MEDITERRANEAN CONFERENCE CENTER
July 3–5, 2026 

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Noriko Takaoka

鷹岡のり子

Noriko Takaoka is a Japanese photographer and a member of the Japan-Europe Palace Art Association.
She has exhibited her works both in Japan and internationally.
Through her ongoing theme, Glow of Life, she explores the beauty and vitality inherent in human life and the natural world.

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 Life-Then and then(Orange Rose) 

Artist’s Statement

Glow of life

I began photographing fading flowers around 2006 as part of my exploration of the theme of life.

At that time, my elderly mother was repeatedly hospitalized, and there were moments when her life hung in the balance.
One day, my attention was drawn to a single tulip displayed on the bay window in my living room.
Looking at it through the camera lens, I saw not simply a flower nearing the end of its life, but a quiet determination to keep living.
Its appearance revealed a strength and will to live that could not be judged from the outside alone.

That realization struck me deeply. While the flower seemed to be fighting to live, I became aware that I had already begun to lose hope.
The fading tulip reminded me that my mother, too, wanted to live. Those around her must never give up before she does.

Five years later, my mother passed away.

During those years, I continued to place flowers in the bay window of my living room.
The world created by the fading flowers and the light that fell upon them became a reflection of life itself.
Each flower seemed to tell a different story, embodying the struggles, beauty, and dignity of a human life.

Flowers in full bloom bring joy, comfort, and delight to those who see them. Yet fading flowers possess a different kind of beauty
—the beauty of perseverance, resilience, and the remarkable vitality that continues to shine for as long as life remains.
As you look at the vibrant orange rose and the fading flower from the series *Life – Then and Then*, I wonder what thoughts and feelings they may awaken within you.

https://www.norikotakaoka.com

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Japan-Europe Palace Art Association Commentary

Noriko Takaoka’s photography goes beyond the simple act of recording appearances, reaching toward the very essence of life itself.
Her gaze, particularly when directed toward flowers, is not limited to their moment of full bloom; it embraces the passage of time and the transformations that inevitably accompany it.

The vivid orange rose in full bloom and the same rose altered by time are not presented merely as a contrast between life and death.
Rather, they appear as different moments within the continuous journey of a single life, each carrying its own sense of presence and significance.
In both the firm, radiant petals and the curled, fading ones, traces of time are quietly inscribed, revealing the passage of life itself.

What distinguishes Takaoka’s work is her refusal to regard decline solely as loss.
Instead, she discovers a deeper truth of life within the process of change, carefully drawing attention to forms that continue to exist even as they transform.
In doing so, her photographs invite contemplation on time, mortality, and the nature of existence.
What lingers in these images is not simply a sense of sorrow before an ending, but the profound presence that can only be attained by something that has truly lived.