Here.Still.

  • Dates
    2015 - 2018
  • Author
  • Locations Japan, Italy, Hawaii, Colorado

Four years ago, I departed New York City on what eventually became a near-thousand day personal odyssey, leaving behind broken relationships, career, home and all my possessions except for my camera and what I could carry on my back. Free of my chains, I journeyed alone because it was the first time since my father abruptly passed away when I was nineteen that I had the time to reconcile with the life from which I had felt disconnected.

As I journeyed, I made photographs where I felt the presence of everyday humanity and the stillness of natural tranquility. To contextualize my settings I recalled my upbringing in the organized chaos that is Tokyo. From my high-rise bedroom window as a child I spent hours upon hours gazing out at the sprawling city below and found a calmness that was elusive whenever I ventured out of the sanctuary of my room. 

I turned once again to windows and looking out from within, where the faintly warm presence of someone who was there but now departed--a concept known in Japan as "nukumori"—could be felt.

I make photographs in the places where I find these elements in co-existence--the humanity inside and the silence of the world beyond the window--to capture a moment in time that recalls something from our past, like a distant, but familiar bell tolling for us to come back and find life here again in the stillness.

© George Nobechi - Sitting Room Memories, Hokkaido
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Sitting Room Memories, Hokkaido

© George Nobechi - A Bar on a Winter Morning, Kanazawa
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A Bar on a Winter Morning, Kanazawa

© George Nobechi - Breakfast Trays in the North Country, Ichinoseki
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Breakfast Trays in the North Country, Ichinoseki

© George Nobechi - Visitor Center, Great Sand Dunes National Park
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Visitor Center, Great Sand Dunes National Park

© George Nobechi - Coffee Cups in November Light, Yamadera
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Coffee Cups in November Light, Yamadera

© George Nobechi - On Islands Across Oceans, Molokai
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On Islands Across Oceans, Molokai

© George Nobechi - Winter Ferry Ride, Toyama
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Winter Ferry Ride, Toyama

© George Nobechi - Hotel Hallway, Hagi
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Hotel Hallway, Hagi

© George Nobechi - Dawn Light, Nagasaki
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Dawn Light, Nagasaki

© George Nobechi - In a Tearoom in a Garden, Kyoto
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In a Tearoom in a Garden, Kyoto

© George Nobechi - One Week After the Cherry Blossoms, Kitakami
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One Week After the Cherry Blossoms, Kitakami

© George Nobechi - Awaiting the Coming Summer, Iriomote
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Awaiting the Coming Summer, Iriomote

© George Nobechi - Trees on the Great Plains, Nebraska
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Trees on the Great Plains, Nebraska

© George Nobechi - Autumn in the Gorge, Sakunami
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Autumn in the Gorge, Sakunami

© George Nobechi - Tennis Courts in the Rain, Niseko
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Tennis Courts in the Rain, Niseko

© George Nobechi - Visitor Center, Tade Wetlands
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Visitor Center, Tade Wetlands

© George Nobechi - Winter Storm at Sunset, Lake Shikotsu
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Winter Storm at Sunset, Lake Shikotsu

© George Nobechi - Spring Rain on the Sea of Japan, Noto
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Spring Rain on the Sea of Japan, Noto

© George Nobechi - Morning Veil, Hirosaki
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Morning Veil, Hirosaki

© George Nobechi - The Devil's Bridge, Tuscany
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The Devil's Bridge, Tuscany

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