Translated by Kaoru Chiba
All images: © Hirofumi Ishii
Courtesy of the artist and TRAUMARIS
It felt so strange when I first saw the series entitled “Cheerleaders” by Hirofumi Ishii, which has been made based on found photography. Although the series on a theme of crowd psychology seems to have texture of photocopied surface at a glance, you will realize that they are all extremely delicate drawings using pointillism when taking a closer look.
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Shades and outlines formed with countless dots are so smooth that it makes you wonder if they are genuinely hand-drawn. Ishii says in his artist statement that he has strongly been influenced by a social psychologist, Gustave Le Bon, in regards to his study on the fundamental characteristics of crowds stating that crowds tend to become unconscious as they lose their critical spirit and individuality.
Hirofumi Ishii (b.1979) lives and works in Japan. He adopts a technique of drawing in which tiny dots are applied to form an image. In 2011 Ishii released the first publication of his works, “handpoint magazine” (Edition of 250). The second publication “closet” was published by Rondade in 2012.
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