1980s Remnants by Daido Moriyama

The origin of Daido Moriyama’s photobook “1980s Remnants” traces back to 1987, when Moriyama entrusted Michitaka Ota, of the photobook publisher Sokyusha, with a box containing one thousand of his photographs. A selection of these images first appeared in “A Journey to Nakaji” later that year, and subsequently in the 1999 photobook “Dreams of Water.” Moriyama instructed Ota to retain the box, which then remained largely forgotten in a corner of Ota’s apartment for years. A recent conversation rekindled Ota’s interest in these photographs, leading him to remark, “I was pleased to find that I now can give them some shape.”

The span of over three decades between the photographs' capture and their eventual publication adds a layer of charm and magic to these images. These snapshots from the 1980s, which capture everything from the dynamic streets and textures to the unexpected beauty of urban chaos and—uncharacteristically for Moriyama—plants and floral wildlife, continue to captivate with their unique aesthetic and historical value.