Worlds apart

Rosphoto is hosting two contrasting yet equally fascinating shows.

By Tatyana Sochiva

The St. Petersburg Times

Published: September 12, 2012 (Issue # 1726)

TAKEYOSHI TANUMA, 1962 Driving a handmade car in Tokyo.

As part of Rosphoto’s 10th anniversary celebrations, the State Museum and Exhibition Center for Photography is this month hosting an exhibit of 19th-century photography that brings together more than 100 images of the Russian Empire from the museum’s collection, including works by masters such as William Carrick, Dmitry Yermakov, Alfred Lorens and Sergei Levitsky.

The exhibit showcases only a small part of Rosphoto’s priceless collection, assembled through long systematic research. But the photos on display are enough to compile a fascinating glimpse of the lives of both peasants and nobles in 19th-century Russia, as well as presenting an overview of the early history of documentary photography.

The old photographs embrace all imaginable photo genres, including street scenes, portraits, architecture and landscapes, but focus primarily on views of pre-revolutionary Russian cities. According to the organizers of the exhibit, it is geared toward both historians of photography and ordinary museums-goers interested in Russian culture and history.

Another section of the photography center is simultaneously hosting “100 Years of Tokyo,” a traveling exhibit of images taken from the collection of the JCII (Japan Camera Industry Institute) photo salon on the occasion of its anniversary: By a strange coincidence, the Japanese salon is turning the same age as Rosphoto.

The “100 Years of Tokyo” project comprises 360 images by 40 Japanese photographers that reflect the significant changes seen by the Japanese capital during the last century. Unlike the exhibit of 19th-century photography, this one not only explores an early stage of documentary photography, it also displays snapshots of the whole century.

UNKNOWN PHOTOGRAPHER Cherry blossoms in Koganei, c. 1890, from ‘100 Years of Tokyo.’

The first exhibit room houses the oldest photographs of Tokyo. Some of them were made using the old technology of coloring the image after printing.

Other pictures recording the 20th-century history of the city are not arranged chronologically.

“We did not try to adhere to a chronological system,” said Alexandra Sadovskaya, the local curator of the exhibit. “Our main goal was to create an attractive exposition, conveying the spirit of Tokyo,” she said.

“100 Years of Tokyo” will stay in St. Petersburg for a month before continuing on its travels around the world, but other projects of the JCII photo salon are expected to visit Rosphoto in the near future.

“19th-Century Photographs from Rosphoto’s Collection” and “100 Years of Tokyo” both run through Oct. 7 at Rosphoto, 35 Bolshaya Morskaya Ulitsa. Tel. 314 1214. M. Admiralteiskaya. www.rosphoto.org.