Chieko Shiraishi (b.1968) is a distinctive voice in contemporary Japanese photography. Drawing on historical photographic processes, she imbues her images with a rare physical presence, working directly on her prints. She positions her work at the intersection of photography and painting, between appearance and disappearance. Her universe is profoundly organic and tactile, offering an invitation to contemplation, reverie, and heightened perception.
Shiraishi’s SHIMAKAGE is literally translated as ‘Island Shadow’ and this work brings together varying images taken from Japan’s surrounding islands and coastal areas. These images are an old retouching technique known as ‘zōkin-gake’ which was previously popular amongst amateur photographers in Japan during the 1920s and 30s. As a result, the images beautifully evoke a faded memory, the landscapes appear and disappear within the image from the photographers own memory, standing as faint silhouettes against the backdrop of an obscured memory.