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ZINE/ZAKKA/FREE PAPER/GALLERY/RISO GRAPH
SPECIAL INTERVIEW
Ryo Inoue
2023.05.08 Mon.
Interview: Eisuke Koyasu
Photo: Ryo Inoue, Ayako
In 2019, I said goodbye to the job I had held for 20 years and started working as a photographer.
While working as a racer and a band member
Having always chased my dreams, I became so engrossed in photography that I chose to become a freelancer .
Self-reflection on the meaning of life, and the joy of living.
I become completely absorbed in the things I admire—that's the driving force behind everything.
I've admired racers since I was little. In elementary school, I played with supercar erasers, and in middle and high school, I became even more hooked on motorsports thanks to manga and magazines. I even chose to go to university because it had a car club (laughs). While I was in university, I seriously participated in off-road circuit racing as a club activity, and after graduation, I got a job as a car mechanic at a local factory so that I could continue racing while maintaining my own car. I was so engrossed in it that I thought "everything but cars, food, and sleep is a waste of time," and thanks to that, I once became the Chiba Prefecture champion. However, not only did I participate in races, but I also had many accidents, and the repair costs piled up, so in 2002 I decided to give up my dream of becoming a racer.
After that, I became hooked on the guitar. It all started when I saw a live performance by a band that a senior colleague of mine belonged to and thought, "That's so cool!" I formed a band in 2006 and we were active for about 10 years, but the next thing I became hooked on was photography.
My encounter with my current wife was through my love of photography.
I actually started using a camera about 20 years ago, when I was working as a car mechanic. I met my wife then, and I started taking pictures of her and her children with her camera.
I would take her young son and daughter out to play, capturing their everyday moments with my camera. Before I knew it, her camera had become a permanent fixture in my bag, and taking pictures of her and her children had become my hobby. Five years passed like this, and I was about to take on the titles of "husband" and "father." There was no sense of awkwardness in becoming a family with the children, who had become so attached to me so naturally. I began a new phase of taking pictures of my wife and children's sparkling moments, letting my heart guide me.
First solo exhibition "Milk and Vegetable Juice" (2018)
For all the dreams I've given up on until now,
My desire to create a photobook is growing stronger.
My interest in photography really took off when I started seeing the work of many photographers, both professional and amateur, on Instagram and Flickr. I began to think, "I want to be able to take pictures with these colors and compositions," and I was particularly captivated by Hideaki Hamada's family photos. I became such a big fan that I even went to one of his talk shows. I even bought his favorite film camera, the PENTAX 67, and before I knew it, I was drawn to the unique texture of film that digital photography can't replicate. It was around this time that I started sharing my film photos on social media.
From a hobbyist photographer,
I made a firm decision to become a full-fledged photographer.
Then, in 2015, I had my first exhibition experience at the group exhibition "Ichigo Ichie" held at "NADAR". In 2017, I won the grand prize in "Aim for a Solo Exhibition," a competition held by the photography gallery "NADAR" where the prize was to hold a solo exhibition, and the following year I held my first solo exhibition, "Milk and Vegetable Juice". The theme was "My son who drinks only milk and my daughter who loves vegetable juice, and my wife who never misses a day of them". At that time, I was engrossed in creating works of art that captured the dazzling moments with my family. Not only was taking pictures fun, but everything from selecting the photos to printing was enjoyable, and it was around this time that my dream of creating a photobook began to grow. I think I felt a strong sense of determination this time, partly because of the unfulfilled dreams I had pursued in the past, such as becoming a racer and playing in a band.
Around the time I was excitedly preparing for my first solo exhibition, I happened to strike up a conversation about photography with the shop manager, who introduced me to art director Shimizu (currently the manager of Space Utility TOKYO). I was surprised when Shimizu, having seen my previous work, suddenly asked me to shoot for him professionally, even though I was still mostly just taking photos as a hobby. A sudden debut as a photographer!
As I gained more experience through my work and started taking a huge number of shots, my technical skills improved. At the same time, what I wanted to express became clearer than before, and I began to feel a sense of accomplishment the moment I took a picture, even when photographing people other than my family or shooting for personal projects. However, until then, thanks to my understanding company, I had been able to take paid leave on weekdays to do photography work, but as the frequency increased, my wife began to show some reluctance... So, what should I do...? That's when I told my wife without hesitation that I wanted to pursue a career in photography. I wanted to capture the world I saw more fully in my own way through photography. That feeling had grown stronger without me realizing it. Of course, since it was a career change to an unstable profession unlike being a company employee, my wife didn't easily agree, but after nearly six months of family discussions, I finally became a freelance photographer. That was four years ago, in 2019.
Solo exhibition "HOTEL SAN DIEGO" (2019)
Following the death of my sister,
The world seen through the viewfinder changes.
After becoming independent, and with my children now grown up and taking fewer family photos than before, I found myself taking more pictures as a way to confront myself. This gradually strengthened my desire to create a photobook that showcased my artistic vision as a photographer. It was around this time that I unexpectedly received news of my sister's death. She had committed suicide due to depression.
My younger sister, three years younger than me. She inherited her father's stubbornness and is exceptionally hard on herself. She's responsible and hardworking. Her sudden disappearance changed something within me, and from that point on, my photographs and motifs clearly changed. I still haven't come to terms with what happened to me, but I've come to think that by compiling my current feelings into a book, I might be able to look at myself more deeply.
もがいてきた4年間を、
新たなステージへの足がかりとして残したい。
For me, photography is a way to express and preserve myself. I try to capture moments when my body reacts, without overthinking it. I want to move forward by documenting these past four years of myself in the form of a photobook. When I select each photograph and arrange them for viewing, that feeling becomes even stronger. Looking back, it feels like I'm laying myself bare in every single photograph.
"What is light? Is death the loss of light? If light is life, love, and moments of happiness with family, then is shadow a symbol of transience that has an end?" You can see my own mind as I ponder these questions.
But in reality, the photos only depict scenes from everyday life. These are things that are probably not just around me, but also around all of you. So, I would be happy if you would cherish what you feel when you see them. As for the prints, I have gone through countless trials and errors in the darkroom to achieve the colors and tones I wanted to express, and have finished them until I felt "this is it." I want people to know me as a photographer, Ryo Inoue, and how I confront myself through my photographs. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am not yet in a position to dedicate my entire life to photography, and although I have been doing this for four years, I still feel that every day is a challenge. Now that I am halfway through my 40s, I want to drive a wedge into the second half of my life and approach the production of this photobook with the mindset of starting anew from here. I would like to deliver this determination to all of you in a tangible form, so I would appreciate your cooperation.
Ryo Inoue
photographer
Born in Niigata Prefecture in 1977, currently residing in Tokyo. After working as a car mechanic for 20 years, he began working as a freelance photographer in 2019. Based on family photography taken from his unique perspective, he also works on school brochures for nurseries, kindergartens, and universities, portraits and profiles of artists, model photography for fashion brands, event and workshop photography, and on-location photography for interviews.
Ryo Inoue Photobook Crowdfunding Project
Everything enveloped in eternal light
Hello, my name is Ryo Inoue, and I've been working as a freelance photographer since 2019.
I'm currently 46 years old and live with my wife, son, and daughter—a family of four. I only started photography about 10 years ago.
It all started when I began taking photos as a hobby around the time I met my current wife.
2023.8.1 Tue. START
[As a measure against COVID-19]
Entry is by mask only, and we ask that you disinfect your hands with alcohol upon entering the store. Furthermore, during the state of emergency, we will limit the number of people allowed in the store at one time to four. Please refer to SUT's infection control guidelines for more information.
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