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Photographs from the Inside

-How did this award-winning work come into being?

I used to just call out to people in the street and ask to take their pictures. I'd been doing that kind of portrait photography for a while. One day, I saw photographer Katsumi Watanabe's book "Shinjuku" and I thought, "That's so cool" and decided to take pictures of people in Shinjuku. I went to Shinjuku night and day, and called out to people and took pictures of them, but it didn't go well. They looked like souvenir photos, I mean, all I was capturing was the face people showed the outside world. I knew I would have to get inside or I wouldn't be able to take good pictures. I got an introduction and started working in a cabaret club. I thought I'd take photographs there. I worked with the other women in the club, and we'd chat when we had free time, and we became really close. I always had my camera with me so it became perfectly natural to them that I would be taking photographs. The pictures I took there are the ones in this work. They are really photographs from the inside.

-How long was your shooting period?

It was half a year. When I started working there, everything I saw was new and fresh, and during that half year, it was like I was taking pictures of anything that caught my eye. On a good day I'd shoot ten rolls of 36-exposure film in a day. The club I was working in wasn't one of the busier ones, so I had lots of time to shoot. In the club, in the dressing room, when I went out on the street with some of the girls from the club, I was always taking pictures. My camera is a Big Mini. I have always loved Nobuyoshi Araki and Hiromix, so that's how I wound up using one. It's a small camera, so it's easy to grab it and push the shutter when you see something. I enjoyed working at the club, so there were many moments that made me want to push the shutter. At first, I was worried that I wouldn't fit in with the others, but I was happy to find out how friendly everyone was. I've never been very girly, so I was always very envious of working girls with their perfectly set hair. I was happy just to find out I was able to do it myself. Putting on makeup and making my hair look pretty, hanging out with other girls the same age as me, just like high school classmates, even if you eliminate the photography, it was still a very good experience. I think you could say the reason why I was able to take such natural photographs of the girls was because I became so close to them. But while it was good for the first few months after I started work, after a while I stopped being able to take pictures. I guess my eyes got used to it, and the moments where I felt like pushing the shutter got fewer and fewer. In the end, I was working there so I could take pictures, so I thought this will never do, and I quit working there after half a year.

-The complex, jigsaw puzzle-like display format is quite unique.

I based it on a map of Kabuki-cho, in Shinjuku, where I was working, and I filled in the spaces with photographs. The pictures are blown up, and they're not lined up in any kind of order to form any kind of story. When I was thinking about the best way to display the pictures, I suddenly had the idea to create Kabuki-cho itself out of the pictures. After that I went straight to the ward office and got a map. When I looked at it, I thought it made an interesting shape and I decided to go with it.

Creating a work of art is an act of bring out something from inside myself

-All of the photographs are black and white prints. Is there some kind of concept or intent behind this?

For me, I feel that black and white makes it easier to clearly see what I want to show. With color, I found that the colors were getting a little in the way of my intentions. With black and white, I like that there is a lot of stuff, developing and printing, that I can do myself. I built a darkroom in my home and I do it there. I love that kind of work. My room reeks of developing fluid. But I think that kind of thing is really great too. Once a print is made and it's hanging on the wall, the smell of the developing fluid doesn't linger, but when I see certain types of photographs, I sense that odor. I think people viewing the work will be able to sense the clinging odor around the photographs. I'd like to believe that they could.

-Do most of your other works feature people as the subjects as well?

It's always been this way. I've always wanted to photograph people. I wonder why. With people, each one has a unique face, and there are no two alike with other body parts as well, you know? That's fascinating. In particular with Kabuki-cho, I'm charmed by every person walking by. I get the urge to photograph everyone. But I'm no good at taking snapshots on the sly, so it's really hard for me. I can't take a picture without calling out to them first and getting permission. I don't know, I just find it frightening to do such a thing, to sneak a shot of someone's image.

-What originally got you interested in photography?

I first thought I'd like to take photographs when I was in third grade of junior high school. I took a career aptitude test at school and the results told me I was suited to becoming a photographer. I thought it sounded like fun, and since then I've dedicated myself to the path of photography. I guess I got kind of carried away. After I graduated from high school, I went to a technical school for photography. That is where I started making works of art from photographs, and I felt as though I was bringing out something from inside myself and that sensation felt so good and I soon became totally absorbed. Ever since then, I've been making works in Tokyo. I did go back to my hometown of Kagoshima once, but I realized I still wanted to take pictures, so I came back to Tokyo. Now, I've decided that I'm willing to do anything for photography. The themes I want to pursue are already bubbling up inside me. I don't think my basic route of taking photographs of people will change anytime soon.