ABSTRACT
This chapter refers to the ‘safe space of the family photograph’ in which subjects effectively collaborate in recording a happy or important moment in their shared lives. The effect of reflection may become that much more apparent when the images are anonymous, lacking even the most rudimentary information. The viewer engages with them as blank images, around which the imagination may build all kinds of narrative. Chino Otsuka began as a writer before becoming a photographer and words are an integral component of the whole project, especially evident in the project title and the short accompanying texts which are extracts from her diaries. The insightfulness of Otsuka’s project reflects the construction of the family photograph subtly and perceptively. Human existence as a ‘being with’ in Nancy’s terms, and the generic nature of family photography, means that the viewer is able to feel an immediate connection with those represented.
