Substance Of Speculation: Hiroshi Watanabe

This is from the introduction of his book: “Ideology in Paradise” by Mado-sha, Japan

"In fact, the experience of looking at Hiroshi Watanabe’s images is eerily like stepping into a Social Realist painting: the ruddy-cheeked young girl playing the accordion, the traditional gowns in brilliant pinks and greens of dancers swirling beneath the omnipresent image of the dear leader and the DPRK flag. One is quietly lulled into the sense that life in North Korea might, in fact, be just as it appears within the frames of these images—normal—instead of like the stories of kidnappings, military posturing, and famine. To Watanabe, it is this sense of tension between the news stories flooding the media in both Japan and in the U.S. and his experiences traveling and photographing—under careful surveillance of his two guides and assigned driver—that interests him in this topic. The results, engaging, yet still mysterious, bring us one side of this closed-off place, introducing us to a vibrant, compelling set of individuals, but still leave us to wonder."
Lesley A. Martin, Aperture Book Program

This work actually makes me think about Matthew Barney’s theatricality and heightened drama of a simple moment taken out of context. An odd correlation, I know.
While much of his work has a documentary feel, and may actually be documentary, it seems Watanabe makes even simple feel very important with a burden of context on their shoulders. Again, the photos of North Korea allow a western viewer to see some images that we normally wouldn’t, but like a social-realist painting, we have to question how much of this content was constructed, either by photographer or official people.
http://www.hiroshiwatanabe.com/index.html