Seascape with Ama: Beautiful Women of the Sea from the Showa Era

This photo essay is by underwater photographer Eishin Osaki, who traveled to ama (female diver) villages nationwide starting in the 1950s, continuously photographing women living by the sea.

It consists of photographs and writings documenting ama from various locations such as Hekurajima in Ishikawa Prefecture, Tsushima, Izu, and Boso, capturing the sight of "naked ama," which are rarely seen today, and the lifestyle that revolved around the sea.

The ama appearing in this book are depicted not merely as ethnographic material, but as individuals who supported their households, dove into the sea, and sustained their communities. Because the author himself spent many years visiting these locations, diving into the sea, and building relationships with the people while taking photographs, the images convey a sense of their labor, physical sensations, and even the atmosphere of the land.

Additionally, it includes a dialogue with Makoto Shiina, a roundtable discussion with three generations of active ama, and supplementary materials, offering a multifaceted understanding of the ama culture that remained throughout Japan.

A book that conveys life on the coast in the Showa era and the strength of the women who lived there.

[Title] A Landscape with Ama: Beautiful Women of the Showa Sea
[Publisher] Jiyu Kokuminsha
[Publication Date]
[Page Count] 126 pages
[Size] Approx. 148*210mm / 265g
[Format] Softcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title Reading] AMA NO IRU FŪKEI SHOWA NO UTSUKUSHII UMI NO ONNATACHI
[Author/Editor] Eishin Osaki/Authored
[Printing]
[ISBN] 9784426116620
[Condition] Used [6] Good to Very Good (slight traces of price tag removal on rear endpaper)
[Accessories] None
[Featured In] -
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Eishin Osaki (1920-)

Born in Gunma Prefecture. Underwater photographer.
From the 1950s, he traveled to ama villages throughout Japan, documenting the lives and work of ama for many years. He is known as a pioneer in Japanese underwater photography, having extensively recorded women who dive into the sea.

He visited various locations such as Hekurajima in Ishikawa Prefecture, Tsushima, Izu, and Boso, photographing the daily lives, fishing, and communal culture of ama. He left behind numerous works that convey not just ethnographic records, but also the physical sensations of living with the sea and the atmosphere of the land.

In this book, "A Landscape with Ama," he records the ama culture that remained on the coast during the Showa era and the women who lived in that period, through photographs and writings.

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