【FOCUS IT.] Why Keiji Kaneko, who does not wear photo T, worked on photo T with GOAT.

GOAT" boasts of its popularity as a star in the T-shirt industry. This time, we worked with buyer Keiji Kaneko to create a special body for a photo T-shirt. The body is the result of the ingenuity of someone who knows clothes. Using this body, a photo T-shirt featuring photographs of Mr. Kaneko and Yataro Matsuura was produced. We interviewed Mr. Kaneko about the secret story behind the production of the body, his thoughts on the photos, and his idea of "wearing photos. We interviewed Mr. Kaneko.

Edit&Text_Taiyo Nagashima

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I feel that a typical photo T has a disjointed body, and there are many improvements that could be made to it as a garment.

Do you usually wear photo T's, Mr. Kaneko?

. in fact, I didn't wear it at all. Just like with the band T, I thought it would be a bad idea to wear a photo T by an artist I didn't know much about. I have come this far without being able to buy one on the spur of the moment.

. - It is an item that has a clear signifier and context, which is why it is troubling.

As a category, it was appealing, but it was outside of the realm of clothing that I myself would wear. I felt that it was a world that I should not enter. I have only one photo T by Toshiya Arai, who I consider to be one of the three greatest fashion photographers in Japan. He is one of the most communicative of photographers, and I have worked with him, understand the context, and respect him, so I thought I could learn from him.

How did Mr. Kaneko get involved in photo T-shirts?

I was once asked by an acquaintance to do a photo T event for a photo I took. At the time, I thought, "I really don't want to do that" (laughs). . I thought it would be too hard to sell the photos I took. I am not a professional photographer, I am just taking pictures for myself. I felt uncomfortable about the fact that I was being judged on whether or not my T-shirts would sell. But then I realized that I could wear the photo T-shirts I took for myself.

. That's how you came to realize the relationship between Photo T and yourself, isn't it?

Yes, that's right. At that time, we started working with a T-shirt brand called "GOAT. I felt that there were many things that could be improved in terms of clothing, as the body of a typical photo T-shirt is not the same. Photos can be taken vertically or horizontally, and this changes the balance of the clothing. . so I think two types are necessary. It's more comfortable if the center fits, so you could make the neck smaller so that when you wear it, the center line doesn't shift. . Or maybe a shoulder tilt would prevent wrinkles from forming on the printed part of the picture when you stand up and lower your arms. There are many things that can be improved upon. Goth" is made of a good material and the prints are good, so I decided to leave the fabric as it is. We made the body for the photo T as if we were making a picture frame.

I think it is only Kaneko-san who has seen a lot of clothes that can find such improvements in such a universal item as a T-shirt.

You did your best (laughs). So this time, the project is not about selling my photo T, but only about creating a body for the photo T. . As a first step, a photo of Yataro Matsuura and myself was used for the body, and that is how the project was set up. That way, it would lead to the next step, and even if it didn't sell, I could use the excuse that it was just a test for the body (laughs).

. How did Yataro Matsuura come to be involved in this project?

For our first project, we wanted to release a photo T of a non-photographer. Yataro told us that he had taken a lot of pictures with film in the past and had recently bought a Leica again. . I had a strong desire to wear something with his photos, which I admire, anyway, so I asked him to do so.

. I would like to ask again what kind of person Mr. Matsuura is from your point of view, Kaneko-san.

. I think of you as someone who has always maintained a sense of purity. He himself says, "I have stopped since I was a child." . I think that is a wonderful quality of his, and something that is not easy to achieve.

It is quite difficult to remain pure, isn't it?

It really is true, isn't it? He has been listening to some records since he was a boy and has been listening to them for about 45 years. . I think he is a person who still keeps the excitement and purity of his childhood. I have been working as a company employee for a long time, and there were many times when I pretended not to feel something or gave up on it, but I think Yataro has a firm grasp of what is good and bad within himself and applies it to his work and life.

. I feel that Mr. Kaneko himself is a person who keeps that kind of purity.

Maybe we have different vectors even within PURE. With Mr. Matsuura, we have talked several times about the similarities in our basic stance. In that context, there was a discussion about whether it is the unique purity of not being disciplined that makes it possible to work with the individual standing on his/her own.

I am planning to have a talk show with Mr. Matsuura and myself at a store called "ref" in Hiroshima. Is it really a good idea to conform to everyone else? I'm not sure if it's a good idea to conform to everyone.

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The crackly font used for the print on the back of the neck is the same font used for the "Leica.

. You have chosen five different photos, each with a different theme.

Yataro made the selection first...it was so brilliant that I was at a loss as to what to submit in response.

He has been photographing people reading books for a long time, originally with the theme of people reading books. You focus on the beauty of people reading books, and you yourself have an inseparable connection with books. . He took pictures with Leica film in the 80s and 90s.

. The appearance of a person reading a book is nice, isn't it? Such people are becoming fewer and fewer.

. because everyone is looking at their phones. . I am sure that the landscape is completely different today than it was in the 80s and 90s. I have basically taken photos without a theme, so I started by digging back and looking at photos from the past. Among them, I was struck by a photo taken when I went on an overseas business trip at the time when the Corona Disaster was about to dawn or not.

In Japan, everyone wears masks, but overseas, I saw people enjoying themselves on a Ferris wheel. I felt a freshness in the gap between the activities of people overseas after Corona and the scenery I had seen in Japan, and decided to collect such changes.

What did you consider in choosing the photos that you would actually want to wear?

I think the key word is something like cuteness.

. this is Heath Ceramics. This is the window of a store in San Francisco. An old man was painting, and I happened to be able to capture the timing when the "H" was just hidden and the "HEAT" was on.

. Other times, I took a picture of an old man in Paris, waiting for a cab or something, looking pouty and cute.

This is a Ferris wheel in Paris. . It's not a Ferris wheel, but a screaming machine like a free fall. I would never want to ride it myself, but I thought it was a nice sight.

. These photos show that everyday life has returned.

. This is a photo taken from outside a store of an elderly couple choosing umbrellas at a well-established umbrella shop. This is a scene that would not be possible in Japan. The act of choosing an umbrella at an umbrella shop itself is very traditional and beautiful. And they looked so cute. The print of the logo on the window pane is on top, so I thought it would be interesting to make that look different as well.

. This picture has an interesting composition on the right and left.

This was taken with a telephoto lens while driving . It looks more compact and toy-like than reality. There was a lot of activity over there, so cars were driving around a lot, and I chose this as one of the post-corona activities.

Is the name of the place written on the bottom of the T-shirt?

Yes, I wrote the names and dates of the actual places I went.

Also, the crunchy font used for the print on the back of the neck is the same font used for "Leica". We paid attention to every detail.

How will the Photo T project develop in the future?

I plan to continue with guests with whom I am associated. I'm thinking of asking people who are not professional photographers, but who have personally accumulated photos. More and more people are agreeing with me, so I'm looking forward to it. . I think there are a lot of people nowadays who take pictures with their iPhones, but leave them in the camera roll and just let them accumulate without using them. I would like to take this opportunity to tell people who take a lot of random photos every day, "Why don't you take a photo T and wear it? I would like to take this opportunity to tell the world, "Why don't you take a photo T and wear it?

I'm sure you'll enjoy your photos a lot more.

People like me who couldn't afford a photo T can wear it if they use their own photo, or they can look through their friends' iPhones and choose a photo. In this context, I thought that if there was a body specially designed for the Photo T, it would be more complete as an outfit and anyone could easily make one.

We are planning to have them in the body section of the print shop, so that we can buy bodies, and we are also ready for brands to use them when they decide to make photo T's. .