By Remy Cox
George Masa, an underrecognized conservationist and photographer, spent his life trapped in the process of remaking himself. A man of great mystique and intrigue, he took on several names in his lifetime—Shoji Takahashi, Shoji Endo, Masaharu Iizuka, George Masa Iizuka, and ultimately, George Masa. Much of Masa’s personal life could be described as ephemeral. He was born in Tokyo and moved to the United States at 23 years old, settling briefly in Seattle, Portland, and New Orleans before coming to Asheville where he would build his repertoire of photography and advocate for the regions’ national parks. Many odds were stacked against him professionally and personally—he struggled financially as an artist in the Great Depression, and he was the target of racial hostilities by the KKK. He had close ties with Horace Kephart, one of the most prominent writers on Appalachia. Yet, until very recently, Masa’s life and work went unrecognized in its’ significance to Appalachian environmental conservation.
A Stranger No More: George Masa and His Art, the newest exhibit at Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Center (MHC), is the product of the efforts of guest curators, the MHC team, and the MHC’s student workers. The exhibit stands apart from the typical exhibit staged in the MHC’s main gallery space, as the presence of physical objects is sparse—although Masa’s film camera dominates the center of the room. This presentation can be a challenge in a museum. It’s much harder for many visitors to connect with an image on the wall than an object that they share the space with. Yet, the MHC works around this. “You can easily imagine using a plow or a saw or wearing a beanie,” says Peter Koch, Education Specialist at the MHC, “…[t]he camera is the only object in the exhibit like that…[W]e try to [liken] images to the artifacts, to help people.” The walls are lined with a lifetime of his masterful photography documenting the vast natural spaces of the Appalachian Mountains. Visitors are invited to consider Masa’s photographs, each containing images of waterfalls, wildflowers, and mountains, and draw upon personal experiences and feelings evoked by his work.
George Masa’s film camera. Photograph taken by Ashley Evans.
When asked further about what stands out about Masa’s story and the lasting effects of Masa’s conservation work and advocacy, Peter Koch says this—“I think a big part of the story is Masa finding his way as an immigrant and then growing and developing into a consummate and well respected expert in his field [even in his own lifetime]…his work was more than just acreage and big mountains preserved. He was very good at putting out images that showcased the vistas, the flora, waterfalls. These have been used by boosters and promoters and that’s okay as it helped open eyes of the larger population to how beautiful this area is.”
A Stranger No More is a worthwhile visit. Prospective visitors will drive through the weaving roadways nestled in the valleys and forests that Masa documented on his film camera, and in the exhibit gallery, they can learn the story of the man whose near-forgotten life’s work has been remembered.