Trending Photo News No. 30: Yoshinori Onda's "Olive" Photo Exhibition Shows "Kawaii" that Transcends Time and Borders

"The people who came to see the exhibition wrote in three volumes of notes, and the contents of those notes were so passionate that the gallery owner said, 'There has never been a photo exhibition like this before.'"

So says photographer Yoshinori Onda. His photo exhibition "Forever!! Olive Girl" (May 20th - June 7th) at Gallery EM Nishi-Azabu brings together the fashion photographs he has done for Olive magazine. Despite almost no major publicity, the exhibition drew a huge crowd. I also visited the venue a few days before the final day, and found myself chatting at length about my impressions of the photographs with other visitors I had never met before, creating a unique sense of community that differs from a typical photo exhibition venue.

Some readers may need an explanation of Olive at this point. Olive is a women's fashion magazine published by Magazine House, the same publisher as BRUTUS.jp, where this series is published, from 1982 to 2003. It was originally published in 1981 as a supplement to Popeye, and was launched as an independent magazine in 1982.

With the catchphrase "Magazine for Romantic Girls," the magazine established itself as a fashion magazine aimed at urban, sensitive girls, rather than adult women. Its unique, fantastical worldview has influenced many people, and it has spawned passionate fans of both genders. I am one of them. I am not an olive girl, but an olive old man.

Still, why did Onda, who was the central photographer for Olive, a magazine that ceased publication 22 years ago, hold a photo exhibition for Olive at this time?

"I was contacted by Yamato Shiine and asked to hold a photo exhibition of 'Olives.' If he hadn't asked me, this exhibition might not have happened."

Kazu Shiine was the editor-in-chief of the first issue of Olive. Currently, as a writer, he is known for his numerous works, such as Heibon Punch's Yukio Mishima and The Story of Popeye: 1976-1981, which are based primarily on his experiences at Magazine House. In the text, or rather manifesto, "The Birth of the Olive Girl! Where Did Yoshinori Onda's Manazashi Come From?" displayed at the photo exhibition, Shiine writes:

"In Onda's fashion photographs, girls on the verge of adulthood enjoy a world of 'involuntary memories.' There is no tasteless 'voluntary memories,' such as studying for exams."

However, Onda himself, who has received such praise, has never held a major photo exhibition, and he himself says, "I have never thought at all about the style of a photographer, or what kind of photos are taken by a photographer." He adds, "I don't have the concept of being a photographer. I can proudly call both my work and personal photos my own."

Onda's career has taken him through the golden age of Japanese magazine culture, particularly that centered on photography. Born in Kichijoji, Tokyo in 1948, Onda's family owned a photography studio. However, he never aspired to become a photographer and instead went on to study at the School of Business at Aoyama Gakuin University, a university in the midst of student protests when he enrolled. Almost all classes were canceled, and at the invitation of a friend, he joined the photography club, which became the center of his university life.

Onda became absorbed in photography from his university days, and sent his photos to Yamagishi Shoji, the famed editor-in-chief of Camera Mainichi, the magazine with the greatest influence on photographers at the time, and they were immediately published. He also began working on commercial photography. Starting with Bunka Publishing Bureau's Soen, he went on to work on the newly launched An An, and then on the inaugural issue of Popeye, forging his way through the mainstream of Japanese fashion and culture magazines. In particular, for Popeye he experienced numerous overseas location shoots, and what he learned there was that "the most important thing in magazine photography is flexibility."

My encounter with Olive began with an invitation from Shiine.

"Shiine, who was working on Popeye, said he was going to start Olive, so I joined from the very first issue. But actually, at first we didn't have the same goals, so I ended up quitting after just a few issues."

Yodogawa Miyoko became the third editor-in-chief of Miyoko Yodogawa, and advocated a new "Romantic Girl" style. This also meant redefining what it meant to be "cute." Onda sympathized with this style and returned to Olive.

"During an early meeting, Yodogawa-san said, 'I was walking through Daikanyama when I saw a group of three or four middle school girls holding hands and walking happily, and they looked really cute.' I thought that was certainly true, and so I thought that Olive would be different from simply taking pictures of models standing there looking cute. I also wanted to take photos that were different from what I had done before, so I decided to take pictures that would bring out the individuality of each model. I didn't want to make any assumptions, or specify precise poses or locations, but rather let the models do what they wanted."

Thus began the honeymoon period between Onda and Olive. Olive was also published twice a month, and he continued to take photos of an average of 20 pages per issue from 1986 to 1989. What's more, Onda also created the covers for two out of every three issues at the time.

"Olive is a kingdom of fantasy, isn't it? All the staff, including myself, were young and talented, so I felt like I was able to do my best. We were also able to discover new talent as models, such as Cecilia Dean, who later became a star. But after being involved with Olive for about five years, I felt like I had done everything I could."

Mariko Chikada, a stylist who worked with Onda on many photo sessions for Olive, had this to say about his photographs:

"Onda's 'tolerance' is outstanding, both in her photographs and her personality. And perhaps also in her 'atmosphere.' Rather than thinking, 'I want to take this kind of photo,' or 'It has to be like this,' she embraces all sorts of things, including the light and wind of the day, the feelings and expressions of the model, and accidents that may or may not happen, and enjoys jamming with chance. I think the appeal and distinctive feature of Onda's 'Olive' photographs are the runs and jumps, and I feel that there are many people who don't simply recognize the movement as 'cute!' but who sense the atmosphere there and are moved by it. I think that when you sense that there is something like air that you can't see, it activates a special mood and thought process."

Later, when Yodogawa was transferred to editor-in-chief of An An, Onda's workload at An An increased, and he also became involved in the launch of EDGE, Tokyo Calendar, and LEON.

"I'm not particularly interested in work other than editorial. Being involved in the inaugural issue and taking the cover for that first issue is very significant to me, so I've intentionally changed what I do for each magazine, trying to do something new each time. I always want to express things differently from the day before, and even now I try to do that. That's why I felt like I'd finished Olive and moved on to the next stage. But having held this photo exhibition, I feel like Olive is really the starting point of my photography."

Mariko Chikada says that there is something inherent in "Olive."

"If there is something inherent in the characteristics of something that can withstand the test of time, then Olive certainly has that. Olive is completely free of calculated, "as-is" thinking and energy-saving measures. It seeks to sense the invisible from various perspectives and layers, and I think that this is what makes it more than just a magazine to look at or read; it connects with the five and even six senses."

Olive, which is spoken of so passionately, is now an extremely popular magazine in second-hand bookstores. Magnif (https://www.magnif.jp), a second-hand bookstore in Jimbocho that is bustling with inbound tourists from overseas and specializes in fashion magazines, is known for its large selection of back issues of Olive. Owner Nakatake Yasunori says:

"The criteria we use in our store are roughly based on how much influence a magazine has had on fashion culture. In that sense, Olive is a must-have. It's a rare magazine that has led its era for a long time with its unwavering cultural intensity. When it comes to Olive's photographs, especially those from the lycéenne period of the 1980s, I think they have a romantic charm, as if they're filtered through a fantasy world, as if you're peering into a world from a storybook."

After leaving Olive, Onda tried to work in New York.

"When I was about 50, I went to New York with a book in mind, hoping to get a job there. I was also working for Armani at the time, so I put it in the book and showed it to agents, but Olive was the magazine that gave it the best response. They said, 'You won't find this kind of world in Vogue either.' Vogue's core values are maturity and sexiness, but Olive has different values. I think that Tim Walker these days has values that are closest to Olive. My book was well received by people in New York, but they told me I had to live in New York, and I realized that I couldn't do that."

Japanese fashion magazine culture, which developed using Western fashion magazines such as Vogue as its model, can be said to have evolved in its own way since the 1970s. One symbol of this is the "cute" concept advocated by Olive, a value that differs from the desire for maturity or sexiness, and Onda's image is perhaps the embodiment of this.

Nakatake of Magnif says, "When I see people from overseas who can't read Japanese picking up a magazine and being impressed, I think it must have a visual appeal that transcends time and nationality. Magazines such as Popeye, which Onda also used many of his photographs for, are also being bought by overseas customers in droves. Just as 'city pop' is being unearthed around the world, perhaps Japan's once rich magazine culture is being sought after as a precious heritage."

Shiine's manifesto, displayed at the exhibition venue, proclaims, "The underlying sound of subcultures around the world today is the 'kawaii' feeling and sensibility that Yodogawa, Onda, and Mariko created."

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