Rat Hole Gallery B1 5-5-3 Minami Aoyama Tokyo Minato-Ku Japon
Following the March release of his photo book CHILDHOOD, for this exhibition Wataya presents his latest series of photographs which depicts the complex emotions and expressions that go hand in hand with the fragile period between childhood and adulthood. While exploring the natural playfulness of children as well as their yearning to become adults, his images capture the raw innocence and vibrant energy of adolescent behavior. In a stage before reaching full maturity, what lies in the eyes of these children playing in the river is unlimited potential, but at the same time the inescapable fear of being abandoned or betrayed by the adult world.
Wataya’s photographs seek to project this naïve idealism and unapologetic joie de vivre, addressing themes of vulnerability and youthful independence.
Wataya directs his lens as an observer- or rather an “outsider”- as he photographs the juveniles with traces of humor and melancholy. Inherent in his images is neither a desire to be among the young generation nor a reminiscence of own youth but simply a feeling of unconditional respect towards the children and his chance encounter with them. While the physical scene of these teenagers playing in the river lies far away, their existence is emotionally close not only to the photographer but also to the viewer.
The word “juvenile” is also used to describe a fledgling bird. Wataya’s images tenderly portray these “fledglings” as they enjoy themselves to their fullest in the summer sun before the time comes for them to leave their “nests” and enter the adult world.