In this seminar, we shall consider an alternative history of photography, as this medium was constructed in Japan – starting from the geneaology of the term shashin (写真) (meaning: reflecting truth – the Japanese term for photography), through the discussion of Astronomical Photography, and solar photography for generations, as aspects of indexicality and performativity; Anti Photography and Opaque Photography – 19^th c. experimentation in photography; Pictorialism and Modernist Photography at the turn of the 20^th c. – with local visual theories in relation to monochrom and ink traditions; The presence of European photographers in 19^th c. Japan and the influence of their work on Japan’s image in the West; Representation of the Emperor and the Royal Family in Japanese Photography; We shall consider painting + photography tecniques – from “Photography Oil Painting” (shashin abura e 写真油絵), t the commercial coloration of photographs directed at European markets; we shall examine the place of War Photography – starting from The Second Opium War (1862) , and the Boshin War (1867), through The Asia-Pacific War (1931-1945). We shall discuss the question of Modernism in Japan – the desire and the opposition to modernization, and their reflction in photography; and finally, we will look into photography as an expression of imperial relations through the occupation of other Asian countires, to the end of the Asia-Pacific War with Japan’s surrender and collapse in Aug. 1945.