RED STRING BY YOSHIKATSU FUJII

 

I received a text message. "Today, our divorce was finalized." The message from my mother was written simply, even though she usually sends me messages with many pictures and symbols. 
I remember that I didn't feel any particular emotion, except that the time had come. 
Because my parents continued to live apart in the same house for a long time, their relationship gently came to an end over the years. It was no wonder that a draft blowing between the two could completely break the family at any time.

 

In Japan, legend has it that a man and woman who are predestined to meet have been tied at the little finger by an invisible red string since the time they were born. 
Unfortunately, the red string tying my parents together came undone, broke, or perhaps was never even tied to begin with. But if the two had never met, I would never have been born into this world. If anything, you might say that there is an unbreakable red string of fate between parent and child. 

 

Before long, I found myself thinking about the relationship between my parents and I. How many days could I see my parents living far away? What if I couldn't see them anymore? Since I couldn't help feeling extremely anxious about it, I was driven to visit my parents' house many times. 
Every day  I engage in awkward conversation with my parents, as if in a scene in their daily lives. I adapt myself to them, and they shift their attitude toward me. We do not give way entirely to the other side, but rather meet halfway. 
Indeed family problems remain unresolved, although sometimes we tell allegorical stories and share feelings. It means a lot to us that our perspectives have changed with communication. 

 

My family will probably never be all together again. But I feel without a doubt that there is proof inside of each of us that we once lived together. To ensure that the red string that ties my family together does not come undone, I want to reel it in and tie it tight. 

 

 

 

“Many entries this year featured a dual structure but this one, with two separate bound books, one on either side of the cover’s interior, is both logical and allows multiple readings.”

- Anne Wilkes Tucker, photography curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

 

"The split binding allows the reader to page through one side and then the other, but the powerfulness comes from pairing both halves together. In this delicate and personal family album, Yoshikatsu Fujii ties the memory of his family back together with the cultural metaphor of red string." 

- Larissa Leclair, Founder of the Indie Photobook Library

 

"I feel this totally hand-made book features the bonds of human.  The title comes from some old Japanese saying that a woman and a man who have fate to encounter is tied with red string on their little fingers together.  The book shows us a simple thing, a man needs a man anyway.  Also I like warmness of the touch sense of this binding by the photographer himself. "

- Hisako Motoo, independent curator and editor

 

"The human heart is a muscular organ. Yoshikatsu Fujii’s Red String is an exquisite book.
From cover to content, the dual nature of love and family is beautifully and brilliantly explored. Fujii’s depiction of divorce is compellingly original in its design, composition, and voice...This remarkable work demonstrates a rare, seamless integrity where the physical form perfectly mirrors the emotional tone, each serving the other. A harmonic study of dissonance."

- John Phelan, collector

 

十幾年來，尋找攝影集一直是我在攝影創作和工作之外的另一種閱讀延伸。不久前收到藤井Yoshikatsu的”Red String” (紅線) 攝影集，果真是截然不同的觸感。聚焦在離婚的雙親與自身間的心境糾結，援引紅線與攝影的絲絲纏繞，加上由作者手工製作，溫潤的手感，真實的境遇，隱私的告白，純粹的相逢和無奈的別離，翻閱完仍是讓人情牽眷戀，但也沉默無語！

的確，攝影集在現今全球規模下，持續被研究與關注的時代，職業創作者與評論研究者們，實在不能不理解攝影集作為另一種展演形式的可能，以及發展相關實務的思維與方法。

- 沈昭良 Shen Chao-Liang, Photographer

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A "beautifully crafted book that articulates the breakdown of a family marriage through archival imagery," The Red String is a reflection on the emotional bonds, promises, and truths that are bound up at the crux of any human relationship.

The "heartfelt storyline" is widely relatable, and "will bring a tear to anyone's eye."

-  David Alan Harvey, Magnum Photographer, Founder, Burn Magazine