"TATEMAE"
2017 |
  |

Honne (本音) and tatemae (建前) are
Japanese words used to describe the contrast between one's personal feelings
(honne) and the facade that one presents to the world (tatemae).
While it certainly depends on the person, in Japan it's often difficult to
get past the wall that people put up and get to know someone's true
feelings. Generally this "wall" is a friendly one, mind you, but sometimes
not genuine. I don't think this is a uniquely Japanese thing, and I think we
all conceal parts of our true feelings. I thought I'd explore this idea a
bit since I find it both fascinating and frustrating.
One thing I often found unsettling while teaching English in Japan was how
many of my students would wear a mask, not just when they were sick, but in
general. Some kids wore it every day. Once in a while, during flu season,
I'd walk into a jr high classroom and every single kid would be wearing one,
and I'd be unable to fully "read" their social cues. I think for most people
it's a matter of stopping germ transfer when a bug is going around, but for
the folks who wear them every day, it seems like the tatemae mask
takes on a literal form.
|
MEDIA: digital
photos, CG, Wacom
MODEL:
Miwa
LOCATION: Nagasaki JP
MORE INFO:
blog post
 |
|
|
|
Site
contents and design © Evan Hayden
|