Misawa, Aomori, 1971. Photograph, gelatine silver. Gallery Akio Nagasawa collection
Moriyama’s most famous image was taken in Misawa, a town in the prefecture of Aomori bombed during World War II and then occupied by an American military base. Moriyama traveled to Misawa when he was taking photographs for the series “Travels in Search of Something” in Asahi Camera. The photo, taken in the morning near the hotel where he was staying, has become over time a metaphorical self-portrait of the wandering photographer, always walking along in search of a new scene. It reappeared in his book A Hunter (1972) and, in different versions, in many other books, prints, T-shirts and wallpapers images.