Vague

Vague challenges the way Westerners perceive

another culture, different from its own. In Japan, the familiar

is hidden away through the optics of a Westerner and the safe

assumptions are reduced to guessing.

The photographer, Olivia Rohde, travelled to Japan in 2018 and

experienced — for the first time — an entirely different reality.

Tokyo and Kyoto showcase the Japanese culture, but are stark

opposites.

In Tokyo, the crowd and mass production are wonderfully unified

with a structured flow and overwhelming safety. In Kyoto, the

nature is present in a respectful unity with man who demonstrates

modesty and gratefulness for the surroundings. Japanese cultures

cause an extreme fascination and wanting for the familiar. We can

more comfortably define our surroundings and feel safe in the

familiar, but this is not the purpose of the exhibition.

With her photographs, she seeks to create a frame meant for

interpretation. The urge to define has to be suppressed, when

the 12 pieces are exhibited without chronology or obvious

intention. The ambiguous motifs are meant to let thoughts flow

without necessarily being redeemed. The aim is a universal

language without presumptions.

Vague — unclear character or meaning.

(Vague was exhibited as a part of Copenhagen Photo Festival, June 2019. Vague is still an ongoing project as I am going to Japan next year to expand my material and horisont)

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