Face Of The Day

Photographer Hiroshi Watanabe captures Japanese theater traditions:

Particularly interested in forms of theatricality, Watanabe sought to capture individual performers within the traditions of Sarumawashi, Noh, Ena Bunraku and Kabuki.  Stylized human actors, monkeys, masks and puppets become the subject matter of Watanabe’s striking and powerful photographs.  Though the traditions come from different regions and periods of history, they are tied together by Watanabe’s eye.

A 2009 profile quoted Watanabe’s philosophy of photography:

I don’t want to tell the viewer what to see. I believe in subtlety. I don’t believe in barking at the viewer. Of course it is my vision, but this is what I think is perfect about photography; it is flexible but also subtle… There is always an element that appears in the final frame, it can be very small but if you look closely you can find it. I challenge the viewer to find what I see. If they really look at the expressions, poses and the composition, they will really find something intriguing both visually and socially.

(Photo by Hiroshi Watanabe, whose work the Dish has also featured here and here)