IKIGAI - A Reason For Being: Sly Morikawa
For Australian-based photographer and artist Sly Morikawa, photography is more than just a passion or hobby, it is a reason for being. Known for her dreamy and sensual images, she has spent the past few years building up an impressive body of work, depicting intimacy between subject and artist, while promoting the strength of each individual’s unique expression.
With her most recent zine titled Fantasy, Sly captured the diverse beauty of women, through her distinctly unique female gaze. Surrounded by “the angelic” and “the unorthodox” she captures their essence, highlighting a certain kind of sensitivity and softness found within us all.
The GATA team had the pleasure of talking to her about a range of topics including the importance of reconnecting with our past, the influence of Japanese photographers and her ambitious plans for the future.
GATA: Sly, thank you so much for your time, first of all, could you please introduce yourself to the GATA family?
Sly: Hi Gata family! My name is Sly Morikawa. I'm a photographer and artist based in Sydney, Australia.
GATA: Can you tell us a bit about your connection with Japan and your Japanese roots? How has this shaped your journey as an artist?
Sly: My parents met in Tokyo back in 1983. They were part of the same running club. They got married, had a couple of children, moved to England (where my father is from), had two more children, and then moved to Sydney where myself and my younger sister were born and raised.
I’ve lived in Sydney my whole life but I've been very fortunate to have made countless trips back to Japan over the years. My mother was born in Fukuyama, Hiroshima, where my grandparents still reside. It's a very quiet town but I have many fond memories there. When I think of my childhood, I think of Fukuyama. I often dream about being back, more so than ever with the borders currently closed in Australia. The nostalgia hurts. My last trip to Fukuyama was in 2018, where I made my zine Hisayo. It was meant to be the beginning of a larger body of work but my trip got cancelled in 2020 and I’ve since not been able to return. It’s a frustrating experience as an artist because there is a lot that I wish to do over there. Most of my work isn’t particularly relevant to my cultural roots or connection to Japan, but I’m at a point in my journey where I wish it were the opposite. My obaa-chan has dementia and I often panic about the history that my family may lose. I wish I were there to document these stories.
“From the beginning I’ve always photographed women, I love photographing women, they’re beautiful to me in ways that men could never be.”
GATA: How has your photography developed during the years and why is it important for you to focus on portraying women?
Sly: This is an interesting question for where I’m at right now because from the beginning I’ve always photographed women, I love photographing women, they’re beautiful to me in ways that men could never be. But my focus is turning away from this currently. I made a zine last year called Fantasy, an exploration of women from the female gaze, and I think I burned myself out in a way. I’m now working on an exhibition that is darker, moodier, and conceptually different to my usual way of doing things. I just got bored of myself, bored of the feedback, and that’s a terrifying feeling as an artist.
GATA: Where do you find your muses?
Sly: I’m surrounded by muses! I honestly have the most beautiful friends. Many of the people I shoot I already know, others I reach out to through Instagram, vice versa. The internet is an incredible tool for finding your community. My partner, Chris and my friend, Maggie have a modelling agency here in Sydney (Stone Street Agency) which really focuses on and celebrates diversity. I’m fortunate to be able to work with a lot of their talent as well.
GATA: Your work is beautiful, full of sensuality, what is your message/statement to those who think that your work is “too sexy”?
Sly: Thank you. I’ve come across the criticism that my work is too sexy a number of times. It used to bother me but it doesn’t anymore. It is what it is, everyone will have their preferences, their biases, and view the world through a lens that I may never understand. I’ve always found Sydney to be quite conservative in its creativity. And I’ve always had more support from artists/creatives in London, LA, New York, Tokyo. It’s made me come to the realisation that I don’t necessarily want to, nor have to build a creative future here. I have my sights set further.
“I’m surrounded by muses! I honestly have the most beautiful friends. ”
GATA: Your work is focused on photography, did you ever think about doing video or exploring another artistic field when it comes to your self-expression?
Sly: I’m definitely interested in film and video work further down the line, but for the time being, I’m focused on what I’m doing with photography. I love it, it fulfils me, I’m only at the beginning of my journey. Because of photography, the future excites me. Without it, I would have no reason to get out of bed every morning. It's my Ikigai.
GATA: Are there any photographers/artists that have influenced/inspired your work?
Sly: I feel that my work isn’t exactly influenced by anyone in terms of style, but I’m inspired in other ways. All the great talents of Japanese photography - I adore Issei Suda for his sense of mystery, his subtle precision, Rinko Kawauchi for her serene poeticism, Nobuyoshi Araki for his … everything. I admire those from the PROVOKE era. Daido Moriyama, Koji Taki, Takuma Nakihara, Masahisa Fukase - they had no desire to produce "good work" as interpreted by the values of their past and I love that, and try to embody that. I love rawness, honesty, sentimentality, the connection between the real and the surreal. That’s what inspires me the most. I love the work of Dash Snow, Nan Goldin, Larry Clark, Ren Hang. I cried when he took his own life.
“I often dream about being back, more so than ever with the borders currently closed in Australia. The nostalgia hurts.”
GATA: Do you have any interesting future plans that you can share with GATA?
Sly: I’m working on an exhibition for later this year. This will be my first solo exhibition. I’m looking forward to sharing something bigger than the pages of a zine, or what can be displayed in a square on a phone screen. The process has been a challenge already, but I’m hoping to also challenge people’s ideas of what my work is and could be.
Beyond that, the future plans that are really driving me forward right now are to be living in Tokyo within the next 1-2 years.
“ I’ve come across the criticism that my work is too sexy a number of times. It used to bother me but it doesn’t anymore. It is what it is, everyone will have their preferences, their biases, and view the world through a lens that I may never understand”
GATA: We really believe that cinema is a big influence on artists. Could you share with us your favourite movies or those that have influenced you the most?
Sly: I enjoy films that make me feel melancholy, nostalgic, curious. Interesting visuals, and anything that evokes deep emotion. Some of my favourites are Departures, American Beauty, Enter the Void, Youth of the Beast, Shoplifters, Tanpopo, Pistol Opera, Pan’s Labyrinth, Beautiful Losers, Gummo, Drive, The Holy Mountain.
GATA: You talked about intimacy in the past, and bonding with the person you are photographing, has COVID-19 changed the way you work?
Sly: COVID-19 hasn’t affected the way I work in terms of my interactions with people while I shoot. I never shoot with a big team so the intimacy is always there. We’re fortunate here to have had very minimal cases, be lifted of restrictions, have no community transmission, enjoying life as we were before the pandemic. However, it has affected the way I work in terms of not being able to leave!