Blitz Gallery is pleased to present "SUKITA X SCHAPIRO: PHOTOGRAPHS," a two-person exhibition by Masayoshi Sukita (1938 - ) and American photographer Steve Schapiro (1934 - 2022). This will be the first exhibition of Schapiro's photographs in Japan.

Although Sukita and Schapiro were active in different locations, the two photographers were active in the same era. Their careers are very similar: both began their photographic careers by snapping social issues, and their work spans documentary, portraiture, and film stills. Schapiro's work from his travels throughout the U.S. during the turbulent 60s is compiled in AMERICAN EDGE (Arena Edition/ 2000). Sukita also photographed the street scene in his hometown of Fukuoka and social issues in Nagasaki during the postwar period in the 1950s and 1960s, which are included in the chapter "Early Work" in "SUKITA:ETERNITY" (ACC Art Books/Genkosha/2021).
The two also collaborated with David Bowie on a number of projects in the 1970s. Schapiro did the album cover photos for "Station to Station (1976)" and "Low (1977)", and Sukita did the album cover photo for "Heroes (1977)".
Schapiro also photographed the set of Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather (1972)" and Martin Scorsese's "Taxi Driver (1976)". Sukita, on the other hand, was in contact with Shuji Terayama, and was the director of photography for his feature film "Let's Leave the Books Behind and Go to Town (1971). He also shot stills for Jim Jarmusch's "Mystery Train (1989)," Hirokazu Koreeda's "Wonderful Life (1999)," and "Hana Yori Naho (2006).

Schapiro passed away in 2022 at the age of 87. Steve Schapiro Estate, his legacy, strongly hoped that his series of works would be introduced in Japan, where there are many avid photography and film/rock fans. Masayoshi Sukita sympathized with Schapiro, who was of the same generation and had followed a similar career path, including photographing Bowie, and proposed a joint exhibition with his own work, which led to the realization of this two-person exhibition at the gallery.

This exhibition is a must-see for Bowie fans and photography collectors/fans. Masayoshi Sukita will exhibit unpublished works from his sessions with David Bowie and David Sylvian, other-cut works of his representative works, two-piece sets of portrait photographs that visualize the passage of time, and documentary works that he has been working on as his lifework, along with his representative works. A memorial corner for musicians Makoto Ayukawa, Yukihiro Takahashi, and Ryuichi Sakamoto, who passed away in 2023, and who were close friends of Sukita's during his lifetime, will be set up to display their works.
Steve Schapiro's works, which will be exhibited for the first time in Japan, will be introduced with a focus on representative David Bowie works from the 1970s. In addition, portraits of Andy Warhol, Nico, René Magritte, Muhammad Ali, Barbra Streisand, Marlon Brando and other portraits, as well as documentary works from his photographic book "AMERICAN EDGE" and "Seventy Thirty", which is a gem of turbulent America. This selection of works offers a glimpse of his career in a compact format.

This exhibition will be divided into two parts, showing approximately 50 works by the two photographers in various sizes in both black and white and color. Part 1, to be held by the end of the year, will focus primarily on portraits of Bowie and celebrities, while Part 2, to be held in 2024, will replace some of the works and include documentary works that represent the duo's origins.

We invite you to view the photographic masterpieces of these two artists from Japan and the U.S., who were active at the same time, and who documented David Bowie and other famous film directors.

We have held many photo exhibitions at Blitz Gallery in the past. This time we have selected not only Bowie and other portraits but also various types of photographs. We have tried to show you diverse aspects of Masayoshi Sukita, the photographer.
Steve Schapiro, who is collaborating with me this time, is one of the photographers who photographed Bowie as I did. I am thrilled to be working with Mr. Schapiro on his first exhibition in Japan.
I hope you will enjoy the similarities and differences between our works.

Masayoshi Sukita

It is a joy to have my husband Steve Schapiro’s photos included with Masayoshi Sukita’s work. Both photographers depict David Bowie in a thoughtful and imaginative manner.
Steve’s photography, which was mainly introduced to the art world in 2000, has had limited representation in Japan up until now. We'd thus like to thank Mr. Fukukawa for organizing this exhibition and displaying many of these famous images for the first time in Japan.
Steve’s archives have over 800,000 negatives. That is not counting a single 35mm color slide or any of his 80,000 digital photos.
We look forward to showing more of Steve’s images in Japan in the future."

Maura Smith