Photography Blogger: Ansel Adams: Photos of the Japanese-American Internment during WWII

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Ansel Adams: Photos of the Japanese-American Internment during WWII Apr 12th 2013, 15:15 Ansel Adams is primarily known for his large black and white landscapes, but in 1942 he visited the Manzanar War Relocation Center, photographing the “life and spirit” of the people living there. Manzanar was one of ten internment camps for Japanese-Americans, run by the US government, and over 11,000 Americans were incarcerated there during the war. Adams would later combine these photographs into a book, called Born Free and Equal: The Story of Loyal Japanese-Americans. The photographs below, and in the book, speak to small living spaces and standing in line for the mess hall, but also to the complexities and make-do spirit of this community which had an orphanage, a newspaper, and a hospital. In the introduction to “Born Free and Equal”, Adams summarizes his impressions: “Out of the jostling, dusty confusion of the first bleak days in raw barracks they have modulated to a democratic internal society and a praiseworthy personal adjustment to conditions beyond their control. The huge vistas and stern realities of sun and wind and space symbolize the immensity and opportunity of America–perhaps a vital reassurance following the experiences of forced exodus.” All of Adams’ photographs from Manzanar can be found at the Library of Congress, and the complete text of “Born Free and Equal” can be found here. Entrance to Manzanar Mr. & Mrs. Richard Izuno and children Mrs. Naguchi and two children High school recess period School children Science lecture Children at Sunday school class Michael Yonemetsu, [i.e., Yonemitsu] x-ray technician, and Harry Sumida in x-ray room Nurse Aiko Hamaguchi, mother Frances Yokoyama, baby Fukomoto Tojo Miatake [i.e., Tōyō Miyatake] Family Orphanage (with nurse) Mrs. Teruko Kiyomura Calesthenics Fumiko Hirata and Mr. Matsumoto Manzanar museum (Ansel Adams exhibit) Choir with director Louie Frizzell Roy Takeno, editor, and group reading paper in front of office Poultry farm, Mori Nakashima Vollyball Bridge game, Nurse Hamaguchi and friends Farm, farm workers, Mt. Williamson in background Monument in cemetery Mess line, noon Roy Takeno’s desk Loading bus, leaving Manzanar for relocation Tojo Miatake [i.e. Tōyō Miyatake] Family Mrs. Nakamura and 2 daughters (Joyce Yuki and Louise Tami) Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Shimizu Butcher shop, (J.S. Yonai) Hidemi Tayenaka, wood worker Richard Kobayashi, farmer with cabbages

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