if you allow, I would like to talk about the Kahitsukan

This was a draft I wrote as a submission. But of course it didn't get through to the Art magazine successfully, so I decided to post it here because I think this place in Kyoto needs a mention. To the practically non existent pool of readers of this blog, I hope you read this...(: Pardon the overtly pompous English, vanity on my part, my bad. I think I'm better off writing in my own voice.

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The Kahitsukan, Kyoto Museum of Contemporary Art exerts a dignified and elegant presence, along the languorous stretch of Gionʼs bustling shopping street. An easily overlooked art enclave in the face of constant traffic flowing past every minute, it is almost rarity to find tourists or shoppers walk in randomly to the museum. An unplanned detour took me to this gem unexpectedly. In the spirit of seeking out Japanese restrospective, I decided to let ignorance and surprise come to play.
Elliot Erwittʼs exhibition was on showcase. On the rice coloured walls were framed displays of black and white photographs set in 1950s-60s Europe and U.S. Bearing witness to the era of post war and Gatsby style glitz and glamour, viewers were often compelled to go through the photographs a second time. At first glance, the monochrome photographs may appear flat and lacking vigour, with the art captions stating plainly the year and event during which the photographs were taken. The depth of the still images slowly permeates as the viewer recollects on the historical background of the event, taking in its significance, yet irony and absurdity of the candid captured moments amidst the unfolding of the events.

The slick contemporary backdrop of the art museum provided a hotbed for introspection with occasional artistic disruption of unrelated yet tastefully placed sculptures and paintings. I found myself liking the Fidel Castro picture, the Cuban revolutionary taking a smoke and looking terrifically serious in contemplation. His charismatic demeanour stood out especially during the time of Cold War tensions between Cuba and U.S. I liked the fact that Elliott Erwitt photographs are all shot with superlative freedom, without any subject briefs. It is sheer luck and providence, that the subjects seem to be sculpting themselves in front of the camera, creating stories which were natural. I guess this is what gives Elliot Erwittʼs pictures their uniqueness and rarity.