During the post-World War II allied occupation of Japan, photographer Yamamura Gasho would visit a neighborhood known as 'Washington Heights' - a residence for U.S. officers in the region. Now known as Yoyogi Park, the location and its occupants seen through Gasho's striking images might come across as a typical American town, though this is obviously far removed from the truth. To the keen eye of Gasho, the continuation of everyday life in an upturned society was a source of fascination, and the photographer revisited many times to document this foreign occupation. Remarkably, the photographs lay forgotten and unseen by the outside world until recently, when Yusaku Hosoya compiled a selection for a new book, The Children Living In Washington Heights 1959-1962. The publication can be found at LN-CC.com.

Jack Smylie