Everett Kennedy Brown

The Natives

These images are of the indigenous people of Japan. I started this series to explore the memories of their ancestors who arrived in the islands many thousands of years ago. I believe the landscapes where we live are pregnant with memories of our ancestors and memories of natural events too- memories that radiate from the rocks, trees and mountains. When I photographed the individuals for this series I could feel their ancestral memories flowing through them. This cultural memory that they embody, connects them with their past and with a future we may never know. I make these images to feel a greater sense of contact with the past, because it makes me feel more fully human and connected with the earth. For more information on this work, please see my TED talk: Focusing New Light on Memory

Photographer

Kyoto based cultural explorer, writer, photographer, and priest. I get my inspiration from Chinese and Japanese teas, the echoes in sacred mountains and places where I can feel the awe and mystery of being alive.

My work is little known outside of Japan. For years I have been on a private journey to tell the stories of the little known people and places of my adopted home. I do this to "remember" and to inspire a sense of wonder of being alive on this planet.

In my work as a cultural explorer I coined the Japanese Government's national tourism slogan, "Japan-Endless Discovery." These words come from my own experience. After making photographic images and writing books in Japanese for more than fifteen years, I am still making new discoveries. I am also beginning to present my work more to international audiences.

Besides my written books-which are mainly in Japanese- I have published three monographs of my work. My images are in the permanent collections of museums in Japan, the United States and Europe.

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