Bildkollektion
Tokyo 7 by Pieter Ten Hoopen (Agence Vu)
Tokyo 7 (2012) - During my time working as a photographer after the devastating tsunami in 2011, I became completely fascinated by Japan, especially Tokyo. Despite the devastation, the Japanese were calm and collected and they showed almost none of their private sorrow. - As a city, Tokyo seemed practically untouched. I couldn't help wondering what was behind the façade. How do the Japanese handle sorrow, loneliness and the demands of society? Above all, I wondered how my generation lived their daily lives there. I knew I would go back and look for a more intimate Tokyo. - Later, after a long period of working on news reports and multiple-year projects, I began longing for that artistic trance that can only be experienced during really intense, short periods of unreserved photographing, and I knew right away that it was Tokyo I needed to go to. I contacted my friend Jay, who I got to know during the tsunami, and, with his help, I met some young Japanese people who dream about breaking the traditional Japanese pattern of getting a degree, then getting a job at a big company and staying there for the rest of their lives without the desire or ability to get to know the rest of the world. - These people, who became my friends, have, in contrast to previous generations, close contacts with other parts of the world; they have travelled and they are looking for a life beyond the typical. But they are fighting against their own society and its norms. - During seven intensive days, I chose to photograph seven of these friends. They opened doors to a Tokyo that I just barely guessed existed. Intimate, loving and honest. (pth/vu)