Ogawa was the first photographer to receive the title of Imperial Household Artist, in 1910[3]. He was also the first Japanese[3] member of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, elected in 1889, and the first to use halftone reproduction in a Japanese newspaper, in 1894 for the Tokyo Asahi Shinbun. His career was a sequence of firsts, each pushing Japan's engagement with photographic technology further than anyone had managed before.
Key facts
- Lived
- 1860–1929, Japanese[3]
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Biography
He was born in Saitama in 1860[3] to the Matsudaira samurai clan. He began studying English and photography at fifteen, moved to Tokyo in 1880[3], then to Boston in 1882, where he learned portrait photography, the dry plate process and collotype printing. On returning to Japan in 1884, he opened Tokyo's first photographic studio.
In 1888[3], he joined Okakura Kakuzo and Ernest Fenollosa on the Kinki Treasure Survey, a government expedition to document artworks held in temples throughout Japan. Many of the objects they surveyed became Japan's first designated National Treasures. In 1889 he founded the first collotype printing business in Japan and co-founded the Japan Photographic Society.
His hand-coloured collotype plates of Japanese[3] flowers, published as Some Japanese Flowers between 1894[3] and 1896, combined photographic accuracy with painterly warmth. He received decorations from Sweden, Siam, Italy and France. He died in 1929[3], at sixty-nine.
Timeline
- 1860Born on 29 September in Saitama Prefecture into the Matsudaira samurai clan. He began studying English and photography at the age of fifteen.
- 1880Moved to Tokyo at age 20 to further his English language skills, and the following year was hired as an interpreter by the Yokohama Police Department. He studied photography under Shimooka Renjo in Yokohama during this time.
- 1882Travelled to Boston at age 22, where he studied portrait photography, the dry plate process, and collotype printing at the Albert Type Company. He returned to Japan in 1884 and opened Tokyo's first photographic studio in Iidabashi.
- 1888Joined Okakura Kakuzo and Ernest Fenollosa on the Kinki Treasure Survey at age 28, an imperial expedition to photograph works of art in temples throughout Japan. He served as the team's official photographer, documenting thousands of culturally significant objects.
- 1889Established Japan's first collotype printing business in Tokyo at age 29 and became editor of Shashin Shinpo, the country's only photographic journal. He also worked on Kokka magazine, printing both publications using the collotype process.
- 1894Published Some Japanese Flowers, one of the earliest photographic books to use collotype printing for botanical subjects. His botanical and landscape photographs from this period remain widely reproduced.
- 1910Became the first photographer to be appointed an Imperial Household Artist at age 50, a recognition of his decades of technical innovation and service to Japanese photography.
- 1929Died on 6 September at the age of 69. He left a legacy as a pioneer of photomechanical printing in Japan, having founded multiple businesses that shaped the country's publishing industry.
Notable Works
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Related Artists
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Ogawa Kazumasa known for?
Ogawa Kazumasa is known for being the first to achieve several photographic milestones in Japan. He was the first photographer to receive the title of Imperial Household Artist, the first Japanese[3] member of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, and the first to use halftone reproduction in a Japanese newspaper.Who was Ogawa Kazumasa?
Ogawa Kazumasa was a Japanese[3] photographer who lived from 1860[3] to 1929[3]. He was the first photographer to receive the title of Imperial Household Artist in 1910[3]. He was also the first Japanese member of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain and the first to use halftone reproduction in a Japanese newspaper.What was Ogawa Kazumasa's art style?
Ogawa Kazumasa's art style combined photographic accuracy with painterly warmth. His hand-coloured collotype plates of Japanese[3] flowers are an example of this.How did Ogawa Kazumasa die?
Ogawa Kazumasa died in 1929[3] at the age of 69.
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Ogawa Kazumasa.
- [1] museum Harvard Art Museums Used for: museum holdings.
- [2] museum Victoria and Albert Museum Used for: museum holdings.
- [3] wikipedia Wikipedia: Ogawa Kazumasa Used for: biography, birth dates, death dates, identifiers, movement attribution, nationality.
- [4] book Noritake Tsuda, A History of Japanese Art Used for: biography.
- [5] book issn_75178869 Used for: biography.
- [6] book Andreas Marks, Japanese Woodblock Prints Used for: biography, stylistic analysis.
- [7] book Japanese woodblock prints in miniature: The genre of surimono Used for: biography, stylistic analysis.
- [8] book Helen Merritt; Nanako Yamada, Woodblock Kuchi-e Prints _ Reflections of Meiji Culture Used for: biography.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-05-17. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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