Gunkanjima
Steidl Verlag, Göttingen 2013
ISBN 9783869305462,
Gebunden, 80Seiten, 65,00 EUR
Klappentext
Text by Alissa Descotes Toyosaki. Hashima is a small island located off the extreme southwest coast of Japan, about ten miles from Nagasaki. Its darkwarship-like silhouette earned it the nickname of Gunkanjima ("battleship island"). During the wave of industrialisation in the nineteenth century, a coal seam was discovered on the island and the Mitsubishi corporation opened a mine there. Workers settled on the island and the population increased, the small mining town quickly becoming a modern and autonomous settlement. During the 1950s, Gunkanjima became one of the most densely populated places in the world with over 5,000 inhabitants. But after an accident and the restructuring of the Mitsubishi mining project, the mine closed in January 1974. The last inhabitants deserted the island, the connection by boat was suspended, and since then Gunkanjima has become a ghost town. Marchand and Meffre photographed the island between 2008 and 2012.
Text by Alissa Descotes Toyosaki. Hashima is a small island located off the extreme southwest coast of Japan, about ten miles from Nagasaki. Its darkwarship-like silhouette earned it the nickname of Gunkanjima ("battleship island"). During the wave of industrialisation in the nineteenth century, a coal seam was discovered on the island and the Mitsubishi corporation opened a mine there. Workers settled on the island and the population increased, the small mining town quickly becoming a modern and autonomous settlement. During the 1950s, Gunkanjima became one of the most densely populated places in the world with over 5,000 inhabitants. But after an accident and the restructuring of the Mitsubishi mining project, the mine closed in January 1974. The last inhabitants deserted the island, the connection by boat was suspended, and since then Gunkanjima has become a ghost town. Marchand and Meffre photographed the island between 2008 and 2012.
Rezensionsnotiz zu
Süddeutsche Zeitung, 24.06.2013
Jörg Häntzschel weiß nicht, was verstörender ist: Dass in den auf den Fotos von Yves Marchand zu sehenden Betonruinen über den Kohlegruben von Hashima, Japan, einmal Menschen den sozialistischen Traum gelebt haben oder dass sie 1974 nach der Hochzeit des Kohleabbaus in den 60er Jahren die Insel fluchtartig verlassen und als einen "Fliegenden Holländer des Industriezeitalters" zurückgelassen haben. Dass der Ort damals zu den am dichtesten besiedelten Gebieten der Welt gehörte, entnimmt Häntzschel den Texten Romain Meffres mit Staunen. Auch, dass es sogar ein Bordell gegeben hat.
Jörg Häntzschel weiß nicht, was verstörender ist: Dass in den auf den Fotos von Yves Marchand zu sehenden Betonruinen über den Kohlegruben von Hashima, Japan, einmal Menschen den sozialistischen Traum gelebt haben oder dass sie 1974 nach der Hochzeit des Kohleabbaus in den 60er Jahren die Insel fluchtartig verlassen und als einen "Fliegenden Holländer des Industriezeitalters" zurückgelassen haben. Dass der Ort damals zu den am dichtesten besiedelten Gebieten der Welt gehörte, entnimmt Häntzschel den Texten Romain Meffres mit Staunen. Auch, dass es sogar ein Bordell gegeben hat.