【Yoshiki Kogaitalk】The Meaning behind ”y”and...

2023年11月27日 18:00

フィギュアスケート

【Yoshiki Kogaitalk】The Meaning behind ”y”and... — The cover photo of　“y” Photo By スポニチ

　Yuzuru Hanyu is a professional figure skater who won gold medal for the second straight Winter Olympics in 2014 and 2018. And, this photo book ”y Yuzuru Hanyu Photo Book” is going to be released on December 7. Less than a month before its release， Yoshiki Kogaito， who took photos of the book， gave an interview about the meaning behind the title of the photo book and the photos he would like to take in the future.（interviewer: Ryosuke Sugimoto， translater: Hinako Nasu）

　【Q】Yuzuru Hanyu's photo book is going to be released again this year！ What feelings did you put into it？

　【A】Yuzuru Hanyu has been evolving ever since he turned professional. I wanted to make a photo book that would be suitable for what he is now. Also， the photos of his performances of ”Ashura―chan” and ”One　Summer’s　Day” have not been known widely， so I feel it is my mission to let many people know these wonderful works.

　【Q】The titles of the photo books until now were ”YUZU’LL　BE　BACK”. Why did you choose ”y” for the title this time？ Is there any meaning in the lowercase letter？

　【A】First of all， we talked about changing the title when he turned professional. Mr.Nagakubo and I lined up many candidates， and after spending a lot of time considering them， we decided ”y”. Needless to say， we took the ”y” out of ”Yuzuru” because we wanted a symbolic title that would be appropriate for expressing Yuzuru Hanyu， an icon of beauty. The reason I chose the lowercase letter was because of its beautiful shape as a letter. I thought a lowercase letter would express his delicate beauty， better than an uppercase “Y”.

　【Q】Why has the price of this photo book gone up？

　【A】The first reason is the rising cost of paper and printing. The second reason is that we changed the specifications of the book. We thought that the photo book should evolve as Yuzuru Hanyu continues to evolve. We used a hardcover to make it classy. This makes it easier to open the book and see the photos on the facing page. We also changed the paper to a higher quality paper than before. We are sorry that the price has increased but we believe that the quality of the book is worth the price.

　【Q】The ”y” follows Yuzuru Hanyu after he turned professional. Did you see any changes in Yuzuru Hanyu and you throughout taking photos？

　【A】I think he expands his range of expression after turning professional. Also, he has choreographed for his own program more than before. I feel that I have become more emotionally involved with him and his show， as I have had more opportunities to see him more closely through the ice show. This is reflected in my photographs， including his sense of responsibility as a member of the show.

　【Q】Do you have something you always keep in mind， not only when taking photos of Yuzuru Hanyu？

　【A】If I take pictures that are the same as other people’s， I think “I lost”， so I struggle with taking unique pictures. I try to isolate　 myself from others when taking photos so that my values are not similar to those of others. And I always try to doubt common sense.

　【Q】Why did you decide to become a photographer？

　【A】When I was a university student， I met a photographer. He gave me a set of cameras. I wouldn’t be a photographer if it weren’t for him. Actually， he still hasn’t accepted the money of the set of cameras， though. He also introduced me Makoto Shiina， who is a famous writer， and I traveled with them. Mr.Shiina is also a photographer， so I admired him as well.

　【Q】Do you have any failure stories that you still cannot forget？

　【A】When I was a newcomer， I still had no basic skills. But I tried to take the target photo in one shot and failed every day. But I would not change my ways， so my bosses would be astounded by me.

　【Q】How do you make use of that experience now？

　【A】I was frustrated to keep failing. However， the basics were established， my attitude of shooting with an aim gradually became a strength instead of a weakness. I have continued to take an aggressive stance， not a safe approach.

　【Q】Nowadays， people can easily take photos and videos. Both photography and video have their own advantages. What do you think are the advantages of photography？

　【A】Compared to videos， I think the advantage of photography is that you can reduce the amount of information. I think it is a way of expression that can easily convey a message.

　【Q】Do you have any ideas of photographs you would like to take？

　【A】I would like to take pictures of his skating on a frozen lake with nature in the background. It would be beautiful under natural light， or even under moonlight. I would also like to take photos of his skating a classic program on the ice―covered stage of the Opera House. All of these are just my own fantasies.”

　【Q】Lastly， do you have a message for those who are looking forward to the photo book ”y”？

　【A】The photos in ”y” have a lot of power. I hope you will take the time to look at them one by one as if you were walking through a museum or a gallery. I would be happy to hear your impressions somewhere.