About the artwork

At first glance, an ordinary family photo. The three families of Iwase each chose a family picture from many years previous, and the artist used the same garments to create from each a reproduction. Children separated from their hometown by work or marriage returned to their parents’ sides, the same family member wearing the same clothing in the same spot for the modern-day shoot of each photo. The terraced rice fields where the works are exhibited, as well as the small buildings scattered through the area and the paths, form the very background that brought us the three families of models. Within the intimate atmosphere of the village as a whole, one is encouraged to think of the family.