David Abrahams’ ‘Kyushu’ is his first UK solo show London

David Abrahams Kyushu photograph, reflection in window — (Image credit: David Abrahams)

London-based photographer David Abrahams is best known for his atmospheric shots for glossy editorials and major brands, but for his first UK solo exhibition, he is showcasing a more personal and meditative collection of work.

David Abrahams photograph of vases in show window

‘Kyushu’, at Have a Butchers in east London from 31 August, is a collection of photographs that Abrahams took while visiting the coastal city of Karatsu on Kyushu, Japan’s most southerly island.

The images capture details that might otherwise be overlooked – a shop window, the hood of a car, an illuminated sign – and elevate them to works of art. Captured with Abrahams’ signature dreamy lighting, the ‘Kyushu’ images exude a hallucinatory, almost melancholic air.

David Abrahams Kyushu photograph, tree above the coast

‘There is a strong sense of observation from a space of isolation,’ Abrahams said of the collection, ‘and as such these images take on a sort of voyeuristic, solitary approach. As a photographer, there is always an intention: when you frame something it's always about what you are trying to show or depict. There’s a fine line between documenting, idealising and culturally appropriating the place you have photographed.’

Abrahams printed the 60 previously unpublished images at his north London darkroom, which gave him the freedom to explore a range of hues and expressive tones, emphasising some colours by printing the image five or six times before finishing it.

‘It’s been nice to return to the moments I cherished while travelling,’ says Abrahams, ‘and have the time and space to look at it almost as a distant memory or a dream. Taking out the original context, and exploring the images I was naturally drawn to.’

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Mary Cleary is a writer based in London and New York. Previously beauty & grooming editor at Wallpaper*, she is now a contributing editor, alongside writing for various publications on all aspects of culture.