33. Takahiro Kitamura on Shige
My name is Takahiro Kitamura. I’m curator of the exhibition. Now storytelling is an important part of cultural arts, and here we have a wonderful example by Shige of storytelling through the Japanese tattoo. Both clients tell the Modoribashi story of the samurai Watanabe no Tsuna and his epic fight with the demon Ibaraki-doji at Rashomon gate in Kyoto. Now if you look at the client on the right, you see the initial contact scene where the demon, disguised as a beautiful woman, attacks the warrior on horseback.
The client on the left shows the next scene, where the demon has lifted the samurai into the air. Shige even shows the rooftop of the temple. Watanabe no Tsuna is faster and is about to sever the arm of the demon. Now in the story eventually the demon sneaks back and retrieves its arm, but these two scenes that Shige has shown are the two epic action scenes of the story. Having two clients telling two different parts of the same story is a rare thing, and is indicative of the way Shige thinks and the camaraderie amongst his clients. We had a lot of fun shooting with them in Yokohama. They’re a great bunch.
