era to Heisei

Gritty Unrefined street scences-

Townspeople living amidst the floating, dense aromas of their existence-

No escape from clinging everyday life that follows them about

On one day, more than 30 years ago..At a certain time...Scenes; townspeople such as these indeed exist .

And, I was there-pressing the sutter as though something were propelling me.

Moments, captured in those days now gone, awaken unknown memories.

With hopes that they will beckon, taking you to a world within... "

• Hitoshi Kondo November 2014

Published in 2014 by Osaka based Vacuum Press, Hitoshi Kondo's Town of People is a beautiful illustration of the lives of people who inhabit the cities Osaka and Kobe. Photographed during the years 1981-1994, Town of People documents more than a decades worth of Osaka and Kobe's vibrant street scenes, capturing the life of each of the cities through the individuals and families who make up its population. Small alleyways to busy crossways all portray and create a visual narrative which acts not only as a social commentary for its time, but weaves together a series of fragmented instances, forming a visual narrative which portrays both Kondo's memory as well as a collective consciousness of cities and its people from Japan.