Frank S. Matsura

A captivating collection of Native American portraiture by early 20th-century Japanese photographer Frank S. Matsura frames the rarely told story of his work and unique personal life. Frank S. Matsura (1873-1913) was an immigrant photographer, a local hero, a charismatic original, an enigma, and a man of the community whose legacy has grown over time. Today, historians are still compiling the details of Frank's unconventional life, and his identity and images are enjoying a revival. An expansion of academic scholarship, documentaries, exhibitions, and regional historical interests, particularly regarding his Native American portraiture, has resulted in a more vivid understanding of the man and his work: Matsura's photographs of local tribal members reveal an honesty and empathy, a counterpoint to the contrived or nostalgic seen in his contemporaries' images from the same period. His oeuvre of just ten years (due to his unexpected passing from tuberculosis) documents everyday local events and the cacophony of characters who visited his studio for dime portraits. There are parallels to be found between Matsura's work and today's society in attempts to rise above anti-Asian bias, the continued pursuit of cultural agency, and a desire to individually define what America can and should be. Along with beautifully reproduced black-and-white photographs, the book features narratives from five scholars who give life and context to Matsura's work, celebrating his captivating photography as a look into immigrant artists, American identity, and the history of a fluid and multicultured exceptionalism. Michael Holloman is a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation and a professor in the Department of Art at Washington State University. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Native American art history and the studio arts while maintaining duties for the university as the coordinator for Native Arts, Outreach and Education. Contributors: Laurie Arnold, Ph.D. , Professor of History & Director of Native American Studies at Gonzaga University and an enrolled member of the Sinixt Band of the Colville Confederated Tribes Maki Fukuoka, Ph.D. , Associate Professor, History of Art, University of Leeds Glen Mimura, Ph.D ., Associate Professor of Film and Media Studies and Asian-American Studies at the University of California, Irvine Beth Harrington , Producer/Director/Writer, and Emmy Award–winning independent filmmaker whose work focuses on American culture, history, art, and music.