This series of self portraits creates a sequence of identity, a set of images, following one after another, arising out of one another, like a train of thought. It is a river of feelings in motion.
In most of these photos the lonely bride is hidden behind a veil, a scarf, a mantilla, a burkha. This fragile fabric, which will soon be lifted and removed, oddly represents not only an unfulfilled obligation and disappointment, but even a curse.
In no way limiting the range of color, the use of monochromaticism actually demonstrates a sensitivity to the infinity of color. Through endless transitions it darkens, strengthens and weakens the shades, revealing a plurality and infinity of layers of color which can not be counted no matter how closely the viewer gazes. The quantity of colors from which a polychromatic image is created is usually limited; they can be counted. On the contrary, monochromaticism brings the quality of infinity to color, thus illustrating the infinity of time as well.
“I ran away from Japan because I was dead. I found a haven in France to escape from this melancholy. With the new outlook I have found thanks to this change of cultures, and with that freedom which comes from the French language and the structure of French thought, I am currently working on the photo project ‘Intangible Brides’ in which I reveal – in an unusually roundabout way – the fears of intimidated little girls who discover the ancestral fetters of arranged marriages and the humiliating destiny of Japanese women.
How is it possible to forget my mother’s secret, which I discovered when I was eight years old and which horrified me so. Then I unexpectedly discovered that my parents first saw each other on the day they were married, that their marriage was completely arranged by their families.’ K.Y.
