Haruto Maeda (photography)

Traveling in Asia or Africa, my heart warmed to rural scenery, beautiful nature, and tolerance of people in these regions. My connection to these areas was strengthened by my recollection of my boyhood memories of the pastorial scenes of my native Japan etched in my memory. My memories of the sea, forest, waterfalls and rice fields resonated in monochrome. The existence of the rice field, the staff of life to the Japanese, has had a great effect on the scenery, culture and the sense of morality of the Japanese. However, due to unplanned development forced upon many rural areas of Japan, the beauty and history of over 2000 years of rice harvesting is decreasing every year. Fearing the loss in a few years, I hurriedly began to photograph these areas. The scenery is silent, but the power of the photograph can touch people’s mind and make them recognize the importance of the cultural icon of the rice field.