The SHINING WOMAN PROJECT, founded by Hideka Tonomura, is a portrait project dedicated to women who fight cancer. Following the "SHINING WOMAN PARADE at KYOTOGRAPHIE 2022: Moving Exhibition" held at the opening of Kyotographie International Photography Festival last year, this year's SHINING WOMAN PARADE will be held on Saturday, April 29th, 2023 in Roppongi, Tokyo.

The SHINING WOMAN PROJECT captures the reality of women of today.
This project aims to free women from their unconscious image of women, change the concept of cancer patients, and raise the issue of living with difficulties.
On the day of the parade, to spread the project's messages to the broader public, we will step out of Zen Foto Gallery with the photographs and walk on the streets of Roppongi with the participants and the supporters of the SHINING WOMAN PROJECT.

We will also hold a one-day exhibition of the SHINING WOMAN PROJECT on the day of the parade.

[Parade Schedule]
Date: Saturday, April 29, 2023
Gathering Time: 13:00
Departure Time: 14:00
Meeting Place: Zen Foto Gallery
Participation Fee: Free

[SHINING WOMAN PROJECT Exhibition]
Date: One-day only on Saturday, April 29, 2023
Opening Hours: 12:00—19:00
Venue: Zen Foto Gallery
Admission: Free

The parade is open to anyone who agrees with the project.
If you would like to join us, please send us an email at [email protected] indicating your name and the number of participants. Thank you.

Artist Profile

Hideka TONOMURA

Born in 1979, Hideka Tonomura graduated from the Broadcasting and Filmmaking Department of Osaka Visual Arts School and began photography in 2002. She published her first photobook “Mama Love” in 2008 with Akaaka Art Publishing, revealing her deepest pain and the dark, hidden secrets of her family, which made an unforgettable impression on the public. In 2013 she published “They Called Me Yukari” with Zen Foto Gallery, in which she documented the life and people around her when she worked as a hostess in Kabukicho, Shinjuku. Her other publications include “Orange Elephant” (Zen Foto Gallery, 2015), “cheki” (Morel Books, 2018), “Die of Love” (Zen Foto Gallery, 2018), “SHINING WOMAN #cancerbeauty” (Zen Foto Gallery, 2020), “mama 恋 love” [New Edition] (Zen Foto Gallery, 2021) and “Toxic” (Zen Foto Gallery, 2022).

Actively presenting her work in and out of Japan, her major solo exhibitions include “Unlucky Family”, Nikon Salon, Tokyo and Osaka (2004); “Tonomura Hideka Shageki –0305–”, Uplink, Tokyo (2005); “Viva Hostess’s Life”, Club Ginko, Tokyo (2007); “mama 恋 love”, Trunk Gallery 81, Seoul (2011); “They called me Yukari / mama 恋 love”, Zen Foto Gallery (2013); “orange elephant”, Zen Foto Gallery, Tokyo and Galeria About Art, Spain (2016); “die of love”, Zen Foto Gallery (2018); “SHINING WOMAN #cancerbeauty”, Zen Foto Gallery (2020) and Okayama Gender Equality Promotion Center, Okayama (2021); “Shining Woman Project at Kyotographie 2022” (2022); and “Love”, Zen Foto Gallery (2022). Her major group exhibitions include “Shikijo: Eroticism in Japanese Photography”, Blindspot Gallery, Hong Kong (2016); Daiwa Foundation Japan House Gallery, London (2018); “10/10 Celebrating Contemporary Japanese Women Photographers”, Kyotographie (2022) and “Love Songs”, Maison Européenne de la Photographie (2022).

Tonomura launched the “SHINING WOMAN PROJECT” in 2019, a portrait project dedicated to women fighting cancer. In 2022, her debut work “Mama Love” was collected by the MEP – La Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris.

Publications & Prints