Japan Seen Through Pia Riverola’s Lens

Capturing typical moments in everyday life in Japan. This was the ambition of photographer Pia Riverola during her various stays in Japan, and she did so entirely on medium format, 35-mm film, a medium dear to the artist.  

‘I think that especially in places like Japan, this has a lot of meaning,’ she explains in an interview with Pen. ‘I have a great passion for Japanese photographers of the 1970s, like Daido Moriyama – especially his work in black-and-white, but also his colour photography and his books.’ Pia Riverola’s photographs feature themes explored by the Japanese photographer: portraits captured in the street, architectural details, city lights, and photographs taken on public transport. 

Thematic series

The artist then organised her work into different series, each referring to a particular place and atmosphere. ‘There’s the Subway series for example, taken on public transport, which has a more morose aesthetic; another dedicated to my trip to Naoshima, on the theme of nature and art; and one entitled Food moments, which compiles photographs taken in restaurants and markets,’ the photographer explains. 

Pia Riverola – who works between Los Angeles and Mexico as a freelance photographer for magazines and brands, on themes as varied as travel, architecture, and fashion – wished for her photographs to translate into images the sensations experienced at a particular moment. ‘I want everyone to be transported to Japan when they look at my series, and to show the emotion that even the most banal, everyday moments can inspire,’ the artist concludes.

Pia Riverola’s photographic work can be viewed on her website.