MAYUMI SUZUKI
HOJO
Published by T&M Projects
2022
Book size 25.4x19.6cm
88 pages
Softcover
Language English, Japanese
“Is it too old to get pregnant? On my 41st birthday, I decided to undergo IVF. I had never questioned whether having a baby is a joy for women or not”
― Mayumi Suzuki's foreword
In this mesmerizing series composed of nude self-portraits, sonograms and photographs of oddly shaped vegetables, Japanese photographer Mayumi Suzuki creates a personal narrative about her experiences with fertility treatment at the age of 41. Seeing herself as an outlier, the series examines expectations and normalizations surrounding pregnancy, the female body and the female role. Surprised by the little time doctors use to examine patients in preparation for IVF, Suzuki decided to photograph her nude body using the same exposure time: 60 seconds. When she eventually gave up on the treatment, she started to feel a strange sympathy with deformed vegetables that went unsold at the market. Through the haunting, almost ghostly photographs in “Hojo”, Suzuki gives shape to her complex experiences with promised possibilities and unexpected fates.
“In Japanese, 豊穣 (HOJO) refers to an abundance of land or a good harvest. In English, it is usually translated as “fertility.” In Japan, women have traditionally been worshiped as goddesses of HOJO. The ideal being blessed with abundant crops and many children have been associated with them.
…
I also used pictures of fertilized eggs that I received from the clinic. They are rough, pixelated pictures. From them, it's hard to tell the difference between a fertilized egg that can get pregnant and one that cannot. When you zoom in, it's just a dot. If there is a factor in the hundreds of millions of cells in my body that is preventing me from conceiving, I have to look for that outlier. I am reminded of endless infertile land.
In this day and age, women can choose how they want to live. But sometimes they have to accept a fate that they have no control over. Even if my own body is not “fertile”, I want to be proud of it because this is my life.”
― from Mayumi Suzuki's artist statement
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“Is it too late to get pregnant? On my 41st birthday, I decided to go for IVF. I had never thought about whether having a baby was a joy for women or not.
- Preface by Mayumi Suzuki
In this haunting series of nude self-portraits, ultrasound scans, and photographs of oddly shaped vegetables, Japanese photographer Mayumi Suzuki creates a personal narrative about her experience undergoing fertility treatments at age 41. Considering herself an anomaly, the series examines the expectations and normalizations surrounding pregnancy, the female body, and the role of women. Surprised by the short time doctors devote to examining IVF patients, Suzuki decided to photograph her naked body using the same exposure time: 60 seconds. When she finally gave up treatment, she began to develop a strange sympathy for the misshapen vegetables left unsold at the market. Through the haunting, almost ghostly photographs of “Hojo,” Suzuki gives form to her complex experiences of promised possibilities and unexpected destinies.
In Japanese, 豊穣 (HOJO) means abundance of land or a good harvest. In English, it is usually translated as "fertility". In Japan, women are traditionally worshipped as goddesses of HOJO. The ideal of having abundant harvests and many children is associated with them.
...
I also used pictures of fertilized eggs that I received from the clinic. They are crude, pixelated images. It is difficult to tell the difference between a fertilized egg that can get pregnant and one that cannot. When you zoom in, it is just a dot. If there is something in the hundreds of millions of cells in my body that is preventing me from conceiving, I have to look for that abnormality. It reminds me of an endless barren land.
In this day and age, women can choose their lifestyle. But sometimes they have to accept a fate over which they have no control. Even if my own body is not “fertile,” I want to be proud of it because it is my life.”
- excerpt from the statement of the artist Mayumi Suzuki