Nichitsu Ghost Town, Haikyo of a Mining Town

Trout Monfalco — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 17:39:43 +0000

Nichitsu was a mining town in Saitama Prefecture, about three hours from Tokyo. At it’s peak in 1965, there were about 3,000 people living there. Now the town is completely abandoned.

Here the Tokyo Times blog posts many Haikyo photographs (廃墟写真, usually meaning photographs of modern ruins) of the ghost town.

Other photographers have also visited Nichitsu, including Michael John Grist, producing these photos of an abandoned Firehouse.

Read more about the history of Nichitsu (Google translation).

Two books by haikyo photographer Shinichiro Kobayashi:
Deathtopia and Ruins.

Haikyo (廃墟写真, Haikyo Shashin) – Japan Photography of Ruins

Trout Monfalco — Sat, 10 Nov 2007 23:55:38 +0000

In the past when I’ve thought about moving to a new place, some cities don’t quite fit me because they aren’t eroded enough. I’m drawn to erosion for some reason, it’s like seeing all of history inside an object or scene. David Lynch said it better – “When you see an aging building or rusted bridge, you are seeing nature and man working together… man has built it and nature has added into it.”

When people build things and then, for whatever reason, abandon them completely, nature quickly starts adding into it. This erosion is captivating, and reveals layers of history, character and texture of the people who left. Sometimes everything is left behind in mid-use, place settings on the tables, machinery prepped to run, a still life frozen for vines and rust to overcome.

Take a look at the great haikyo photographs (????, Haikyo Shashin) on these sites:
Spiral – Research (my favorite is this abandoned amusement park); ruin-Japan; Haimono ruins photo; and Shinichiro Kobayashi.

Two books by haikyo photographer Shinichiro Kobayashi:
Deathtopia and Ruins

Learn Japanese (Rosetta Stone) and travel to Japan (Travelocity).

Art Here and Now » ruins

Nichitsu Ghost Town, Haikyo of a Mining Town

Haikyo (廃墟写真, Haikyo Shashin) – Japan Photography of Ruins