Masayo Nishimura

STATEMENT

I began studying photography in 1993. From the beginning I was attracted to the lights and shadows created by subway architecture, especially the way the roofs of cars and tracks are bathed in light from the street. I always marveled at the effects so produced; they reminded me of Medieval religious paintings. The lighting often created dreamlike shadows, sometimes creating ghostly effects. I was always fascinated with the surreal images created by this everyday environment.

In April 2000, I visited nearby station with a rented Hasselblad. That was a sunny Sunday morning and I felt the lighting through the street level looked perfect. I set up my tripod in the platform and started pressing the cable release. I continued to do so for about thirty minutes until a policeman interrupted me. I was disappointed, but the results of that half hour’s work developed quite beautifully, and I felt quite blessed. The images I captured that morning were first exhibited in a group show which opened at the Gallery located just a few blocks away from the WTC on Thursday, September 6th, 2001.

Now these works remind me of the innocence of New York City before 9/11, the city I’ve loved so dearly since I moved here two decades ago.

Masayo Nishimura
Mniart@aol.com