TSUBUTSUMI / 粒神

For example, drifting particles, a tree before me, a turtle living in the sea, and myself—what is the difference? Is there any boundary between us? A series that deepens an animistic sensibility rooted in Japanese thought.

This series, Tsubutsumi / 粒神, sees all subjects — including myself as the photographer — as drifting particles.
The prints themselves serve as a way to explore and inhabit this tiny, floating world.

My photographic practice focuses on very small things — particles and grains (tsubu/粒).
I imagined that even these tiny particles might hold their own spirits, and I coined the term Tsubutsumi to express this idea.

The word Tsubutsumi / 粒神 was inspired by the Japanese words Wadatsumi / 海神 and Yamatsumi / 山神.
Wadatsumi refers to a sea god, a sea spirit, or even the sea itself, while Yamatsumi means a mountain god or spirit.

Each photograph is first printed in the darkroom, and the resulting prints are then re-photographed through shoji screens at the edge of a veranda.
The natural light from the window makes the prints appear translucent, enhancing the texture and presence of the particles.

The Tsubutsumi series was first shown in 2016 as part of the “Next Project” at the Higashikawa International Photography Festival.
Since then, over the years and alongside other series, it has continued to grow, exploring a more animistic view of the world.

*Shoji sliding doors, used as interior partitions, consist of translucent washi paper stretched across thin horizontal and vertical crosspieces in a wooden frame.

－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－

TSUBUTSUMI
Between you and me is a vast sea of infinite grains.
Right now, right in front of us.
This body, with its new cells daily repeating their cycle of life and death,
is no different to this world in which infinite grains multiply constantly.
In this world we are all grains.
You, me, dogs and cats, forests and cities and oceans.
With no boundaries between heavens and earth.