Participation from the 12th of May till the 12th of July 2014
Haruna Kawanishi is a photographer from Tokyo, who came to the Netherlands to photograph local dancers.
Plan before participating
“Originally I thought about continuing about making a series called ͞Night tweet͟ in continuation of a picture of a dancer in a forest that I took. My intention was to look for a dancer in Amsterdam and take a picture of them with the forest.”
My process during participation
“Due to the support of the staff at the time: mr. Nakajo, Ellie, Sigrid, Hannie and Ken, I had a trip filled with encounters that helped me focus on creating my series.
I had 4 projects at the same time, which made finishing within the deadline quite the experience. First, shooting of the ‘night tweet’ series in the forest with dancers. I took photographs of 4 dancers: Caroline, Jenia, Malica and Saara. Second, performance at 4 bid gallery. Formed Nagaame with Caroline. Third, still shooting of Caroline’s stage. Styling by Maria Gouli. Fourth, record shoots of Farmers’ Market every Saturday at Nieuwmarkt. Also it felt as if all gears fit just right and that all resources where put out without strain.
I think personally that it was a very satisfying stay and generally a success, as I can connect this result to the next.”
Collaboration Caroline
Haruna especially connected with Swedish dancer Caroline Lundblad, whom is better known as Frauke (website: www.frauke.se). They did a performance together at the 4bid gallery during the Minikunstfestival and the photos that were taken during her stay won an honourable mention at the International Photography Awards 2014 in Los Angeles, U.S.A. Lastly she documented the Nieuwmarkt’s farmers market with her pictures every Saturday.
After the project participation
“I met with Caroline, we did a performance, and it helped me think about the expressions that weren’t taken caught on a photograph, during the shoot. Furthermore, by introduction of Nakajo, I was introduced to Hirokuni Muraka who promotes immigration in Onomichi. Currently we are based in Onomichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, and have been doing production activities. The seeds sown in Amsterdam are slowly starting to sprout.”
Aikido
Haruna is also an active aikido practitioner. This allows her to know a lot about body movements and gravity. One of the main differences she experienced between western and Japanese dancers, is the way they centre the gravity. Japanese dancers centre the gravity of their bodies in the abdominal area, whereas, western dancers (especially ballet dancers) have the tendency to centre their gravity in their chest area.
“Haruna has managed to realize a lot of different projects during her short stay. Her photographic work got enriched through new contacts, which continued after her residency at Deshima AIR’
– Ellie Duinker, photographer and textile designer
Haruna’s website: >http://www.haruna-kawanishi.com/<