Born 1953 in Bonn, Germany. Studied and graduated in Cologne with a BA in Media and Imaging Technology (Photo Engineer). Through his professional career, starting with Polaroid Corporation, he developed a deep sense for the importance and influence of photography in visual communication.
After living in Germany, with stations in the Netherlands and France, he settled down in Japan as his second home in 1991 and is living among the people of Tokyo’s Kagurazaka permanently since 2000.
Kagurazaka was the topic of his first photobook “Kagurazaka Mignardises” 神楽坂、その優美』, published in 2019. His new photo book “By the Sea – A Symphony of Life” was published in November of 2023.
The Kagurazaka, the Seas of Japan and France’s Bretagne, Tokyo’s rivers, Tottori Prefecture’s Sand Dunes and the ubiquitous presence of Wabi-Sabi, play a dominant role in his photographic work. He loves working with large format handmade Inshū washi, the traditional Japanese paper, for his prints. His work has been shown in numerous exhibitions in Japan, Germany, and France.
Günter Zorn is a member of The Photographic Society of Japan (PSJ) ⽇本写真協会員 and a Member of Tokyo-GA 東京画, a renowned group of 100 Japanese and international photographers.
1953 年ドイツ、ボン生まれ。ケルンでメディア・イメージング・テクノロジー（フォト・エンジニア）の学士号を取得。ポラロイド社でのキャリアを通じ、ビジュアル・コミュニケーションにおける写真の重要性と影響力を深く認識する。ドイツ、オランダ、フランスでの生活を経て、1991 年に第二の故郷として日本に居を移し、 2000 年からは東京・神楽坂に定住している。神楽坂をテーマにした初の写真集『Kagurazaka Mignardises – 神楽坂、その優美』 を2019 年に出版。2023 年11 月に新作写真集『By the Sea – A Symphony of Life』を刊行。
神楽坂、日本の海、フランスのブルターニュの海、東京の川、鳥取県の砂丘、そしてどこにでもある「わびさび」が、彼の写真作品において支配的な役割を果たしている。日本の伝統的な手漉き和紙である因州和紙を使った大判プリントを好む。 彼の作品は、日本、ドイツ、フランスで数多くの写真展に出展されている。
日本写真協会会員
国内外の写真家100 名で構成される東京画会員
2016, “Wabi Sabi” photography at the Staatspark Fürstenlager Bensheim, Germany.
2016 – 2017, “Kagurazaka” solo exhibitions in Tokyo’s Kagurazaka district.
2018 – 2020, “Tokyo Curiosity – Shibuya” group exhibitions by Tokyo-GA in Tokyo, Paris, Berlin and again in Tokyo.
2019, “Tokyo & Berlin – Zwei Metropolen – „Tausend Dörfer”, group exhibition at the Japan German Center Berlin, Germany
2020, “Wabi Sabi” group exhibition at Bunkamura Museum Gallery Tokyo.
2020, “Tokyo Curiosity 2020 – Shibuya”, Tokyo-GA group exhibition at Bunkamura Museum, Tokyo.
2021, “Kagurazaka” group exhibition at MYD Gallery, Tokyo
2023, “La Mer ⺟なる” group exhibition at Bunshun Gallery, Tokyo.
2023, “By the Sea – A Symphony of Life”, Solo Exhibition at Bunshun Gallery, Tokyo large format prints on handmade washi paper.
2025, “The Sea My Soul”, Solo Exhibition at the Kyoto Museum of Photography – large format prints on handmade washi paper.
2025, “風紋 Ripples of Sand”, Solo Exhibition at the Tottori City Museum of History -large format prints on handmade washi paper.
Publications
2019, First photo book “Kagurazaka Mignardises”『神楽坂、その優美』
2023, Photobook “By the Sea – Symphony of Life”