Dances From Within
Essay 1 of 5
They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery. In this case, USA culture should be very flattered by the way some Japanese kids seem to be imitating it. By this I mean, the way "Americana" culture has influenced some Japanese youths. The life force of a culture thrives on and evolves from the richness of its people. Through art, literature, religion, music and entertainment, the culture interchanges ideas within itself and other cultures. I don't have an extensive knowledge of Japanese culture, but I always thought it to be very conservative. I'm fascinated by it specifically b/c of Japanese animation and comic book art.
This series of images of young men dancing- to me they seem to be break dancing in 1950 style of clothes and even hair styles- makes me think of them as copy cats. They are not conservative at all. By the way they seem to be dancing and dressed, they are not doing anything new. To me, they seem to be performing for the public something they got out of an MTV video. Now, I don't know if these young men have watched MTV, but they look as if they have been very influenced by the early 1980's and even mid '80s, when break dancing was hitting the streets of NYC. If one has followed fashion in the USA, one can tell that back in the 1980s 1950 styles where in. They were very big in the fashion industry. These young men seem to be very skilled in the art of dancing. They could be dancing something else, to a totally different beat than what I'm imagining, but the moves the photographs captured look very familiar to me. Or they could just be dancing like Michael Jackson, who was very big in the '80s, too.
Some of the pictures also raise questions in me like; do they do this for a living? If so, how much money do they make in a day? Are they doing this b/c they love dancing, or are they just street performers/ entertainers who love it and do it on the weekends b/c they have a need to express themselves through dancing? Are they family? How old are they? How long have they known each other? Are they artists? Could they just be doing this for one day and the photographer happened to see them on the day they decided to perform for the public? Are they just working out- exercising through dancing?
These images are certainly very interesting to observe while observing yourself observing. They captured a little piece of my imagination in the sense that they are very expressive. Even if those men are doing something I've seen before, I still find them very intriguing because they could be dancing or performing something totally different than what I'm thinking. They have a sudden flow to them with a slick symmetry and contrast of movement. I viewed them while listening to music- my music- and all of a sudden the guys seemed to have started dancing to a music that is alien to the one they seem to be dancing to. They are really into what they are doing and loving it. And after all, to me, that is the most important side of doing anything we find ourselves doing, no matter who we are, or where we are in the world. They are living.
Alexis
New York City, June, 2002.This essay (c) 2002 Alexis Reyes. All rights reserved. It may not be reproduced in any way without permission by the author. Printed with permission.
Essay 1 of 5