I followed an ordinary student girl taking her first steps to convert to the life of a Geisha. For a week, I was allowed to enter the secretive world of Geisha’s. I was there when she had her first dancing lesson, her first music lesson and her first lesson to dress up and I was there when she put the first white mark on her face and painted her lips red. To be there was a magical moment, to see a student transform from the girl next door to a professional entertainer with glamour.
In the 1920s, there were over 80.000 geisha in Japan. Today there are far fewer, the exact number is unknown – but is estimated from 1000-2000 spread out over Japan.
So it is important to document Geisha life and get as much inside pictures to document Geisha life for future generations.