On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Hokkaido (named as such in 1868), my wife and I returned there one more time to complete our long-term and personal work about the Japanese cranes (Tanchozuru). 

 

These elegant birds are one of the most famous symbols of Japan and have been intensively-represented in the classical Japanese and Chinese landscape painting by which my work has always been inspired. Consequently, I started being interested in a photographic study about these beautiful cranes some years ago.

 

From the beginning, I didn’t plan to release this series but things change over time and I eventually decided to add a selection of prints to the portfolios for the 150th anniversary of Hokkaido in 2018.

O.R.

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Calligraphy 'Tanchozuru' ©Saburo Takatsuka