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Tsuneko Sasamoto

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Tsuneko Sasamoto
Tsuneko Sasamoto
Tsuneko Sasamoto at the age of 99, being interviewed in her home in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo on 28 April 2014.
Birth: 1 September 1914
Tokyo, Japan
Death: 15 August 2022
Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan
Age: 107 years, 348 days
Country: JapanJPN
Centenarian

Tsuneko Sasamoto [Japanese: 笹本恒子] (1 September 1914 – 15 August 2022) was a Japanese centenarian and Japan's first female photojournalist.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Sasamoto was born in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, Japan. Sasamoto’s father was a kimono dealer. She went to a college of home economics, but quit because of her ambition to become a painter. After dropping out, she attended an institute of painting without telling her parents, and a dressmaking school.

Career[]

It was a black-and-white film by Man Ray Sasamoto saw with a friend in 1937 that sparked her interest in photography. She went on to start her career as a part-time illustrator on the local news pages in Tokyo Nichinichi Shimbun (now Mainichi Shimbun, one of the newspapers in Japan). At 26, she got promoted to a probationary employee in 1940 when she joined the Photographic Society in Japan, officially becoming the first female photojournalist in Japan. She calls Margaret Bourke-White a major influence in why she became a photographer. Sasamoto photographed subjects from General Douglas MacArthur during the American occupation of Japan to striking coalminers and protesting students.

She published a photobook in 2011 called Hyakusai no Finder, or Centenarian’s Finder. In 2014, Sasamoto had an exhibit of her work from her 2011 book called Hyakusai Ten, or, Centenarian’s Exhibition. In 2015, Sasamoto published another book, Inquisitive Girl at 101. In 2015, she broke her left hand and both legs but continues to photograph. Sasamoto is currently working on a project called Hana Akari, or Flower Glow. The book is in honor of her friends who have died.

Last Years[]

When asked about the secret of her longevity, she answered; "You should never become lazy. It’s essential to remain positive about your life and never give up. You need to push yourself and stay aware, so you can move forward. That’s what I want people to know". She’s also careful to look after herself, swearing by a glass of red wine every night and a piece of chocolate every day. “I also eat a lot of meat. People often say old people shouldn’t eat meat because it is bad for their health, but that is not true,” she said.

Tsuneko Sasamoto died from natural causes in a nursing home in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan on 15 August 2022, at the age of 107 years, 348 days.

Gallery[]

External Links[]

References[]

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