Mitsumura-Bermpohl Process (MBP). Kokugakai In 1940, Kitazumi was awarded the prestigious Kokugakai Arts Association, Photography Award for his submissions "Sazanami", "Kusamura" and "Nagare". (In the same year, Kokugakai Arts Association members' commendations were given to Ihei Kimura and Iwata Nakayama.) Despite the use of hand-colored photographs and his pioneering work in color for his professional work, Kitazumi's submissions to Kokugakai Arts Association were all monochrome. Furthermore, in contrast to most of his contemporaries, his prints are characteristically devoid of tonal gradation. In his memoirs, he wrote that this was in response to Shinzō Fukuhara's "Hikari to Sono Kaichō" (translated as "Light and its Harmony"), which promoted the beauty of tonal gradations (kaichō) and was a major influence on pre-war Japanese photographers. South-East Asia assignment In July 1942, Genzo Kitazumi embarked on an assignment that took him around South East Asia. The aim was to capture in color the scenes from the occupied territories as well as Thailand. With his connections in the Army and Naval Ministries, Toshimo Mitsumura, his employer, ensured that the assignment had the backing of the authorities. For the purpose of the assignment, the team members were designated as employees of Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shinbun attached to the military (gun-zoku). During this assignment he visited French Indochina, Thailand, Malaya, Dutch East Indies and the Philippines. After returning to Japan in late December 1942, 150 photographs from the assignment were printed in B2 and B4 sizes and exhibited one frame at a time in the shop windows of Tokyo's Ginza district in early 1943. The exhibition subsequently toured the country and was also shown in Karafuto (Sakhalin), Korea, Taiwan and Manchuria. In view of the fact that the assignment was authorised by and had the backing of the authorities, the photographs from South East Asia are notable for the lack of subject matter with obvious propaganda value. Instead, the focus is on the people and culture of the places that he visited. This is in contrast to the works of other photographers working for the military establishment, such as that of Ihei Kimura in Front magazine. Post-war achievements On 25 May 1945, Kitazumi's house, including his photographic archive, was destroyed in the B-29 bombing of Tokyo. The destruction of the archive resulted in the scarcity of photographic record of Kitazumi's work from before 1945. Immediately after the war, Kitazumi took a leading role in the re-establishment of the