For Press

For press

Early press room · Project in progress

72 Seasons is a year-long photographic project inspired by Japan’s traditional 72 micro-seasons, known as Shichijūni-kō — 七十二候.

From September 2026 to August 2027, photographer and author Michael Gebert follows each of these fleeting seasonal moments one by one — translating them into a contemporary photographic journey through the places, weather, landscapes and details encountered along the way.

The project will ultimately bring together 72 photographs in a first physical edition: a freestanding tear-off calendar, a photographic object and an archive of one year spent looking more closely.

Press enquiries
press@72seasons.art

Project in brief

72 seasons. 72 photographs. One year. One edition.

Project period
September 2026 — August 2027
Origin
Inspired by Japan’s traditional 72 micro-seasons.
Format
A one-year photographic journey culminating in a physical collector’s edition.
Current phase
Early production and visual development.
Crowdfunding
Planned for 2027 as part of the ongoing project journey.

The story

Japan’s traditional calendar once divided the year not only into four seasons, but into 72 much shorter periods — each lasting only a few days and each named after a subtle change in nature.

Ice begins to loosen. Birds return. Dew settles on the grass. Grain ripens.

72 Seasons takes this old practice of observation and reinterprets it through contemporary photography.

The project is not about recreating Japan elsewhere. It is about adopting the same way of looking: noticing what changes, where we are, as it happens.

Not mindfulness as a slogan. Attention as a practice.

About Michael Gebert

Michael Gebert is a German author, entrepreneur and photographer based in Munich.

His work moves between technology, cultural observation and questions of how people perceive change. With 72 Seasons, he turns his attention away from acceleration and toward a slower form of pattern recognition: small shifts in landscape, weather, light and time.

All photographs in the project are created as personal visual responses to the 72 micro-seasons.

Media & collaborations

72 Seasons is open to selected editorial, podcast, publishing, design and cultural collaborations during the project year.

  • Japanese seasonal culture and Shichijūni-kō
  • Photography and visual storytelling
  • Slow living and attention
  • Nature and changing seasonal rhythms
  • Contemporary interpretations of traditional knowledge
  • Independent publishing and collectible editions
  • Crowdfunding and the making of a physical object

For interviews, background conversations, image requests or collaboration enquiries:

press@72seasons.art

Press material

Available on request:

  • Project description
  • Founder / photographer biography
  • Selected high-resolution photographs
  • Project logo and visual identity
  • Early product concept images
  • Interview background and talking points

A dedicated downloadable press kit will follow as the project develops.

Poetic & observational

A slower way of seeing seasonal change.

Photographed by Michael Gebert

72 personal photographic responses — not a documentary of Japan.

First physical edition

A freestanding tear-off calendar and collectible photographic object.

Crowdfunding 2027

Supporting the journey before all 72 seasons are complete.

Press & collaborations

Editorial, podcast, publishing and cultural enquiries welcome.