Nomura:Also, you had "Studio Voice" when I was doing mine. I think this is the first time we've met like this in the daytime (laughs).
Mountain Valley:Today is called a visit.
Nomura:Yes, it is difficult to gather people nowadays, isn't it? It is not possible to invite a large number of people to gather and view the works. That is why photographers are holding digital exhibitions, but I have not seen any of them. Everyone says, "It's great as a work of art," but I don't feel like looking at it now. Digital is very convenient, but this self-restraint has made me dislike it. People have been sending me things like, "This one on Netflix is interesting," but I haven't seen a single movie in 3 months. I understand what you are saying about staying home and storing up knowledge, but I just can't seem to get interested in things when I am not in contact with other people.
Until now, I would drink until morning because I was stressed out from work, but I also wanted to read, so in between I would read in the bathroom without making a sound, or I would watch a movie on my cell phone while taking a bath. I had the desire for these things, but when I couldn't go outside, I lost that desire. I'm in Tokyo now for about 6 months, and I think that's the first time in the past 30 years or so that I've been here. . but part of me has gotten used to it. I've never quit smoking, but I feel like I've succeeded in quitting (laughs).
Nomura:But even if Corona settles down, the kind of work that used to take me overseas will never come back. So, from now on, I will have to go somewhere on my own like in the past and sell what I find interesting and turn it into money, and I need to go where I am interested. So far, I've been able to get work before I knew it, especially in New York, and I've been going there a lot. I have many friends there, and as I became friends with the young painters and skaters I met there, it became a cycle of doing things with them. I never get tired of having friends like that over the course of several generations. So I have been able to have a good time, but that stopped this time. But when I think about it, when I first started making friends in New York, I wasn't working. They were just guys I met on the street. Now that I'm working, I thought I'd like to start doing the same thing again.
Mountain Valley:Yeah, yeah, so we have to go to a totally different place again.
Nomura:. yes. Until now, for example, HOUYHNHNM would say, "Mr. Kunichi, aren't you going to America or something?" I'll go next time! Can I join you? "Oh! Can I join you? There was that kind of thing.
Mountain Valley:Yes, there are. But I have the exact opposite pattern. I say, "I'm going to America next time, is there anything I can do?" and say, "I'm going to the U.S. next time.HOUYHNHNM gave me a job.I've been there (laughs).
Nomura:At that time, it was already a struggle, wasn't it? (Laughs) But now you don't have to actually go to the U.S. to do the interview via zoom, and then just take a picture of it on the screen. . There have been a number of jobs in the past that I've thought about again and realized, "I don't need to go to this one. I was aware of it myself, but I didn't think it was necessary (laughs). (laughs). So, I have to think hard about what kind of trip I am going to take in the future. There are two photographers here, but how are we going to go abroad and take pictures?
Mountain Valley:I thought that if we wanted to capture this era, it would make sense to capture it in Japan in the manner that "Doors" did. I don't think there are many people performing on the streets nowadays.
Nomura:Wouldn't that be called an annoying youtuber or something? (Laughs)
Mountain Valley:They are like relatives (laughs). . I don't think anyone would come close to me. However, the camera is rotating and taking pictures of me and my surroundings, and I feel like I am the only one there, and it is a document that can only be taken at this time. Photography is essentially about recording, and I thought it would be similar to that, so I submitted the idea as it was to an art grant, and it was accepted with flying colors. I realized that such proposals are not acceptable nowadays.
Nomura:Why don't we put today's coverage on HOUYHNHNM's and crowdfund it so we can go on tour one more time? This time, they don't want euros, they want yen (laughs).
Mountain Valley:I can't get grants anymore , I have to do it alone! . so that's what I'm saying. . not by buying photo books, but by crowdfunding once more.
Nomura:I know you're supposed to buy the photo book, but wouldn't it be more like you to do a crowdfunding campaign and go on tour again?
Mountain Valley:As Kunichi mentioned earlier, I have a lot of free time, but I haven't seen almost any movies either.
Nomura:. you say, "Yes, I have time," but you can't watch it at all. I thought I'd watch a movie with my kids, and the trailers and such just don't resonate with me at all. . Then I thought maybe I could watch a movie where I don't have to think about anything, but I'm not in the mood for even that. Then I thought, "What am I in the mood for?
Mountain Valley:. doesn't that lead to the issue of freedom?
Nomura:. yes. I'm not a man without constraints.
Mountain Valley:. yeah, yeah. Everyone said, "You have to use this time to do something for yourself," but I thought, "No, there's no point in doing that.
Nomura:. yes, yes, yes. They say, "Be productive," but I've been spending more time on my bike when no one is around. But I've been spending more time riding around on my bike when no one is around. Doing something for a purpose is hard to do now.
Mountain Valley:I really understand that.
Nomura:Freelancers think they have less freedom than salaried workers .
Mountain Valley:Yes , that's right.
Nomura:Well, I've never been (an office worker) (laughs). (laughs) . Looking at my friends, there are times when they are very busy, but when that time passes, they have some free time. But during that period, they get the same salary as when they were busy, and they get a bonus. And you get a bonus. We still work by the letter or hourly rate, and we can't take as much time off as we'd like. Even if we try to take time off, we have the fear that during the time we are off, our regular work will be transferred to someone else and we may not be able to get it back.
Mountain Valley:Yes , it's like a 365 days a year job .
Nomura:Then, when I think about the advantages of freelancing, I think it is freedom to be able to say, "If it comes to it, I'll quit right here and now! I think it is freedom to be able to say, "If it comes to it, I'll quit right here and now! In reality, I'm too scared to do that (laughs). . But because of that, I have been able to manage to do things every day despite the inconvenience, and I feel as if that card of freedom has been taken away from me during the period of self-restraint.
I'm 47 years old now, and when I go out to eat with friends my age, we usually start at 6:00 pm. That's early (laughs). . So I can only go out to eat about once a year. When I told him, "I finish work around midnight, so I'll go to the third meeting or so," he said, "No, I'm going home. Or rather, they say, "You're working a desk job at your age? That's miserable. . But I was doing what I loved, and I was happy with that. And I could quit when the time came. But I don't feel like that anymore.
