[ MAUKA-MAKAI ]
It was an art show attended by Japan's luminaries that gave Thomas Haar his first inkling that his father, Francis, was no ordinary photographer. Photographer’s
portraits probe his
subjects’ soulsGALLERY
By Suzanne Tswei
Star-Bulletin"He had a big show and a big reception," Haar said about the exhibit at his father's studio-gallery in Kamakura, an ancient city of temples and giant Buddha statues, about an hour by train from Tokyo.
"Everybody came. I was only 10 then, and I thought, 'Wow, this is something important -- he's doing something important.' I didn't realize that before."
Haar had thought of his father as a mostly absent parent busy with assignments for the American occupational force in post-war Japan. Even when he was home, his father was occupied with his own work documenting the people, landscape and culture of Japan, which resulted in a series of books.
The 1951 show of about 50 photographs was to help launch his father's fourth book, "The Best of Old Japan," a collection of photos taken after the family was freed from Karuizawa, a village where non-Japanese were confined during World War II.
Now, 50 years later, Haar -- fully aware that his father's work serves as important historical, cultural and artistic references -- has put together another show and book in tribute to his father, who died in 1997 at the age of 89.
On display: The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii Gallery, 2454 S. Beretania St. FRANCIS HAAR:
THE JAPAN YEARS
Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, through July 15
Admission: Free
Call: 945-7633
Also: The book "Francis Haar: A Lifetime of Images," is for sale at the gallery at a prepublication price of $45 through May; $49 afterward
The show of 55 black-and-white photographs isn't big or flashy by today's mega-exhibition standards. Yet, "Francis Haar: The Japan Years (1940-1960)," leaves a big impression.
The portraits -- some of them famous, such as of movie director Akira Kurosawa on the set of his classic "Seven Samurai"; and some of anonymous people, like a peasant woman harvesting silk worm cocoons -- are straightforward, well-crafted and deceptively simple.
"In terms of photography, his forte was with people. He did do scenics, and later flowers, but he really enjoyed meeting people and photographing people," Haar said.
Francis was good-natured and gentle, which made him an ideal portrait artist. He didn't dictate poses, preferring "melting into the background" so his subjects could behave naturally.
"He liked to wait for the moment to let the real person come out. He was quiet and unassuming," Haar said. "My father always was drawn to art, and artists. He was a photographer and he took pictures, but he was really thinking and looking at everything as an artist."
Francis' artistic ability is immediately obvious on the cover of "Francis Haar: A Lifetime of Images," featuring a portrait of his wife Irene. The photograph is focused on her face, each eye covered with a leaf, as she sunbathed at Lake Balaton in Hungary. The photo has appeared in many magazines and has been borrowed by other photographers for art making.
"He is really famous for that photo, and it is perfect for the cover because it is instantly recognizable as his," Haar said.
As the title suggests, the book published by University of Hawai'i Press is a comprehensive look at Francis Haar's career, beginning in his native Hungary and ending in Hawaii, where he was proclaimed a living treasure. The book includes family pictures as well as accounts of the wartime years in Paris and Japan.
As a child, Francis had a gift for drawing. He studied architectural design and worked as a draftsman. Photography was a weekend hobby that became his life's work when economic depression hit Hungary in the 1930s.
Francis opened a portrait studio in Budapest in 1934 and began doing commercial photography. When several of his photographs were chosen for the Hungarian Pavilion at the 1937 Paris Expo, he decided to visit Paris and moved there with Irene, where they met a film importer, Hiroshi Kawazoe.
Kawazoe liked Francis's portraits of him, and the two became friends. With the Nazi's threatening to invade Paris, the Haars and their three children fled to Japan with Kawazoe's help.
After the war, the family remained in Japan, where Francis continued his photography; Irene operated a Hungarian restaurant.
The family moved to Hawaii in 1960 and Francis began photographing Hawaii artists and scenes. He also taught photography at the University of Hawai'i for 10 years.
Francis became known for his one-man exhibits and a book on the famed Hawaiian hula dancer 'Iolani Luahine. In addition to still photographs, he also made documentary films in Japan, Chicago and Hawaii.
He wanted the book, "A Lifetime of Images" to be a final statement, and began planning it about 10 years ago. Harr had to take over about five years ago when his father became incapacitated by Alzheimer's Disease.
The project was difficult from the beginning, Haar said, because of the sheer volume of work available, complicated later by his father's lapsing memory.
"When he started, he was still healthy but he would complain about his memory. He would forget names of places and people, and he was frustrated by that."
They also had trouble securing funding for the book, but Haar said, "I am glad I didn't give up. I felt I owed him that. After all, I followed in his footsteps. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have a career."
Haar, who is a photographer in his own right, became interested in photography while attending the UH. Because the school did not offer photography classes then, Haar relied on his father to teach him photographic techniques. The lessons gave both the opportunity to get to know each other, Haar said, allowing them to make up for the years his father had elected to work rather than spend time with his children.
"My father was always like a locomotive. It was just, go, go, go all the time. When he was finished with one project, he'd start thinking about the next."
Editing the book has allowed him to revisit with Francis.
"I enjoyed it very much. I am really very satisfied and grateful to the people who collaborated with me. I think my father would be pleased with the result. It's really been quite a labor of love."
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