Spotlighting Shiho Fukada’s series ‘Nowhere but Here’
By Kei Yong
Shiho Fukada’s series Nowhere but Here captures Japan’s reputation of having one of the world’s oldest populations, as well as the isolating experiences encountered by that generation. A typical Japanese person’s longevity is attributed to their low rate of obesity, low consumption of red meat, and high consumption of mineral rich foods like fish, soybeans, and tea. Such characteristics within their cultural habits allow their population to have fewer deaths from heart disease, breast, and prostate cancer. However, whilst longevity may be aspired by many, Fukada’s women represent a sombre experience of loneliness and neglect. The women photographed all possess the same history of shoplifting simply so that they can be immersed back into some form of a society and retrieve social contact.
‘Senior inmates take an exercise class at the Iwakuni Prison for women in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan. The program is intended for inmates 65 years and older to maintain their health.’ Description and image are sourced from Shiho Fukada’s Nowhere but Here series on her personal website: https://www.shihofukada.com/gallery-image/NOWHERE-BUT-HERE/G00008YLF64PxkPk/I0000aMTFFNpKRBA
Her image of senior inmates taking an exercise class at the Iwakuni Prison in Yamaguchi prefecture demonstrates these exact attributes. The act of all of these women being involved in a group activity and partaking in the same motions may seem mundane to anyone, however, Fukada manages to encapsulate the importance of these activities for the mental wellbeing of the women. Captured from behind, the viewer is unable to see the true emotion being conveyed, thus we resort to observing their body language. We would assume that the straighter their arms or the more upright their posture would entail the more enthusiasm they possess. However, this does not seem very fair given their old age and, thus, their varying physical capabilities. One woman on the right side of the picture appears to not be partaking in the activity at all, simply observing and is perhaps very content to just be present in the class. It is difficult to say for sure given the viewer’s perspective of only being able to see the back of their heads and it makes us question why Fukada has chosen this perspective which she applies to most of her pictures in this series.
Are we taking on the perspective of this elderly woman that sits at the forefront of the image? Or are we the woman behind her? Are we simply onlookers just observing from the outside of the image or even outside of the prison?
Fukada’s supplied perspective provides so many viewpoints as to how her image should be perceived of which none of them can be deemed as purely objective. The viewers cannot help but empathise with these women, even in their apparent company. The distance between their chairs and the isolating grey globes of their matching haircuts reminds us that their interactions are forced, timetabled, and not of their own accord even though it has long been desired. It reminds us of everything that they have left behind or, alternatively, what they did not have in the first place.
Within her article for Bloomberg Business in 2018, Fukada accounts that Japanese families and communities no longer take older people under their care, which is why a majority of them seek incarceration. In the article, Fukada complements her photographs with stories of the women in focus. In an account by Ms. A (aged sixty-seven), she states that she had shoplifted more than twenty times, all of them clothes from street stores. She says, ‘the first time I shoplifted, I didn’t get caught. I learned that I could obtain what I wanted without paying for it, which I found fun, amusing, exciting.’ She even tells Fukada that her husband supports her decision and often writes to her in prison, her children are disappointed of her, and her grandchildren are told that her absence is her being in the hospital. Her statement provides a different commentary on what its like to be an elderly woman in Japan. Instead of isolationism, Mrs. A experiences purposelessness and boredom in her life. The punishment she faces does not even seem like a punishment at all as it will probably provide her with more activities and care than what she could receive in the outside world. Much of this support within correctional facilities is attributed to the government’s increase in funding to hire specialised workers to help care for the inmates.
In another account made by Mrs. T (aged eighty), she talked about how prison provided her an escape from her anxious reality. Mrs. T said that the anxiety induced by having to take care of bedridden husband in her old age caused her to seek for help in prison, but her newfound content has been deemed as a form of mental instability by her son.
‘N (79) stands in the factory at Fukushima Prison for women in Fukushima prefecture, Japan. She is serving her third prison sentence for stealing a paper fan at a shopping mall.’ Description and image are sourced from Shiho Fukada’s Nowhere but Here series on her personal website: https://www.shihofukada.com/gallery-image/NOWHERE-BUT-HERE/G00008YLF64PxkPk/I0000WP9H6yYs1vs
What most of these women feel once they have been imprisoned are senses of belonging, acknowledgement, and appreciation, modes of gratification that their families have failed to do. Working in units like the prison factory, the elderly women are kept engaged and are provided with intentions for the day, or if not, they are happy to be within a community of other women who have faced the same outcasted hardships as them. Fukada has indeed served to memorialise the existence of these women, not only by dedicating a series to them, but also by taking the active decision to not title the images. Using stories and names to label each photographed subject, Fukada’s work teeters between personal and anonymous as it informs us of such private memoirs, but also offers no face to the story. This technique enables the viewer to empathise with the women captured, but it also implicates at the commonality of these stories being shared by so many others.
‘K (73) plays with a ball at indoor exercise area for isolated inmates at the Iwakuni Prison for women in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan. She is serving time for stealing a bottle of coca cola and juice at a supermarket. She is serving her third sentence in prison.’ Description and image are sourced from Shiho Fukada’s Nowhere but Here series on her personal website: https://www.shihofukada.com/gallery-image/NOWHERE-BUT-HERE/G00008YLF64PxkPk/I0000fHVHf0DQNu8
In an interview with Pen Official, Fukada states that she wants people to ‘think about when they last spoke to their grandmother, and whether they listen to her stories. I want people to pay closer attention to the loneliness that their relatives may be experiencing.’ And indeed, with this series, it is difficult to not follow her instructions as we ponder about our own relationship with our elders and contemplate about what it might take for them to result to incarceration for a sense of belonging.
Notes:
Fukada, Shiho. “Japan's Prisons Are a Haven for Elderly Women.” Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, March 16, 2018. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-03-16/japan-s-prisons-are-a-haven-for-elderly-women?leadSource=uverify+wall.
Juneau, Martin. “Why Do the Japanese Have the Highest Life Expectancy in the World?” Observatoire de la prévention, April 1, 2021. https://observatoireprevention.org/en/2021/03/09/why-do-the-japanese-have-the-highest-life-expectancy-in-the-world/#:~:text=Japanese%20life%20expectancy&text=This%20low%20mortality%20is%20mainly,and%203.7%25%20for%20women
Leleu, Clémence. “Prison, an Antidote to the Solitude Suffered by Elderly Women.” Pen Magazine International, March 29, 2021. https://pen-online.com/culture/prison-an-antidote-to-the-solitude-suffered-by-elderly-women/?utm_campaign=later-linkinbio-penofficial&utm_content=later-33981522&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkin.bio