Orbiting Fuji is a project inspired by the work of Ukiyo-e artists Hiroshige and Hokusai.
Created in partnership with the Hiroshige Tokaido Museum of Art in Shizuoka City and funded by the Daiwa Foundation.
The four faces of Fuji are in-camera multiple exposures, created using a large format field camera. The main image of Fuji was captured on a single piece of Fuji Film; the additional exposures were then shot over the top of the same piece of film, always at night, so that the elements could be selected—often with a flash—and positioned appropriately. This method was chosen as it echoed the process of Ukiyo-e artists, namely working in multiple layers over and over the same image. Some examples of the details and elements from Japan are: city lights, cherry blossom, Fuji-Q pleasure park, concrete sea defences, the mouth of a cave, cigarette vending machine, Aokigahara forest, convenience store lights and shrine lanterns.
The two remaining works were designed to reflect on the idea of the ‘journey’. Fuji – North, South, East, West was created by shooting the four individual faces of Mt. Fuji, which were then layered into a composite image—a complete portrait of Mt. Fuji. The act of journeying around Mt. Fuji multiple times was in itself an important part of the making of the work. It became a personal pilgrimage and homage to the deity Fuji.
The final work in the show sees Mt. Fuji from one viewpoint photographed over the course of one day, with the images layered upon one another, creating an ethereal, impressionist image. Impressionist painters are a strong inspiration to my work; in this particular piece, I wanted to make that influence apparent. The relationship and cross-pollination between Western and Eastern art worlds—namely the influence Ukiyo-e had on Impressionism—resonated with my own practice. This piece updates, to modern times, the Ukiyo-e viewpoint of the everyday social scene: the comings and goings of a globally ubiquitous car park at the base of Mt. Fuji. This piece is about the happenings of one specific day, yet simultaneously about the timeless quality of Mt. Fuji, who itself appears in the same form as in the Ukiyo-e masterpieces.