Mr. Kageyoshi Fujita (front row, fourth from the right) went on a high school trip to Hokkaido and this photo shows when they stopped at Lake Mashu. The two men on the left with their backs to the camera were not from Mr. Fujita’s school. They were in fact teachers from the nearby Teshikaga Junior High School. The one in white had recently moved here from Sapporo. His colleague, who was from the area, had brought him to the lake for the rst time. He had always lived in a big city and was anxious about the challenge of living in a small, quiet town. His colleague is carefully explaining to him that the name of the lake in Ainu should be “kim-ta-an-kamuy-to” which means Lake of Gods. He took a deep breath and started to feel the soothing e ect of the grand landscape on him.
「北海道の阿寒国立公園への旅行」、ゼラチン・シルバー・ プリント、1960年代、11 x 15.1 cm、藤田化粧品蔵
藤田景敏氏(前列の右から4番目)は高校の修学旅行で北 海道を訪れた。これは、摩周湖に立ち寄った時の写真だ。 左側でカメラに背を向けているふたりの男性は、藤田さん の学校の関係者ではなく、実は近くの弟子屈中学校の教師 だった。シャツが白い方の男性は最近、札幌から引っ越し てきた。彼はこの湖に来たことがなかったので、この周辺 出身の同僚が連れてきてくれたのだ。彼はいつも大都市に 住んでいて、小さくて静かな町に住むことに不安を抱いて いた。同僚は、アイヌの人々はこの湖を、山の神の湖という 意味の「キンタン・カムイ・トー」と名付けたのだと丁寧に 説明してくれた。彼は深呼吸をして、雄大な風景による癒し の力に身をゆだねた。