Eugene Smith - Minamata - 1993

Minamata

Eugene Smith
Sanichi Shobou/1993/Japanese/240*295*15

*Minamata* (1993), a collection of works by William Eugene Smith, one of the leading photojournalists of the postwar era. Eugene Smith was a pioneering photographer who helped define the new medium of photojournalism through *LIFE* magazine. However, his style—which prioritized human dignity, was based on subjectivity, and focused on conveying the truth—differed significantly from the journalism represented by photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson, who captured decisive moments based on objective facts. His techniques, such as extreme cropping and multiple exposures, were also novel and distinct from conventional photojournalism, and glimpses of this approach can be seen in this book, which is considered his masterpiece. This book, compiled through the words and photographs of Eugene and his wife Irene, documents the daily life, environmental pollution, illness, protests, and compensation campaigns in Minamata, and stands as a seminal work that conveyed the reality of Minamata disease to the world.