Japanese photographer Haruhiko Kawaguchi and his American girlfriend Katherine spend 10-20 seconds photographing couples that they meets in nightclubs. The couples are photographed on a kitchen floor in Tokyo, where they are arranged like household objects inside bags meant to store futons and blankets. Their bodies are then sealed inside the bag using a household vacuum that sucks out all of the air. Photo subjects are covered with lubricant so the skin doesn’t burn when the plastic presses upon it as all the air is sucked out. Still, the sensation isn’t very pleasant as the plastic seals off your nostrils, presses on your eyelids and the ears pop as if you’re diving into deep water too fast. Having photographed over 80 couples now, Kawaguchi says, “Men panic more often than the women. A few have struggled for air while in the bag and one man ended up pissing himself. The women just want to look good.”
Kawaguchi believes that love is the source of everything. A man who accumulates wealth does is out of love for his wife, or for expensive cars. People go to war out of love for power, or out of love for their country or their own life. So he feels proud to be able to capture the hottest, greatest moment of love, when the lovers are welded together in plastic wrap. If one of them dies, or if they break up, there is still this photo of their immortalized love. Totally Crazy!! But, isn’t LOVE supposed to be?
