Self-portrait (Actress): After Setsuko Hara

Self-portrait (Actress): After Setsuko Hara 

セルフポートレート(女優):ハラ・セツコとしての私

Artist
MORIMURA, Yasumasa
森村 泰昌
Birth Year
1951
Death Year
-
Date
1996 
Technique, Material, Format
chromogenic print 
Dimension
300.0 x 250.0 cm 
Donor name
Mr. Morimura Yasumasa
Category
Photograph or Moving Image by JapanesePhotographer/Artist 
Inventory Number
97-PHJ-026 

Morimura Yasumasa creates cosplay-like photographs and videos in which he assumes the identities of figures from famous paintings and historical events. Nowadays, photos can easily be edited with software, but Morimura dons make-up and costumes himself, even if it looks a little awkward. In this work, he becomes Hara Setsuko, an actress most famous for her role in director Ozu Yasujiro’s film Tokyo Story. Hara made a name for herself as a film actress even before the war, and was also known for appearing in many wartime propaganda films. Tokyo Story captures the feelings of being left behind by the rapid changes that occurred in Japan in the post-war era. However, Morimura’s Hara is more suggestive of those Japanese who quickly adapted to capitalism and democracy as if they had completely forgotten the past.
(KIMURA Eriko)

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