Mischa is a street and documentary photographer based in Tokyo, who also works as a brand designer and Russia specialist.

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He was born into a family said to be descended from the 40th Emperor Tenmu, which has produced many intellectuals and artists since the Heian period, including the poets Kiyohara no Fukayabu, Sei Shōnagon, and Kiyohara no Nobukata. His grandfather was an artist awarded the Prime Minister's Prize, and his aunt, Mayumi Hattori, is known as a copperplate engraver, Known as a Yokomizo Seishi Prize-winning author and a Naoki Prize nominee.

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He is no exception, and his artistic talent developed since childhood. When his painting was accepted for the World Competition at the age of 11, he was expected to become an artist, but he chose a different future.

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However, during his university years in Moscow, he discovered street photography. He bought a £50 Canon, put two spare rolls of film in his bag, and continuously photographed post-Soviet Moscow. After returning to Japan, he stepped away from photography for a while, but when he picked up a camera again, he won numerous photo contest awards and his work was featured in media such as book covers. Raised in the city of the traditional Awa Odori dance, he continued shooting it as a photo project and also served as the official photographer for various organisations and associations.

 

Mischa sees photography as a painterly technique, an artistic medium of light, shadow, and colour that reflects the artist's soul. His work, heavily influenced by Russian art, focuses on the emotions of the landscapes and people before his lens. Sometimes joyful, sometimes beautiful, sometimes sorrowful—he imbues his photos with feeling much as a writer crafts words.

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Speaks Japanese, English and Russian
MA (Moscow State Linguistic University)

Shih-tzu lover