Underwater self-portraits by Noriko Yabu

Japanese photographer Noriko Yabu has created a unique series of photographs displaying her outstretched body and pinched face submerged in a bath.

The series is called Suisou, roughly translated as Another Myself. Interestingly enough, Suisou, or 水 葬, can also be translated as Water Funeral. The series captures the artist au naturel from above her bath. Setting up the camera outside the tub, she used an automatic timer to repeatedly take photographs as she plunged underwater.

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The pictures are naturally blurred, almost looking painterly sometimes. The viewer is given a slight hint of erotic voyeurism, allowed to see the outline of her breasts and the curves of her legs although her body parts are obscured and synchronously turned into transformed versions of themselves as the mini waves, bubbles and reflections contort them.

Yabu says she was inspired by Terayama Shūji, a Japanese avant-garde filmmaker and photographer. His work is mostly known for falling somewhere between reality and imagination. Hiroshi Sugimoto was also a big influence on Yabu’s work. She explained being inspired by his philosophical approach towards his photography, that often focuses on time and the ephemerality of life.

Source: http://www.norikoyabu.com/