"Faces of Japan at the Time of Sakura" Through the Eyes of Paul Gherson

While still in Romania, Paul Gherson worked at a company where Japanese technicians would come to instruct them, and when they left they gave him a present. It was a calendar of art prints of the famous painter Kitagawa Utamaro, most famous for woodblock prints.

Gherson said they were so unusual that he decided to cut them out, frame and sell them at a consignment shop. It was not until 40 years later, that he bought his own Utamaro prints.

"This time I kept them!" he said.

Now the Yorktown resident Gherson, 66, has traveled to Japan himself and taken his own photographs. Over the past four weeks he held his first photography exhibit "Faces of Japan at the Time of Sakura" at Club Fit displaying photographs from his Japanese visits in 2007 and 2010 at the time of the year when the Japanese celebrate the cherry blossom or "sakura."

"The pictures were not taken with the intent of being displayed; rather, they were 'discovered' in my collection when I had the chance to prepare this show," he said.

Gherson was born in Moldova and lived most of his life in Bucharest, Romania. He said work in his native country was very boring, so always tried to do things that were unusual. In 1977 he and his wife Janine left for the United States. They stayed in Boston for a week and then they left for Indiana where Paul received his nuclear engineering Ph. D degree from Purdue University. In 1984, he and his wife moved to Yorktown with their two daughters for work. He designed medical instruments for Bayer until he retired in 2006, while his wife still works at the Westchester Medical Center.

He is not a professional photographer by any means, he said, but he is the living proof that people can reinvent themselves and follow their dreams and do what they are passionate about.

"I always liked art," he said. "I like to appreciate a good design like furniture, technical instruments, or graphic art."

Gherson started traveling in the 1980s, and in order to capture the memories and places he has been to, he would take photographs. He insisted that a member of his family is always in the picture, which is something fewer professional photographers do, he said.

Before leaving for a country, he would study the language. It took him three years to understand Japanese, he said, and he is still taking lessons. He advised people who want to travel to rent an apartment and live close to the natives and imagine that they live there to in order to get the most out of the trip.

"My philosophy when I travel is I imagine I live there," Gherson said. "There are things you don't see as a tourist."

He has accumulated a lot of frequent flier miles, so traveling to Japan (he went in 2005, 2007 and 2010) has not been too expensive.

"There are many people who don't live in luxury," he said. "There is no reason you as a tourist need to live in luxury."

He said eating out or getting sushi at a restaurant is expensive, but if you go to the local supermarket, like the rest of the people, you can get it for $3. If you are looking to save money on travel, take the bus or train as opposed to expensive taxi rides, Gherson advised.

"I find every place friendly," he said, "if you have the same attitude toward the host. I don't remember any place where they wouldn't help you."

Of his experience in Japan, he said people have respect for others, they are shy in their relations and are very conservative. What he found striking about Japan is their preoccupations in cleanliness, their love for flowers, and the safety of children from age seven who would walk to school or take public transportation by themselves.

During his 2007 visit to Japan, Gherson took approximately 1000 photographs, half of which included his family, he said. There are about 50 to 100 photographs he said he likes enough to exhibit.

"You have to take a lot of pictures to discover a good one," he said.

He advised people to walk around and take pictures of something they think is interesting. He always carries a camera with himself and he said that you don't need an expensive camera to be a good photographer. During his 2005 and 2007 visit to Japan he used a Sony Cybershot camera.

"If you don't have the eye to chose the subject, even with the best camera, the photo will remain uninteresting," he said.

"When visiting a destination where I have been before, I find a certain comfort in recognizing the familiar places," he said. "The real excitement comes however from meeting old friends and making new ones. A trip is never boring when you look for the human touch."

During his first visit to Japan in 2005, Gherson said he and his wife went to the flea market where they noticed an older man with interesting features who wore a nice burgundy hat (the colors of which would stand out in the photograph), so asked him to take his photograph. But the man took off his hat and Gherson took his picture despite the fact that he wanted him to wear it. During his  next visit to Japan in 2007, he went back to the flea market and saw the same man, but this time he took a picture of him with the burgundy hat on.

His advice to other photographers:

"Look for the beautiful sets of color, people with interesting physiognomy and something that gives the photograph dynamics, like children watching parades, old men resting when you see tiredness of face, young lady eating lunch."

For his "Faces of Japan at the Time of Sakura" exhibit at Club Fit Gherson received many positive comments in his guest book.

"Thank you for decreasing my blood pressure, making me smile, transporting me to a peaceful and beautiful place," his friend Peter Meskin wrote, who also encouraged him to display his photographs.

"I have spent lots of time, many times, in front of the your work and I appreciate them all, "Dolores wrote. "Thank you so much! My eyes and heart are happier because of your exhibit."

"Lovely photos!" Amy wrote. "All capture a wonderful beauty and unique look into Kyoto. Certainly makes me want to visit!"

Probably the most interesting and flattering comment Gherson has received he said is from his daughter's friend who is from Kamakura.

"Thank you so much for sharing such beautiful pictures," Keiko wrote. "It's always interesting to see Japan through foreigner's eyes."

He has booked shows at the Ossining Public Library (August 2 through August 30, 2010), the Eastchester Library (tentative dates are mid October through November, 2010), the John C. Hart Library (January 2011), and the Kingston Library (May 2011).

Paul Gherson can be reached at p.gherson@verizon.net