The Legendary Life of Aquascaping Master Takashi Amano (Part 2)
9. The Film
In June 2007, Takashi Amano gave his full support to a film about aquatic plants called "Sonotoki wa Kare ni Yoroshiku" (Waiting for You), starring the famous actress Masami Nagasawa, along with several young idol actors such as Takayuki Yamada and Takashi Tsukamoto. Amano also took on the role of supervisor, and all the planted aquariums in the film were created by his own hands.
The film's original story was written by Mr. Takuji Ichikawa, a novelist who had risen to fame with another film depicting young people's relationships. Mr. Ichikawa had a strong interest in aquatic plant cultivation, and he had always wanted to write a novel with aquatic plants as its theme, so he came to our headquarters in Niigata. Besides being quite familiar with our company's products, Mr. Ichikawa turned out to be a supporter of mine as well. Since he made the request, of course I helped him without a second thought! said Amano.
This is the film's promotional poster. Takashi Amano served as supervisor. The image is from the DVD cover released afterward. 2007
The film tells the story of three young men and women who have known each other since childhood, and the friendship and love between them. Much of the film was shot at the aquatic plant shop run by the male lead, Takayuki Yamada.
Amano continued: Since I had agreed to help, I had to be meticulous - that's my character. Because the filming location was in Tokyo, we ended up transporting almost all the planted tanks from our headquarters to Tokyo. Although we could have set up new tanks there in Tokyo, it takes a certain amount of time for them to achieve a realistic, natural look, so we mobilized everyone and transported more than twenty tanks of various sizes to Tokyo.
After setting up the planted tanks, we encountered quite a few ups and downs. Since filming took place during winter, it was difficult to control the condition and growth of the tropical fish and aquatic plants, and during filming we often had to pause to trim and care for the plants! I also coached the actors on the pronunciation of the scientific names of aquatic plants - you have to know that quite a few aquatic plants have long and hard-to-pronounce scientific names. Sometimes when the director said "OK," I would boldly say "Cut," and the staff standing nearby would be startled by me! Amano said with a laugh.
The film crew may have had some complaints about me, perhaps feeling that I was nitpicking, but I absolutely would not compromise. For example, even the standing positions and postures for setting up and trimming the tanks - I made them study these seriously. For something that so many people would see, how could I be slipshod about it? On this point I am extremely persistent and absolutely will not compromise!! Amano said solemnly.
During the filming period, the ADA headquarters in Niigata remained open as usual. People have asked me many times why I don't move the ADA Gallery into Tokyo, saying that more people would come to visit, and so on. But to me, the ADA Gallery is not simply about displaying planted tanks - the atmosphere of the surroundings, every tiny detail, is also very important. The trees currently planted around the ADA Gallery - in order to maintain the feeling of a primeval forest, I spent fifteen years cultivating them. Add to that the planted tanks inside the headquarters, and only with both inside and outside together can it be called a harmony of art. To create this kind of natural environment in a big city like Tokyo would be impossible!!
In the photo, Takashi Amano is explaining the equipment of a planted tank to Mr. Takuji Ichikawa. All the planted tanks, large and small, at the location were handled entirely by Takashi Amano. January 2007
Niigata Prefecture has four distinct seasons and can truly be called a place that produces outstanding people and fine scenery. I believe there are very few places in the world as naturally beautiful as Niigata Prefecture. Spring, summer, autumn, winter - the cherry blossoms of spring, the maple leaves of autumn - each has its own distinctive beauty. Having lived here for a long time, experiencing the scenery of the four seasons is a great help to one's insight and to the cleansing of the soul!! Amano praised.
As for the arrangement of stones and driftwood in the planted tank and the planting of aquatic plants, I learned all of it from the natural ecology here. Perhaps it's because I'm so close to it! Although winter is cold, I also very much love the sky of winter here. Dead trees are blown bare by strong winds, leaves fall to the ground, but the great trees still stand unshaken. That feeling of serene stillness is also very good. Whether it's landscape photography or photographing planted tanks, what I pursue is that sense of "sabi" and "wabi" - the quiet refinement of the moment just before snow falls in harsh winter. That is why I have always emphasized that, for me, it would be impossible to live in a place as warm as Tokyo!!
10. The Summit Meeting
For photographing natural ecology I have always liked to use large-format cameras - this is the best way to capture landscapes truly and in detail. This is one of my principles of photography. I don't want photos that are merely beautiful in color; I want to use the lens to record natural ecology as truthfully as possible. Only then can it be called a photograph of natural ecology!! Amano said solemnly.
Therefore Fujifilm specially manufactured for me a type of large-format camera film called "Amano Special" - this is even a bit larger than ordinary large-format camera film!! When shooting on location on Sado Island, we used an extra-large film measuring 50 cm long and 20 cm wide. If you enlarge it to a photo 4 m long and 1.5 m wide, you can clearly see even the finest details that are almost invisible to the naked eye.
The photo of the giant cedar taken by Takashi Amano was exhibited last year, in 2008, at the global summit meeting held at Lake Toya in Hokkaido. This summit meeting mainly discussed countermeasures for global warming.
At the summit meeting, everyone is having lunch together while admiring Takashi Amano's work "The Unshaken Kongo Cedar." July 8, 2008, provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Amano continued: Other exhibits included some Wind God and Thunder God paintings and folding screens, but they seemed to have little impact on the environment. The coordinators for this meeting included the famous fashion designer Kansai Yamamoto, as well as senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and so on. They were all captivated by my photographs, and in the end they unanimously decided to use my photograph as the exhibition work for the conference.
When I learned that my photo had been accepted by the conference, I was so happy I jumped up! Actually, I had thought for a long time - perhaps this is a bit presumptuous of me - but if there were to be an indictment on behalf of the natural environment, the flowers, grasses and trees, then no photo but mine could serve that role!
Here there are giant cedars that have endured wind and frost for five hundred, even more than a thousand years and still stand unshaken. This photograph is precisely telling them: "I am the native thousand-year giant cedar that has always grown here - how can you humans, whose lifespans are only a hundred-odd years, be allowed to destroy our forest?" As long as you take one look at the photo, you will feel that they are calling out!
As a result, immediately after the summit meeting ended, an important summit declaration was issued, namely to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by half from the level up to 2005.
In his hands, Takashi Amano holds the giant film of "The Unshaken Kongo Cedar" that was exhibited at the global summit meeting held at Lake Toya in Hokkaido. From the window of Amano's office as president, you can clearly see the vivid fresh green. June 2008
There has long been a saying that in about five more years, the glaciers of the South Pole and North Pole will disappear from the Earth. Therefore the above target is rather low. At the same time, we should plant more trees.
Plants absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide beyond what humans can imagine, and then release oxygen, completing photosynthesis, and the aquatic plants also grow healthily. This principle can be seen in the planted tank.
This is exactly the idea I had, because fifteen years ago, when building this company occupying 660 sq m, I already used 70% of the land to plant trees - more than four hundred trees including banyan and zelkova - and in addition the company's employees worked together to plant about twenty thousand pots of wild perennial plants. For this we went a total of 150 million yen into debt. It was all to build this forest, naturally for the purpose of using them to absorb the carbon dioxide released within the company.
Trees are the Earth's assets. Shouldn't companies and enterprises that plant more trees in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions receive tax reductions, or even tax exemptions, to encourage them to plant more trees!!
If there were no trees or plants on both sides of the roads, what would the exhaust emissions from cars be like? Relying only on efforts like turning off the engine while parked and saving energy is not enough! We need to thoroughly plant more trees and plants along roadsides, in parking lots and other such places, and restore the original natural ecology. Taking practical action - relying only on a few numerical targets to solve the problem - can that really solve it? I have my doubts!! Amano said seriously.
11. Final Chapter: Protecting the Environment
Today, parts of the Earth are constantly being destroyed by humans - the Amazon River basin, the African tropical rainforests. Trees are being cut down, forests are disappearing. It must be the effect of global warming! Floods and droughts strike repeatedly, causing mass deaths of fish. On the mountains of Sado Island, the blight of the oak trees keeps spreading, which makes me very sad - I cannot bring myself to press the camera's shutter!! Amano said with regret.
In order to let everyone understand the Earth's current situation and compare it with its former beauty, an organization called the International Environment Photographers Association is preparing to recruit members. Including myself, professional photographers from around the world are sparing no effort, going everywhere to explain to people, hoping everyone will unite.
About fifteen years ago, Takashi Amano had already been visiting many European countries and various places in Southeast Asia to give lectures on natural aquascaping, aquatic plant cultivation, and environmental protection.
Amano continued: As for the importance placed on environmental protection, every country is completely different. Some advanced European countries place extraordinary importance on environmental protection and beautiful landscapes. Take the Nordic countries - across the vast grasslands and wheat fields, red poppies are planted everywhere as accents, just right. I heard it was local farmers who scattered the seeds. The trees planted along German streets and in parks are also very beautiful; utility lines and light-box signs are almost completely absent, and the integration of greenery with human life is carefully arranged.
In contrast, in our Japan, utility poles and light-box signs are erected haphazardly everywhere. Have our citizens seriously considered environmental issues? I cannot help but think that Japanese people seem never to have placed much importance on environmental protection, treating it as if it were someone else's problem. My own company also takes the lead - the headquarters has no large light boxes, no utility poles; everything is buried underground. It is all to give visitors a beautiful and comfortable landscape. When people see more beautiful and comfortable green environments, they will naturally develop a desire to cherish nature and improve the environment!
Takashi Amano is explaining works at the 2008 ADA contest, emphasizing that "observing and learning aquascaping from nature is extremely important." September 13, 2008
Today, parts of the Earth are constantly being destroyed by humans - the Amazon River basin, the African tropical rainforests. Trees are being cut down, forests are disappearing. It must be the effect of global warming! Floods and droughts strike repeatedly, causing mass deaths of fish. On the mountains of Sado Island, the blight of the oak trees keeps spreading, which makes me very sad - I cannot bring myself to press the camera's shutter!! Amano said with regret.
In order to let everyone understand the Earth's current situation and compare it with its former beauty, an organization called the International Environment Photographers Association is preparing to recruit members. Including myself, professional photographers from around the world are sparing no effort, going everywhere to explain to people, hoping everyone will unite.
About fifteen years ago, Takashi Amano had already been visiting many European countries and various places in Southeast Asia to give lectures on natural aquascaping, aquatic plant cultivation, and environmental protection.
Last month, Takashi Amano purchased three thousand sheets of large-format camera film at one go - the Amano Special film made specially for him.
Because the stock had run out, I had already placed an order with Fujifilm two years earlier, but the relevant department refused on the grounds that they were fully promoting digital cameras and that large-format film had already been discontinued. So I personally wrote a letter to the president of Fujifilm, and after two years they finally produced it for me again. Amano said.
Now I am planning to photograph Mount Tate in Toyama Prefecture, Yakushima in Kyushu, and the giant cedars of Sado - they are extremely dignified and stable. I hope to convey a message to children about cherishing life. Next, I also want to continue diving into rivers to photograph and show everyone the beautiful side of aquatic plants.
On the mountains of Sado Island, there are giant cedars over five hundred years old - unafraid of wind and rain, still standing unshaken. Around them there are many, many small streams, and beside them all kinds of aquatic plants grow beautifully. I must fight desperately to protect this natural ecology! And there is the large-format camera I insist on using - only it can capture things truly and in detail. I want to show those photographs to our descendants one hundred, two hundred years from now, so that they may know her original beauty, cherish the environment and ecology, and restore the natural environment!
Although the Earth is constantly being polluted, no matter what, I will continue my path of photography. This is what I can still do now, and I still have the heart and the strength. Unfortunately, to photograph and record it all completely would probably take another thirty years - there is already not much time left. I think there will not be more time to go abroad to photograph! Amano said with a sigh.
Finally, Takashi Amano said with deep feeling: Although I have always acted boldly and been brave in accepting challenges, before acting boldly one must actually be careful, objective, and calm in considering and analyzing. Plans must be thorough. Before going to dangerous places, one must anticipate the worst-case scenario. In fact, traveling is certainly like this, and so are living one's life and doing business! Prepare sufficiently in advance and take every precaution.
Bold in spirit but meticulous in mind, thorough in planning, and then acting calmly - this is the key to my success!!
This article is reprinted from the Hong Kong, China aquarium forum "Aquatic Garden." Original author: akina86
The above is the Niigata Daily's report on Takashi Amano
Takashi Amano's Life Timeline
July 18, 1954
Born in Niigata City, Japan (formerly Makimachi)
October 1972
Participated in the 27th National Sports Festival (cycling, cyclo-cross)
March 1973
Graduated from Niigata Prefectural Yoshida Commercial High School
March 1974
Graduated from the Japan Bicycle Racing School
(Over 16 years, won many honors as a professional bicycle racer)
April 1992
Founded the company AQUA DESIGN AMANO CO, LTD (ADA)
1992
Fujifilm Nature Landscape Photography Contest, Grand Prize
October 1995
Began traveling to the Brazilian Amazon for photography and research
2001
Amano created a giant Nature Aquarium-style aquascape in his own home
Takashi Amano's home
2005
Began photographic research within Japan, centered on Sado Island, Niigata, Japan
2007
Participated in the production of Toho Company's film "Waiting for You"
July 2008
At the venue of the G8 Hokkaido Lake Toya Summit,
Displayed 2 giant photographic works of Sado's primeval cedars taken on Sado Island, Japan
2008
At the invitation of the Qatar Photographic Society,
Held a photography exhibition in the capital Doha, as the first Japanese person to do so
July 2009
Established the general incorporated association World Environment Photographers Association
2010
Won the Niigata Daily Cultural Award (Arts category)
2011
Won commendation from the Governor of Niigata Prefecture (Arts and Culture)
March 2012
Created 4 m and 7 m Nature Aquarium-style aquascapes at the Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo Skytree (opened in May of the same year)
4 m large tank
7 m planted tank
September 2013
At the Toki Messe Convention Center in Niigata Prefecture, Japan,
Held the world's largest-scale photography exhibition, "Takashi Amano: A World of 6.0 Vision"
2013
Won the Ango Award Niigata City Special Prize
February 2015
Created at the Lisbon Oceanarium in Portugal
The world's largest Nature Aquarium-style aquascape (total length 40 m)
(opened in April of the same year)
August 4, 2015
Passed away at the age of 61
AJ: "Not going to view the fish, but letting the fish display themselves to us." Was this idea born during your boyhood?
Amano: Yes. It is not about letting us "look at the fish," but about "letting the fish display their own beautiful swimming postures to us." This humble attitude toward nature gave me the idea of creating Nature Aquarium aquascapes. In other words, it was a shift from the previous idea of "simply keeping fish in an aquarium" to the idea of "creating nature in the aquarium and letting the fish dwell freely." The protagonist is the fish, and
not the human. So the true meaning of my naming it "Nature Aquarium" is "the aquarium is nature." It is not about turning the aquarium into nature, but that the aquarium itself is nature. In other words, inside the aquarium is a miniature of nature.
"Taking out the ecosystems that originally exist in the natural world and the landscapes of the natural world, and then reproducing them in the aquarium" - that is my idea. In short, letting the fish be able to dwell freely, creating the illusion that they are living in the natural world - such an aquarium is a true Nature Aquarium aquascape. If you simply think "as long as the aquatic plants flourish, that is enough," it will not do. Creating nature is what matters most. Long-term maintenance as one of the concepts of the Nature Aquarium derives from the idea of "not using artificial intervention, leaving it entirely to nature, and letting the aquatic plants grow as they will." However, when creating a Nature Aquarium aquascape, we can also learn a great deal of knowledge about nature. For example, while imitating nature and creating nature and aquascapes, the changes within the aquarium provide us with opportunities to learn. In such an aquarium, you can feel the passage of time, and the forms of nature slowly unfold before your eyes.
AJ: "This concept and style of Nature Aquarium aquascaping has gained the attention of many aquarium enthusiasts not only in Japan but also abroad. Why is that?
Amano:
That is because everyone shares the same dream. I believe what resonates with everyone is not the form as a type of aquascaping, but that people have accepted the most fundamental and purest "heart" of the Nature Aquarium. Indeed, the ornamental value of aquascaping is very important, and the Nature Aquarium also pursues purposes such as beauty or artistry. But if you see the beautiful cardinal tetras swimming in the aquarium, will you not associate it with how they live in the Amazon, thousands of miles and countless rivers away from Japan, and will you not associate it with the scenery of the Amazon basin? It is this dream and romantic sentiment that only aquarium enthusiasts can understand that has made everyone resonate with the Nature Aquarium. Whether in the Amazon or in a primeval forest, when you are within it, you will have a certain feeling. This feeling is like the fish, the aquatic plants, or the microorganisms invisible to the eye, as well as yourself - everyone seems to merge together and be part of nature. And the Nature Aquarium-style aquascape is taking out a part of the whole of life. If you think of it this way, there is no richer pleasure than this.
The above is the content of an interview with Takashi Amano in "Aqua Journal."
Takashi Amano devoted his life to promoting the Nature Aquarium. The ADA company he founded and the products it developed provided hard power for the development of aquascaping (the carbon dioxide and lighting mentioned in the previous articles), and later he launched the IAPLC World Aquascaping Contest, enabling aquascaping culture to become popular worldwide - this is its soft power. At the same time, he was also devoted to environmental protection. Aquascaping comes from nature. When we see the beautiful and moving aquatic plants and fish in the tank, will we not feel awe and love for nature? People who like green plants or aquatic plants will surely also contribute within their own capacity to environmental protection! I think this is what he called the pure "heart." In 2015, Takashi Amano passed away, but I believe this resonant "heart" will continue to be passed on.
The End
There is still a surprise here