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City Rain, 2023
von • by Taka Hiro
Instagram: @takahiro

Of course, we could also show a sunny spring picture here. But

April usually brings mixed weather. What a good opportunity to

finally celebrate the rain! This is what Japanese photographer

Taka Hiro does in his series City Rain, a sequence of atmospheric,

urban images. With wonderfully melancholic black-and-white

photos, the artist expresses the beauty of rainy Tokyo and

invites us – in the midst of the actual hustle and bustle of the

megacity – to contemplate in silence. With the help of an image-

processing programme, Hiro superimposes several image layers
of his finished photographs, creating an additionally veiled image

background. The otherwise dominant architecture of the city

almost seems to disappear in the fog and haze, becoming vague

and quiet. Despite this effect, the play of light and shadow brings

a remarkable depth to the images without any colour distractions;

their black and white lends the lonely scenes an almost nostalgic

note. Taka Hiro recognizes the beauty in the ordinary and chooses

his compositions carefully, emphasizing above all the curved lines

of a man-made cityscape. The people walking with umbrellas in

the middle ground are always alone, creating a deep sense of

loneliness but also peace. His work captures a sense of emotion

and nostalgia, reminding us of how quickly time passes by. With

each photo, Hiro invites us to take pause and appreciate our

surroundings. Similar to the City Rain series, most of Hiro’s other

photographic works also tell of the relationship between people

and the city, between people and architecture. If you would like

to delve deeper into this large-city contemplation and discover

more of the photographer’s works worth seeing, follow Taka Hiro

on Instagram or Behance.