Intimate self portraits (with friends)

Intimate self portraits (with friends)

Until last year she didn’t really know who she was. Her name is Yao, a 28 years old Taiwanese living in Kyoto. In order to earn money to live, Yao started doing freelance nude model work as Tsumi. It was a critical decision as she often felt uncomfortable with her body. She was diagnosed with a body dysmorphic disorder (BBD). Even though, she could feel that modeling was something she really wanted to do. Not for the money only, also to embark on her own journey. Slowly, as shootings went by, the vision of herself started to shift. The real trigger came when she was offered a point & shoot film camera. Yao started taking nude self-portraits using a tripod and timer. She was now in charge of how she wanted her body to be seen. Yao shot almost 3,000 nude self-portraits in 2022/23. The unexpected result was that she eventually became a photographer. She is now instinctively managing framing, lighting, composition. Yao-Tsumi started lifting the veil on her real self. As she was gaining confidence, when Tsumi was posing for photographers, Yao asked them to take nude photos with her. She could feel true joy in those creative moments shared with friends or strangers. It is now time for Yao to unveil her work of the past year and hundreds of films she shot. Now comes the time to become what she always felt inside of her. Now comes the time to be an artist. During the exhibition you might even take a photo with her!