Daijobu !
“Daijobu” is a Japanese word that can be used in multiple situations to summarize the idea of being fine or not taking care of something.
It was the main expression of this demolition team from a Japanese province, living inbetween obsolete traditions and unaccepted modernity.
I’ve met one of them on a Saturday night and was quite surprised when he turned out to introduce himself as a Tattoo artist. Hoody on, fully confident, dancing with his girl, Hiroshi-san presented me how difficult it was to combine his need to express and his conventional family.
Indeed, Hiroshi got quickly exalted by the endless possibility of tattoos, not the one that Yakuza (Japanese mafia) used to wear, but the one that allows to express an artistic penchant through an indelible mark. He learned on himself and being now 30 years old, most of his body is covered by his learning process and inspirations.
Almost too simple to be real, he is purchasing his dreams despite a family that rejecteted him, more obsessed with the notoriety of the genealogy rather than the fulfillment of their own.
These few photos tend to capture the transition caused by the constant Westernization of Asian countries. Demolishing the past to create the future, these new Samouraïs fighting for their passions are connecting different generations. Acting like a buffer and accepting the pain, they are building a larger “open-minded” society in which, not by constraints nor restrictions, everyone could find his place.
Daijobu !
