The Guardian’s head of photography visited France’s renowned photography spectacular. From Nan Goldin to Kikuji Kawada to a father snipped from his own life story, she picks her highlights
At a time when the world is gripped by crisis, and conversations swirl with talk of conflict, political upheaval and nuclear attack, the work of the renowned Japanese photographer Kikuji Kawada feels more relevant than ever.
On display at this year’s Rencontres d’Arles, Kawada’s seminal series The Map – created from his visits to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the aftermath of the atomic bombings 80 years ago – forms the cornerstone of an exhibition shown in France for the first time by the Kyotographie festival team in collaboration with Sigma. These haunting images stand as a powerful artistic response to the trauma of nuclear devastation, layered with political metaphor and historical weight.
Words Burning Up from the series Endless Map by Kikuji Kawada, above
