Wait - what ?

2 years ago (24 notes)

#mask
#disguise
#theater
#Japanese
#Noh

pollygannon:

reginasworld:

“To be there where I think I am not, to disappear where I think I am, that is what matters.” photo by Kimiko Yoshida
From noh and kabuki theatre to the modern cosplay phenomena, masks and bodily disguise have long held a special place in Japanese culture. They provide anonymity, a dividing barrier, liberation from earthly ties and a means to overcome fear – fear of the unknown and fear of death – by making the wearer the thing feared. According to the artist, her work exists as a feminist stance “against contemporary cliches of seduction, against voluntary servitude of women, against ‘identity’ defined by appurtenances and ‘communities’, against the stereotypes of ‘gender’ and the determinism of heredity.”

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reginasworld:

“To be there where I think I am not, to disappear where I think I am, that is what matters.” photo by Kimiko Yoshida

From noh and kabuki theatre to the modern cosplay phenomena, masks and bodily disguise have long held a special place in Japanese culture. They provide anonymity, a dividing barrier, liberation from earthly ties and a means to overcome fear – fear of the unknown and fear of death – by making the wearer the thing feared. According to the artist, her work exists as a feminist stance “against contemporary cliches of seduction, against voluntary servitude of women, against ‘identity’ defined by appurtenances and ‘communities’, against the stereotypes of ‘gender’ and the determinism of heredity.”