Jason Walter Welch – New York City / Tokyo

In December, I’m going to show a photo essay I worked on in Japan called The Contrast Society. It’s a glimpse of life in Japan – the visual contrast and the traditional structure of society. It’s what I experienced while living in Japan and what I continue to feel as someone who is now forever linked to this island country. But before we get there, I’ll share a few more images that didn’t quite make the cut.  Yes, Shibuya is a shopping mecca. It’s high volume and fast paced. Not quite Times Square. But something like that. This particular area of Shibuya is no man’s land. It stands between two very busy intersections. It’s dark and gritty – my kind of territory. Here’s a man that I’m sure has a story or two to tell. Wish I knew more.

I took this photo less than two weeks before the earthquake/tsunami in March 2011. I wasn’t sure what was going on other than a protest of some sort. I knew it was uncommon to see organized demonstrations in Japan, at least compared to America. In Japan, people tend to be reserved and, as a result, do not routinely protest or publicly express discontent. So this protester caught my eye and I immediately needed to capture the moment.

Sure, this photograph had nothing to do with nuclear power or radiation. However, I look at it now and cannot help but see it as foreshadowing for what was to come. From what I read daily in the Japan Times, organized protests are now more common; just recently, nearly 200,000 people gathered in Yoyogi Park to protest against the reopening of a nuclear power plant in Japan. It’s clear to me that, in a post 3/11 Japan, people – many for the first time – are publicly expressing their opinions and actively trying to influence public policy.