Shortlisted Photographers 2012 – Akira Somekawa
“ ‘Houescape’ is a portmanteau word combining ‘house’ and ‘escape’. I got this idea for the project when I was cutting up film one day for another project. I often go to an old part of town or to the countryside and walk around, as it reminds me of how people lived in the past. I was desperate to escape from modern life in Japan, because I felt there was only one way of living and because you are forced to follow desire, with everything being provided or organised for you. Of course, living a primitive way of life or living in a rural area must be as difficult as living in a big town, or even tougher. Thus I imagine that I am trying to escape from reality, though this is a relief. According to a myth recounted by old people, it is possible to live hidden away in secluded places where people do not normally live. I still look for old houses and nice landscapes. And I take photos of them as a stranger and cut them out and then put them together to transfer them to a modern art form.”
Akira Somekawa (Japan) is self-taught. Based in Tokyo, he works in parallel on press assignments and on personal projects. In 2009 he published Akirasomecamera, a book devoted to his experiments in the medium of photography.
