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the project Minochu sweets shop employee in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture It began in a bar, as good things often do, in the basement of Act Tower in Hamamatsu City in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. My girlfriend at the time introduced me over grilled squid to Mr. Masamitsu Togawa, an important community leader with a number of all-important connections to the ultra conservative and elderly rural Shizuoka Prefecture farming population. After months of jogging by the rice paddies trying to get fit, I wanted to dive in, get my feet muddy and hang out with some of the elderly people I would wave to on the small town roads. After sharing a few more beers, I finally convinced Mr. Togawa that I was not totally crazy, or at least that my intentions were sincere. It was agreed that I would work with Mrs. Ohashii, doing whatever was needed to raise a crop of rice. I had my gatekeeper and she had free labor. It was a perfect combination. For the next two years I worked in a number of rice paddies and vegetable fields throughout the region, helping wherever someone would allow me to and likely doing more damage than good. I roamed the local countryside asking if people would like a volunteer for the day. For whatever their reasons, many said yes. Stories happened. Old men with shaking fingers I knew for less than 10 minutes bought me meals or invited me into their house to show pictures of long lost family members. Drinking lots of cheap alcohol in rural town festivals surrounded by friends or singing karaoke with kind old women became routine. I learned the life cycles of the insects that chewed on my legs in the summer heat. Most importantly, I slowly developed a love not only with the food of Japan, but the people on the Japanese side who make it all possible. I have been back to Japan on a number of occasions since my time in Shizuoka Prefecture, each time in different parts of the country and in different capacities. Each time I have also tried to add more photographs, although I am certainly not a talented photographer. Dancing Chopsticks as you see it is only a framework. The Japanese language version is now online, and viewer submissions are encouraged. The goal is to collect an expansive body of visual material documenting normal Japanese working people, each connected in space and time by the production, distribution and retailing of food. |