W. Eugene Smith, Tomoko Uemura in Her Bath
It always amazes me to learn the age of photographers. It is crazy to think that Smith took such powerful photos at such a young age. He must have only been 19 or 20 when he took this photo seeing as though he died at 21. Smith was able to make a social statement by going to a place where extreme things were happening but not much news was circulating. Mercury poisoning was causing major health defects in Minamata, Japan but the world wasn’t talking about it. Smith was able to shed light on this issue by going to this city in Japan and got close with his subjects to create a very intimate experience for the viewer. He didn’t just stand on the street taking pictures, he went into people’s homes and captured the every day struggles of people living with these conditions.