ASHIMOTO

Ashimoto: Japanese polysemic term that, among other meanings, means "around the feet". It is an intentionally ambiguous title that –as if it were one another work of the project– allows multiple interpretations; as many as spectators come to the work, as many as the city where these photographs are taken: Tokyo. The Ashimoto series explores concepts such as intimacy or silence in the great Japanese city, through unusual images, as these photographs of women feet and legs captured in public spaces. Photographs that suggest much more than what they show, and show just what is necessary to be able to complete them with the imagination. A feature that connects them even more with the Japanese culture; in which, what is not seen or not said is usually more important than what is shown or expressed. "Ashimoto" also invites to question the act of portraying, by leaving the face out of the frame, and focusing attention on a part of the body or its gestures, which can provide the same information –or perhaps more– about the "portrayed" person. All the works of this project are the result of casual encounters through the streets of Tokyo. A mix between found photographs and consent photographs –no scene was prepared or constructed–, being chance, intuition and respect the only valid guide for its creation. The express combination of photographs (in color or in black and white, static or in motion) is a representation of the infinite layers that interact and coexist in the Japanese megalopolis; of its motley, fragile and complex harmony.