[/floatl]Photographer Naoko Yamada last year released a book called "Snakku". Over a ten year period, she went around the country to visit the nation's snakku which are usually small neigbourhood bars, with a karaoke machine, run by a mamasan and a small staff of girls. Her aim was to create a series of portraits of the people who run these establishments. Legally, they are registered as bars rather than hostess clubs but the line is blurred because staff will often sit with the customers on sofas rather than serving drinks over a counter. However, provided they don't cause a nuisance locally, the authorities will allow them to open until the early hours. In reality, snakku have been going through hard times for some years now. The first karaoke boxes appeared in the middle eighties and were a cheaper alternative to the local bar for karaoke lovers. The bubble was in full swing at the time so the neighbourhood bars didn't feel the pinch until the party was over by which time karaoke boxes has spread across the country. Today, there's a whole generation which only knows karaoke boxes and wouldn't dream of going to a snakku. Nevertheless, the mamasan character is a popular one in film, books and television dramas so the younger generation will be familiar with the type. She will usually be portrayed as a well-liked member of the community, a source of local gossip and a confidante for her customers. Less often, she's a homebreaker or a slightly disreputable character with links to local mobsters. Yamada eventually whittled her selection down to 177 portraits of mamasan working at 164 different bars from Okinawa to Hokkaido. She says she was taken aback by the sheer range of places she found and the different people she met there, wholly different to the picture she had of the mamasan in popular culture. She is now holding an exhibition of her work at a a gallery linked with her publisher and plans to speak about her project at a scheduled event next month.
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Photo Tribute To The Snakku Mamasan
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Photo Tribute To Snakku Mamasan
by Mulboyne » Sat Jan 31, 2009 5:42 am
[floatl][/floatl]Photographer Naoko Yamada last year released a book called "Snakku". Over a ten year period, she went around the country to visit the nation's snakku which are usually small neigbourhood bars, with a karaoke machine, run by a mamasan and a small staff of girls. Her aim was to create a series of portraits of the people who run these establishments. Legally, they are registered as bars rather than hostess clubs but the line is blurred because staff will often sit with the customers on sofas rather than serving drinks over a counter. However, provided they don't cause a nuisance locally, the authorities will allow them to open until the early hours. In reality, snakku have been going through hard times for some years now. The first karaoke boxes appeared in the middle eighties and were a cheaper alternative to the local bar for karaoke lovers. The bubble was in full swing at the time so the neighbourhood bars didn't feel the pinch until the party was over by which time karaoke boxes has spread across the country. Today, there's a whole generation which only knows karaoke boxes and wouldn't dream of going to a snakku. Nevertheless, the mamasan character is a popular one in film, books and television dramas so the younger generation will be familiar with the type. She will usually be portrayed as a well-liked member of the community, a source of local gossip and a confidante for her customers. Less often, she's a homebreaker or a slightly disreputable character with links to local mobsters. Yamada eventually whittled her selection down to 177 portraits of mamasan working at 164 different bars from Okinawa to Hokkaido. She says she was taken aback by the sheer range of places she found and the different people she met there, wholly different to the picture she had of the mamasan in popular culture. She is now holding an exhibition of her work at a a gallery linked with her publisher and plans to speak about her project at a scheduled event next month.
[/floatl]Photographer Naoko Yamada last year released a book called "Snakku". Over a ten year period, she went around the country to visit the nation's snakku which are usually small neigbourhood bars, with a karaoke machine, run by a mamasan and a small staff of girls. Her aim was to create a series of portraits of the people who run these establishments. Legally, they are registered as bars rather than hostess clubs but the line is blurred because staff will often sit with the customers on sofas rather than serving drinks over a counter. However, provided they don't cause a nuisance locally, the authorities will allow them to open until the early hours. In reality, snakku have been going through hard times for some years now. The first karaoke boxes appeared in the middle eighties and were a cheaper alternative to the local bar for karaoke lovers. The bubble was in full swing at the time so the neighbourhood bars didn't feel the pinch until the party was over by which time karaoke boxes has spread across the country. Today, there's a whole generation which only knows karaoke boxes and wouldn't dream of going to a snakku. Nevertheless, the mamasan character is a popular one in film, books and television dramas so the younger generation will be familiar with the type. She will usually be portrayed as a well-liked member of the community, a source of local gossip and a confidante for her customers. Less often, she's a homebreaker or a slightly disreputable character with links to local mobsters. Yamada eventually whittled her selection down to 177 portraits of mamasan working at 164 different bars from Okinawa to Hokkaido. She says she was taken aback by the sheer range of places she found and the different people she met there, wholly different to the picture she had of the mamasan in popular culture. She is now holding an exhibition of her work at a a gallery linked with her publisher and plans to speak about her project at a scheduled event next month.-
Mulboyne - Posts: 18608
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by Bucky » Sat Jan 31, 2009 10:46 am
It's kinda long
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Bucky - Maezumo
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by Western All Stars » Sat Jan 31, 2009 12:54 pm
I just showed this video to my hostess friend. She was able to pick out the real one no problem. 
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Western All Stars - Maezumo
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kusai Jijii - Maezumo
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by Doctor Stop » Sat Jan 31, 2009 3:52 pm
Well, she wasn't that hot.kusai Jijii wrote:It wasnt hard.
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Doctor Stop - Maezumo
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by Greji » Sat Jan 31, 2009 4:44 pm
Doctor Stop wrote:Well, she wasn't that hot.
Maybe that's why it wasn't that hard?
"There are those that learn by reading. Then a few who learn by observation. The rest have to piss on an electric fence and find out for themselves!"- Will Rogers
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Greji - Posts: 14357
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Doctor Stop - Maezumo
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