"Seeds are invisible. They sleep in the secret depths of the earth until one of them decides to wake up." - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
Fascinating stories of seeds unfold in the kitchens of Nijo Castle during Kyotographie, Kyoto's annual photography festival. These are tales of journeys that transcend time and cultures, between yin and yang, microcosm and macrocosm. Under the poetic and scientific eye of photographer Thierry Ardouin, these "great travelers" reveal their formal beauty and their simultaneously "strange and essential" morphology.
Seeds have developed travel strategies, attracting birds with their colors, acquiring wings or waterproof skins to be carried by waves or breezes, equipping themselves with hooks to cling to fur... Over millennia of exchange and selection by humans of the varieties best suited to their terroir, their journey has generated a wonderful planetary diversity of plant species.
Enhanced by Shinichiro Ogata's minimalist scenography, the seeds are displayed in glass bulbs, precious containers befitting their inestimable heritage value, like small cosmic capsules filled with the energy needed to withstand the many challenges that await them. Faced with climate challenges, the mission of our farmers is more essential than ever.
Among them is Oryza Sativa, our original rice. Originating in the marshes of Asia, Oryza Sativa was domesticated over 10,000 years ago. The invention of irrigation systems in China 7,000 years ago enabled the rise of rice-growing societies, and rice was introduced to Japan in the 3rd century BCE with the cultivation of rice. It reached Europe in the 16th century and then North America a century later, with modern explorers. At Bizen, we are proud to be part of this journey, in nature and in our roots, and to contain in our products the original rice, the seed of life and beauty.
Photo 2: Kyoto Asahi Rice, Japan ©Kyotographie Photo 3: POACEAE - Oryza sativa L. Rice Fruit. © Thierry Ardouin/Tendance Floue