Youth is something we all have once in our lifetime
Fumi Nagasaka is a photographer and a storyteller who moved to New York from Nagoya, Japan, in 2002. Fumi started her career working for the Japanese magazine, Street, creating images of people on the streets of NY and Europe, with a focus on portraiture and documentary photography. Fumi's work centers on exploring the theme of youth and crafting narratives through encounters with people while traveling the US. Her project and photo book Marching Wolves, published by Kahl, delves into the Mardi Gras in New Orleans and follows the lives and development of the young boys participating in the festival over three years. In her photo book Dora, Yerkwood, Walker County, Alabama, published by GOST Books, Fumi chronicles her trips during six years to Walker County, forming connections with its inhabitants and portraying their stories through her genuine interest and curiosity about the region and its people.
In this interview, we speak with Fumi about her decision to shift her career from hotel management, the education she onboarded, to a freelance photographer, and the challenges of earning her parents' trust and approval. She speaks about her monograms, capturing the Deep South, traveling the US, and working with youth as her main subject. Fumi says, “One of the biggest and most important subjects in my photography is youth. Youth is something we all have once in our lifetime, and it’s not forever. I think these precious moments are very special, and I enjoy capturing them.” Her images convey the beauty of the moment, freedom in being young, and the boundless possibilities the future holds for her subjects in a poetic and emotional manner.
Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski
‘I visited NY while living in LA, and I was very surprised by how active and friendly people in NY are.’
My Narrative
Hi Fumi, it is so lovely to meet and have an opportunity to discuss your work with you. You were born in Nagoya, Japan, and moved to New York, the US, in 2002, where you started to pursue photography. Could you tell about this part of your life, the experience of relocating to another continent, and your decision to follow this career path?
When I moved to the US in 2002, I was looking for a life experience. I wasn't interested in creative fields until after I entered hotel management/tourism school, but I thought it was too late to change direction in my life and be 'successful' in the traditional, culturally Japanese way. In hotel management school, I had an opportunity to take an internship program, and I lived in LA for three months. During that time, I realized there is freedom and opportunity for everyone and anyone in the US. At the time, I didn’t really speak English, but people welcomed me and tried to understand me, and I felt I was accepted. I visited NY while living in LA, and I was very surprised by how active and friendly people in NY are. People told me about their dreams, took me to parties, and invited me to their apartments even though we just met. I was young and very naive, but I just fell in love with the energy of New York, so I decided to move to NY. I promised my parents that I would move back to Japan after a year, but I was hoping that I could find a reason to stay longer.
I never thought that I was going to be a photographer, but my roommate at the time had an old issue of Street Magazine, which I was a big fan of when I was a teenager. Street Magazine was a photography magazine about street style and culture outside of Japan. At the time, they showed mostly pictures from London, so I wrote a letter to the Editor in Chief and told him that I was not a photographer, but I was in NY and could take pictures if he wanted pictures of New York streets. That’s how I got a job as a photographer for the first time and shot for them for about four years. I was basically out and went everywhere to look for interesting people to photograph. For the first couple of years, I used it as a tool for meeting new people and making friends. I also went to Europe to photograph people on the streets. It was hard to get approval from my parents, but once they started to see my credits in magazines, they became very supportive, and I started to think that photography could be something for me. After shooting for Street for years, I decided to try the path of becoming a photographer. My first editorial was for Dazed & Confused in 2007.
‘Getting into a deep long-term documentary project about a place, people, and culture I am not familiar with was a big step for me, but it started naturally.’
Dora, Yerkwood, Walker County, Alabama
Dora, Yerkwood, Walker County, Alabama is your recent monograph published by GOST Books in which you share your perspective and experiences in Walker County, the US. What is fascinating about the book is your approach to connecting with people on a deeper level, getting to know them, and being able to tell their stories. When you compare life in the big cities and the stories you encountered during your project that spanned around six years, what were some of the most striking differences?
When I started the project in 2017, I was still shooting mostly fashion for a living. I published a book called United Youth in 2016, and it was all portraits of youth, so getting into a deep long-term documentary project about a place, people, and culture I am not familiar with was a big step for me, but it started naturally. I met my neighbor (at the time) Tanya by shooting her daughters for the Untitled Youth project, and we became good friends. That was after the 2016 election, and we often talked about what was happening in the country. I was very curious about small towns but didn’t have any access to them. Then she took me to where she grew up in Alabama and introduced me to her relatives, town, and southern culture. I was very surprised at how different everything was compared to the life I had in New York and got very interested in photographing them. We went back every year. Even just small things, everything was so new and exciting for me, and I am very thankful to Tanya because, without her, this project would be very hard to accomplish.
To continue the conversation about your photo book, I would like to speak about the setup, working on the project during the pandemic, and the presidential elections. The political background affects the social aspect, the interactions, people's approach to their day-to-day, and even the type of relationships. How did the political background affect the connections you formed with the communities?
I don’t want my personal projects to be political because I want them to be straightforward art. Of course, it affects the process, and I get ideas and inspiration from that, but I respect everyone I interact with, no matter their political views. I have been here for a long time, and US politics have been affecting my life a lot, but I see this country differently compared to the citizens. Of course, I support a better future.
‘We don’t have the Marching Band culture in Japan, so that’s very American to me, and I wanted to capture that along with Mardi Gras.’
Marching Wolves
Your photo book Marching Wolves, published by Kahl, evolves around your three-year-long research on marching bands in New Orleans. The march and the ceremony signify a transition into adulthood for young boys. Your approach was to create connections to gain trust and be able to become almost a part of the ceremony. Looking back, in what way do you think this project defines your photographic style through the communication you create?
One of the biggest and most important subjects in my photography is youth. Youth is something we all have once in our lifetime, and it’s not forever. I think these precious moments are very special, and I enjoy capturing them. Also, we don’t have the Marching Band culture in Japan, so that’s very American to me, and I wanted to capture that along with Mardi Gras, one of the biggest festivals in the US. Every year, I went back to photograph the boys; I watched them grow, and that was a joy for me. Some kids I photographed during their freshman year got taller the next year, got facial hair a year after, and got girlfriends, etc. There was a boy who was a senior when I started the project, who joined the Army after he graduated and had a baby. I loved that they love music and are very proud of themselves for playing in Mardi Gras, but after they finish high school, they part ways, and some kids would never play music again. I think that’s part of youth.
‘Even though people know my work as capturing youth culture, as I get older myself, my ideas, vision, and interest in my photography change. I think it's also very interesting.’
The Theme
The main themes your work reveals are youth, relationships, and community, which you present through your personal experience and the real-life connections you form with your subjects. Through the beauty of youth, innocence, and the realization that the project captures a fleeting moment in the life of the subjects that will be forever lost, you create a feeling of community, emphasizing the idea that no one is or should be alone. What is the most significant aspect of your work that you identify from the feedback you receive?
I am always happy to hear from people I photographed years later. When I photograph youth, I always imagine them seeing the pictures in 5-10 years and more, looking back and seeing their nice memories. As we become adults, life gets harder, and we have a lot of weight to carry on our shoulders. Sometimes, it’s still nice to remember when we were young and free. Even though people know my work as capturing youth culture, as I get older myself, my ideas, vision, and interest in my photography change. I think it's also very interesting.
Upcoming Projects
What theme or narrative are you researching, and what can we expect from you in the upcoming months?
I have a few projects I have been thinking about, but I will need some time to decide.
