One of the most important photographers in Guatemala and the first Japanese citizen to settle in the country was born on December 27, 1844 in Fujisawa, Japan. Kohe Yasu or Yasu Kohei, later became Juan José de Jesús Yas. In 1874 an important astronomical event impacted the life of Yas — the passage of Venus before the sun. Numerous foreign delegations traveled to Japan where they could observe the event with perfect clarity. The Mexican government, under President Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada, sent a scientific mission headed by an outstanding Mexican astronomer of the last century, Francisco Díaz Corvarrubias.

Young Yas was appointed as the translator for this group, which also included Agustín Barroso, a capable photographer who was probably the first person from whom Yas learned what was to become his profession in Guatemala. Upon finishing this task, young Yas asked the head of the delegation to take him to Mexico so he could finish his studies. They set off from Yokohama, coasting China and India; they crossed the Suez Canal and landed at Naples to visit Pompeii and the Vesuvius. They went on to Rome, which greatly impressed Yas.

Upon his return to Mexico, Díaz Covarrubias, accompanied by Yas who was dressed in ceremonial Japanese attire, visited President Lerdo de Tejada. During his two years in Mexico, Yas studied at the Preparatory School, where he improved his Spanish and studied painting. General Porfiro Díaz then became the president of the country and appointed Díaz Covarrubias as Minister Plenipotentiary of Mexico to Guatemala. Díaz Covarrubias asked if Yas would like to accompany him. Yas arrived in Guatemala in 1877. He began photographic training under Emilio Herbruger Sr., who taught Yas photographic printing. Soon after he was placed in charge of making all the positives, taking large portraits by natural light and developing photographs. In 1880 he opened his own studio in Guatemala City.

Yas also began studying to become a Catholic under Friar Bernardino Aceytuno. He converted to Catholicism in 1883. After his christening he added Jesús to his name. In 1891 Yas married María Noriega. The couple moved to Antigua in 1895 and rented a house at the corner of the El Carmen Church.
Yas set up “Japanese Photography,” which was probably the first studio in Antigua. The wide windows and glass ceiling enabled him to photograph by natural light, which he always sought and which led him to build special galleries in all the houses where he lived.

The beauty of the city and its religious character undoubtedly impressed him. His passion for Catholicism and for photography, for the medium’s expressive possibilities, was the basis of his work. His portraits of priests and monks show them dressed in various styles of clothing, as though he were looking for the definitive image coinciding with his religious fervor. He was also attracted by pious imagery: St. Hieronymus, St. Christopher, St. Joseph, 16th and 17th century carvings. Although his cameras were extremely heavy, Yas, assisted by his nephew J.D. Noriega, would often carry the massive equipment outdoors to photograph ruins of churches and convents. Yas was quite particular as to his background screens and used five or six different ones. His studio equipment included three cameras, six lenses, several tripods and props to hold his subjects’ heads still during long photographic exposures. He also mastered multiple exposures and continued using wet plates throughout his career. He coated his glass negatives with a collodion emulsion because he felt they increased the expressiveness of his works. One can only guess as to the number of inhabitants of Antigua and its neighboring villages who stood before his cameras. J. J. Yas died in 1917, and at his request was buried at the Antigua Guatemala cemetery — facing volcán de Agua. •

This article was excerpted and adapted from the book J. J. Yas - J. D. Noriega 1880-1960, “La Antigua Guatemala” © LA AZOTEA Editorial Fotografica de America Latina. Photos: © CIRMA, Antigua, Guatemala. Paper positives from original glass plates by Mitchell Denberg.J. J. Yas - J. D. Noriega 1880-1960 “La Antigua Guatemala” includes text by Luis Luján Muñoz and María Cristina Orive along with 45 photographs taken by J. J. Yas and his nephew J.D. Noriega. Available at bookstores in Guatemala City and Antigua. The REVUE cover photo this month was taken by Juan José de Jesús Yas