Partners

We is Partners Studio’s very first art book featuring portrait photographs of 60 people living their everyday lives in Saitama.

About a year before the opening of the Saitama Triennale 2023, I was approached by the contemporary art collective, 目 [mé] , who served as the festival’s directors, to discuss exhibiting portraits of residents in Saitama. As an editor and creative director, I find the concept of ‘portraiture’ deeply familiar. It is a photographic technique used not only in documentary or fine art photography, but also in fashion and private family photographs, which are often classified as ‘portraits’. Unlike snapshots that capture fleeting, unposed moments (often with subjects unaware of the camera), portrait photography fundamentally relies on the subject’s awareness of the lens. As 目 [mé] observed, ‘While every face is something everyone possesses, each one is unique’, the paradox that faces are both universal and singular makes them a powerful symbol of individuality and humanity.

The photographs were taken from three different perspectives: Mark Peckmezian, a Canadian photographer based in Berlin; Olya Oleinic, originally from Moldova and currently working between Paris and Amsterdam; and six elementary school students residing in Saitama City.

The stay of Mark and Olya in Saitama, which lasted for approximately 10 days, was their first experience living in the city. In the end, they captured portraits of about 65 residents. These 65 individuals accepted these two strangers with different appearances, different eye and hair colours—an overwhelming sense of ‘otherness’. During the shoots, this ‘otherness’ became a moment of interaction. The resulting portraits were only possible because both sides accepted one another. I felt the kindness of ‘me’ accepting ‘me’, and it was a remarkable experience to witness the moment when a photo of ‘me’ became a photo of ‘us’.

Buy 'We' Portrait Book here