Jun Abe

Abe
Born	1955 Osaka, Japan
Occupation(s)	Photographer, educator
Years active	1982–present
Known for	Street photography, official photographer for butoh dance troupe Byakko-sha (1982–1994)

is a Japanese photographer specializing in street photography and education, currently residing in Osaka. By the fall of 2014, he had released six photo books centered on urban life, including Citizens: 1979–1983, which earned the Society of Photography Award. From 1982 until 1994, he held the position of official photographer for the butoh dance troupe Byakko-sha ().

Life and work

Born in Osaka, Abe pursued his studies in photography at Ōsaka Shashin Senmon Gakkō, now known as Visual Arts Osaka.

During the period from 1982 to 1994, he acted as the official photographer for the Kyoto-based butoh ensemble Byakko-sha, undertaking extensive travels particularly between 1982 and 1983.

Since 2002, Abe has been an instructor at Visual Arts Osaka. He became a member of the Osaka photography collective Vacuum Press in 2006 and has been affiliated with Hatten Gallery since 2013.

Publications

• = Kurīchāzu: Kami no kemono-tachi = Creaturers. Village, 1989. . Features black and white images; includes an essay by Isamu Ōsuka alongside an artist chronology.
• = Ōsaka. Osaka: Vacuum, 2007. . Vacuum Press 1. Contains color photographs.
• = Citizens: 1979–1983. Osaka: Vacuum, 2009. . Vacuum Press 4. Black and white photos without captions.
• = Kokubyaku nōto: 1996–1999 = Black & white note: 1996–1999. Osaka: Vacuum, 2010. . Vacuum Press 5. Black and white images presented without captions.
• = Manira: August, 1983 = Manila: August, 1983. Osaka: Vacuum, 2011. . Vacuum Press 7. Black and white photographs lacking captions.
• = Kokubyaku nōto: 2 = Black & white note 2. Osaka: Vacuum, 2012. . Vacuum Press 9. Black and white pictures without captions.
• 2001. Osaka: Vacuum, 2013. . Vacuum Press 11. Black and white images; no captions.
• Busan. Osaka: Vacuum, 2014. Features black and white photography.
• = 1981 (jō) = 1981: Top. Osaka: Vacuum, 2015. Vacuum Press 14. First installment of two volumes; black and white photos.
• = 1981 (ge) = 1981: Bottom. Osaka: Vacuum, 2015. Vacuum Press 15. Second installment of two volumes; black and white images.
• = 1981 Kōbe = 1981: Kobe. Osaka: Vacuum, 2016.
• New York. Osaka: Vacuum, 2017.
• Citizens in Society 1989~1994. Osaka: Vacuum, 2019.

Solo exhibitions

• 2006: Black & White Note: Box, Gallery 10:06, Osaka.
• 2012: Citizens/1983, Gallery Niépce, Tokyo.
• 2012/2013: Citizens, The Third Gallery Aya, Osaka.
• 2013: Black & White Note, Black & White Note 2, Place M Photo Gallery, Tokyo. Exhibition connected to his Society of Photography Award.

Group exhibitions

• 2011: Citizens, Quad Gallery at the Format International Photography Festival, Derby, UK.
• 2013: Paris Photo, Grand Paris, Paris. Presented by The Third Gallery Aya from Osaka.
• 2013: Citizens, The Third Gallery Aya, Osaka. Exhibited alongside works by Miyako Ishiuchi as part of Paris Photo 2013.
• 2014: FotoIstanbul held in Istanbul, Turkey.

Awards

• 2013: Received the Society of Photography Award (Shashin no Kai shō) granted by the Society of Photography.