Makiko Ui
Born in 1960, Makiko Ui attended Musashino Art University and the Nippon Photography Institute, and studied under photojournalist Kenji Higuchi before beginning her solo career. She first began photographing the Ainu people and their traditions in 1992. Since then, she has published "Ainu, Sometimes Japanese," "Sleeping Rails," and "ASIR RERA - AINU SPIRITS," which won the Sagamihara Photo Newcomer of the Year Award at the 4th Annual Photo City Sagamihara photo festival. Ui is also a member of the Japan Professional Photographers' Society, a guest lecturer at Musashino Art University, and a lecturer at Nippon Photography Institute.
On the wonder of photography
When you say "photographer," most people think of some guy whispering "Yeah, that's it. Come on, you're looking good," as he photographs a fashion model. It used to make me want to scream sometimes. "That's not how I do it," I thought. But now, when I discover a truly wonderful subject, I find myself thinking, "Yeah, that's it . . ." I've been photographing the Ainu for 15 years, and I've known many of them a long time. But there is always a moment that makes my heart dance with that special feeling. The appeal of photography is its ability to preserve a single moment in time. So that the sum of the moments becomes a record of time itself. People I met when they were still in their teens have married, and the next generation has been born. I only hope I can continue to encounter such moments of hope and joy as these.
Tokyo - Ainu - A New Generation
Tokyo - Ainu - Guardians
Ainu Mosir - Heartbeats to the Future
The Skies of Ainu Mosir
Ainu Mosir - Living Together
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