Black Hair Blooming in Silence--Portrait of Sayoko Yamaguchi and Light (1949-2007)

Black Hair Blooming in Silence--Portrait of Sayoko Yamaguchi and Light (1949-2007)

Sayoko Yamaguchi was born in Yokohama in 1949. She studied at Sugino Gakuen Dressmaker Academy in Tokyo, and in the early 1970s was selected as an advertising model for Shiseido. With her black bob, long slit eyes, and almost expressionless appearance, she embodied a quiet and powerful oriental beauty that was different from Western beauty.

Japanese society, which was experiencing rapid economic growth, was searching for its own cultural uniqueness. Sayoko Yamaguchi became a symbol of the spirit of the times. Photographer Isamitsu Yokosuka recognized the beauty of her silence and sealed her presence in the tranquil margins of his work. Their collaboration transcended mere advertising and reflected the very atmosphere of the times.

Eventually, Sayoko entered the Paris collection. She was praised as "the fairy from the Orient," and her work caught the world's attention. However, she felt uncomfortable with her own existence being consumed by commercialism, and moved on to the stage, film, and butoh dance. She has arrived at a form of expression that "communicates with the world through the body.

She died suddenly in 2007 at the age of 58. However, Sayoko Yamaguchi's black hair continues to bloom in serenity. She became a portrait of light in the murmur of the times.