Artist Photographs Workers On The Streets Of Tokyo To Pay Homage To The Proud Work Ethics Of Japan – Design You Trust

Artist Photographs Workers On The Streets Of Tokyo To Pay Homage To The Proud Work Ethics Of Japan

Pastry Shop Staff

In Japanese culture, people share a strong respect for all occupations and the workers who fill them. So much so that they even have a unique term to describe a hard worker – “Hatarakimono”.

More: Frank Le Petit, Instagram, Facebook h/t: boredpanda

Jinrikisha Man

Tokyo-based French artist Frank Le Petit, who goes by the name K-Narf (Frank spelled backward), pays tribute to the people who made the Asian country one of the greatest in the world. He attempts to preserve the Japanese work ethic ideals in images before it vanishes in the modern world. Hatarakimono Project is an extraordinary tape-o-graphic documentary with portraits of workers in their actual uniforms on the streets of Tokyo, ranging from cooks to firemen.

A Pickles Master

The Hatarakimono Project began in 2016, and over the course of 14 months, the artist captured 102 everyday workers on the job. With the help of a custom-made traveling photo studio, K-Narf was able to organize 34 photo-shoots directly in the streets, right next to the models’ workplaces. Representatives of diverse jobs were asked to stop working for a few minutes and pose on a small stool in front of the portable background made of fabric.

A Tofu Wholesaler

“I started the Hatarakimono Project as part of my ongoing work to transform the “Super-ordinary” of my everyday life into an “Extra-ordinary visual archive” for the future. I always wanted to make a large-scale series of portraits, so I decided to create a photographic project about the people I come to see down the road of my Tokyo studio: the Japanese workers,“ – K-Narf shares in one of his Instagram posts.

A Fireman

Each portrait was made as a triptych and manually processed as original tape-o-graph – a néo-vintage photographic method invented by the artist about 10 years ago, which makes each artwork one of a kind. Tape-o-graphy is a process of transferring a photograph from an ink-jet print onto clear adhesive tape. This unique style of the artist makes the finished portraits look as if the workers are small action figures in packages.

Tokyo Tower Attendant

“I am not a photographer, I play pretend being one, it’s slightly different,” said the artist. “My work is not only limited to the image itself but also to re-invent completely photography and create my own photographic world halfway in between the imaginary and reality.”

An Udon Restaurant Owner Chef

Due to the experimental approach to photography, his work is directly associated to Bricolage Art movement which refers to art created with various unconventional, re-purposed and re-identified art materials and mixed media, basically anything on hand.

A Cook

K-Narf says, “we always see the beauty of what we lost when it’s too late”, so the tape-o-graphic portrait collection will be kept in museum storage for 23 years and is to be shown in 2042 in 5 very prestigious museums around the world that he had already selected and contacted, including International Center of Photography in New York and Art gallery of NSW in Sydney.

A Bus Guide

A Train Station Conductor

A Gardener

A Shoe Cobbler

A Bartender

A Baker

A Paramedic

A Postman

A Cast Iron Maker

An Airport Ground Handling Staff

A Soba Confectioner

A Steeplejack

A Cabin Attendant

A Market Security Guard

A Guard Man

A Poultry Cutter

A Train Driver

A Gas Controler

A Cement Wall Maker

An Information Desk Lady

A Road Worker

A Petrol Station Staff

If you want more awesome content, subscribe to 'Design You Trust Facebook page. You won't be disappointed.

More Inspiring Stories

Fabulous Photos of Ewa Aulin in the 1960s and ’70s
La-La Land: The Playful Side of Los Angeles in The 1970s and '80s
Instagram Helps Hide the Harsh Reality of Life in India
Photographer Captures Otherworldly Light Pillars In Northern Ontario
Meet The Photographer Showing You What It’s Like To Be Young In Modern-Day Russia
Chinese Women Use These Swimsuits To Keep Their Skin White
Meet Angela Nikolau, The Russian Girl Who Takes The World’s Riskiest Photos
Great Portraits Of Ireland And The Irish At The Turn Of The 19th Century
The Passion Of Trees In Pictures By Iranian Photographer Ali Shokri
Pan American Games End with Colorful Closing Ceremony
Vintage Portraits Of Psychiatric Patients In The Late 19th Century
1950s Teenage Girls' Fashion Captured in Vintage Photos
Spectacular Winning Photos Of The Historic Photographer Of The Year 2019
U-118, a World War One Submarine Washed Ashore on the Beach at Hastings, England
The Russia You’ll Never See On Postcards Through The Lens Of Photographer Alexander Petrosyan
Russian Photographer Captured Wonderful Photos While Visiting The Extraordinary Socotra Island
Photographer Explores the Beautiful Diversity of Redheads
A Matter Of Trust: The Mystery Soul Of 'Inner' Russia In Wonderful And Sentimental Photographs Of Vugar Mamedzade
Terrific Images Reveal The Vulnerable Beauty Of Abandoned Cars That Have Been Left To Rust Over The Years
Artist Reimagines 5 Disney Fathers As Real Dads, And They’re Hella Handsome
Creative & Beautiful Photos Of The Dogs At Home During The Lockdown By Ria Putzker
Daredevil Photographer Matej Kriz Captures The Frozen Beauty Of Iceland's Ice Caves
Nat Geo Travel Contest Winners
Sun Rising Over the Bubble