How do tradition and globalization, the blurring of cultural and economic borders, alienation from nature and the vanishing of things into the virtual sphere intertwine in 'the city' as a historically charged space? In what way does the individual perceive itself in relation to a community? How can acceleration of technological development, fear for privacy, pressure for economic growth, anonymity and isolation be read in the urban landscape and what are their consequences for communal life? 

What utopias and dystopias are present in our mindset and how do they shape the way we form our future?

 

'MUTED VOICES' deals with these questions in the form of photographic material created in Japanese metropolitan areas. In some ways Japan could be called an extreme example of central developments of our time: the acceleration of work, consuming and private life, the pervasion of all areas by technology, as well as social issues such as performance pressure and the highest suicide-rate in the world.

With these presumptions in mind I was interested in small fragile moments off the constant hectic rush, the gaps and blanks, moments of vulnerability and silence, of emptiness and authenticity. The resulting book is a poetic exploration of the ambivalence and absurdity of human existence in a century in which impending natural and social disasters are prevailing consensus.

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pages: 96

edition: 20 copies