(b Tokyo, 24 April 1940). Japanese photographer. He studied at the Tokyo College of Photography (1961-2). After graduating he photographed the performances of the theatrical troupe Tenjo sajiki ('Upper balcony') led by the playwright Shuji Terayama (1936-83). At this time he established a personal style of photography, taking scenes casually encountered in his travels or small incidents from life, caught with a haiku-like swiftness and precision. He received the Japan Photographic Society's Newcomer's Prize for the series Fushi kaden (Tokyo, 1978), first published in Camera Mainichi magazine (1976-7). The title of this series, literally translated as 'Figure of wind, transmission of flower', is taken from the title of a treatise on the art of No by the famous actor and playwright Zeami Motokiyo (1363-1443) and indicates the depth of Suda's concern for the traditions and people of Japan. Regional festivals, cherry blossom and bathing scenes at beaches became the subjects of his works; they are seen with an eye that notes the process of decline of old Japanese ways with affection. Another notable collection of images was published as My Tokyo (Tokyo, 1979). From 1980 he also began photographing extensively in colour, publishing Inu no hana ('Nose of the dog', Tokyo, 1991), a collection of colour photographs of his daily life.
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