Ken Ohara
Ken Ohara is a Japanese photographer, born in 1942. Ohara is most noted for his series of photographs titled One, in which he presents faces with a standard size and tone.
Ken Ohara emigrated from Japan to study photography at the Art Student's League and apprentice with Avedon and Hiro in New York City. Meanwhile in those New York studying years, he undertook an odd and imaginative project, One, which was published as a book in Japan and included in the landmark exhibition New Japanese Photography, at the Museum of Modern Art in 1974. It was at this time, he received a Guggenheim Fellowship. The close-up, identically-formatted images of faces of strangers on the street are a meditation on mankind in general, telling us finally, despite individual differences, we are all "one".
Ken Ohara emigrated from Japan to study photography at the Art Student's League and apprentice with Avedon and Hiro in New York City. Meanwhile in those New York studying years, he undertook an odd and imaginative project, One, which was published as a book in Japan and included in the landmark exhibition New Japanese Photography, at the Museum of Modern Art in 1974. It was at this time, he received a Guggenheim Fellowship. The close-up, identically-formatted images of faces of strangers on the street are a meditation on mankind in general, telling us finally, despite individual differences, we are all "one".
This image on Ken Ohara's, really attracts the attention of the viewers particularly due to the contrast in colours. Black and white and the two strongest contrasts between each other more than any other combination, by doing this Ken Ohara can create a sense of juxtaposition between colours and also textures due to more shadows and highlights conflicting throughout the black and white image. The facial expression of the main subject also makes the image more compelling due to the fact the eyes are significantly larger than a normal straight face, which adds more detail and strength to the image as there is now more contrast created due to the white eyes.