In the fall of 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, my father passed away from cancer. Due to the pandemic, if he was hospitalized, he would be no longer allowed to see his family. Respecting his will, my mother decided to take care of him at home until his last moments of life. My mother, our beloved cat Mar, and daughter stayed with him. He was holding my mother’s hand tightly when he peacefully ended his life. One day my grandmother told her grandchild a story about the Sanzu River. She said that when a human ends their life, the deceased soul crosses the Sanzu River over 49 days to reach the afterlife. Would it be cold, dark, or silent? It surely wouldn’t be gentle. Once they step onto the far shore, they cannot return since they have already crossed the boundary between this world and the afterlife. While imagining the river, my father quietly turned to the ashes. As the cold gradually deepened, my mother and Mar began their new life together. The lemon trees in the garden started to ripen, and the sight of the two standing there seemed somehow touched by the vibrant colors around them.
Born in Osaka, Japan. After studying sculpture at Tama Art University, Yoshi gained experience working as a photographer's assistant in the photography department of an advertising agency. Later, she traveled to nearly 60 countries and, after returning to Japan, began her career as a freelance commercial photographer in Tokyo. Since 2017, she has also been creating personal artworks with the intention of expressing Òordinary things that could happen to her,Ó such as her surroundings, thoughts, and emotional landscapes. In 2019, she won the IMA next Grand Prix (Theme: TRAVEL) for Footsteps of the Cat That Ate Sheep. Her works were also shortlisted for the intarget Photolux Award 2022, the Gomma Grant 2022 for Sea and Jewelry, and featured in EXPOSURE+ PHOTO 2022 for Watarikawa-The River