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TEXT: Tia Tuovinen
PHOTOGRAPHS: Ikuko
Ishida
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Ikuko Ishida in a Kurdish house near Ercis,Turkey, on 4th Nov 2011.
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Before
coming to Finland, Ikuko knew only few things about the country: Arabia, Marimekko
and Iittala. Other than design, she had heard about Moomin, cottages and the
lack of sunlight.
“I expected that I would get different perspective. Here
individualism is stronger than in my country”, Ikuko tells.
“Here people don’t
interfere others so much. They are shy and afraid of talking. At first people
hesitated to talk to me, but when they started talking, they suddenly talked a
lot. I heard they don’t want to commit. People don’t believe in marriage.”
In
the beginning of her stay in Finland, Ikuko encountered some hardships. She had
to find an apartment by herself, she didn’t have confidence in her English
skills and she didn’t know any Finnish. Now Ikuko speaks some words in Finnish,
and she considers herself lucky to have lived around Finnish people rather than
just exchange students. After preparing her photography exhibition last
December, she got to talk with the teachers and other people in TAMK.
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Earthquake-hit
place in Ercis, Turkey, 2011. On October 23rd, there was a big earthquake in
eastern Turkey. People who didn't lose their houses were afraid of earthquakes
and lived in emergency tents just in case.
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Ikuko
is working with documentary photography. She is interested in serious things,
for example in natural disaster problems and poverty. Ikuko is also interested
in developing countries. According to her, Finland is a peaceful country, so
since last year she has been taking pictures of daily life in Finland. Before, Ikuko
was taking pictures of earthquakes in Japan.
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| People waiting for bus, in Tampere, Finland. It is often said that Finns are shy and tend to keep distance between people. This photo may convey this character. Ikuko’s photographs from Tampere can be seen at TAF exhibition, on the 3rd floor painting room of the TAMK Finlayson building. |
What Ikuko says about everyday
life: “I can relax better here, because the systems in total are simpler. After
seeing the daily life in here, it made me think about what is freedom. There
are less social codes for everything in Finland. For example, when I visited a
primary school, the teaching is more relaxing than in my country. There is less
discipline. On the other hand, for me it’s too free.”
References:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ikukoishida/sets/72157626546128703/
