Alberto Lisi aka Hikari Kesho | Art of Contemporary Shibari

Veneto, Italy
albertolisi.com
hikarikesho.com

Since his childhood, his main passion has been photography. He was given his first camera at the age of 10 from his grandfather. From this first Volklender bellows camera to today, Alberto continues to evolve and is mastering the art of digital photography.

Through studies and numerous recognitions in various exhibitions and photographic contests, Alberto soon became a professional photographer. Specializing in Fashion Photography, he collaborates with some of the most important international designers: Alviero Martini, Romeo Gigli, Gianfranco Ferré, Mariella Burani, and Renato Balestra, among others.

Alberto has developed a unique style for photographing female bodies, making personal experiments on the theme of body expression.

About 10 years ago, he discovered shibari art, and since then his artistic work is almost exclusively devoted to research of aesthetics through the use of this fascinating discipline.

Tying bodies to create living sculptures and then photographing them…using an art, shibari, to create an artwork with photography.

That’s his aim.

(Click on the images to expand them.
The exhibit prints will be presented without the watermarks.)

______________________________________________________

Among Ginkgo Biloba Leaves
Model: Pascal

The origins of the Ginkgo biloba dates back about 250 million years ago in a small area of China.

The ginkgo leaf is the symbol of the Urasenke school of Japanese tea ceremony. And its seeds are considered the food of Buddha.

The stunning yellow of the leaves has always attracted me, and so, when I found a model willing to pose naked in the cold and in the middle of the city, I made this picture. A few days before I would have no leaves on the ground and a few days later they would fall from the tree … a real race against time

______________________________________________________

BUTTERFLY KOI
Model: Elisa

I often go for jogging along that road, like a lot of people do. And any time I thought :“I must make a shibari suspension with these wonderful graffiti on the background”. In Japanese culture, Koi carp has a strong connotation of mystical / religious, so it looked perfect to me for a “Japanese stile” art work.

______________________________________________________

Observing the Stillness of Brenta River
Model: Magena Yama

I love eastern philosophy, Zen landscapes , meditation and, like I think all of us, I seek inner peace … that’s what this image is for me.

______________________________________________________

Railway Bridge
Model: Elisa

I have practiced for years rowing, the river is my life, and shibari is my life too.

Elisa is not a model, she is an athlete that does canoeing. When I proposed to her to make this picture hanging on the river she said “yes” right away with enthusiasm…I think she was great!

______________________________________________________

Araki Tribute
Model:

In nature there are magic and unrepeatable moments: the colors of the garden flowers, of the leaves on the trees, of the grass and the type of light, have helped me to give an aura of romance to this upside down suspension

______________________________________________________

Be careful, the injury is always lurking.
Model: Magena Yama

When my father built houses, this was the workshop of a blacksmith from which he served. The only accident prevention at that time were the tables with the words: “Be careful, the injury is always lurking”!

50 years later the place was destroyed, but the table was still there, so I thought of this scene that is intended to be ironic: Magena, hanging over an old bayonet and the table, attached to the ropes that “warns of the danger”…

______________________________________________________

My Favorite Little Bird
Model: Magena Yama

What’s better than shibari to keep such a pretty bird in a cage suspended…?

______________________________________________________

Red Passion
Model: Giorgia

This picture belongs to my first period of photographic research on shibari.

I worked exclusively in my studio and my attention was much given to the quality of ties. Red is my favorite color, is the symbol of eroticism, but also of fire, of hell.

The look of Giorgia and his particular hairstyle, helped to give the image a strong visual impact.

______________________________________________________

Trapped in the Spider’s Web
Model: Lina

Another picture belonging to my first period.

The front view “flattens” the image and, by the complicity of the serene expression of Lina, you do not feel the discomfort of the position, actually “sitting” on her legs, with the weight of the body that weighs on her hair, but it was the only way to achieve the parallelism of lines I was looking for.

______________________________________________________

Lotus flower
Model: Frida

Frida is a really good belly dancer. She was three months pregnant when we shot this image.

I am passionate about yoga and meditation. Her sweet expression and the flexibility of her body led me to photograph her in suspension, in the lotus position, in a sort of “meditative levitation”

______________________________________________________

An autumn eve
there is joy too
in loneliness.

Model: Francesca

Boundless is a photographic project that explores the boundaries of beauty understood in absolute terms. The subjects are generously built women, photographed creating minimalist sculptural shapes by using bonding with hemp ropes according to the ancient Japanese art of Shibari.

In Shibari (the action of tying someone up) the Nawashi (rope artist) creates almost geometric patterns and shapes that contrast wonderfully with the female body’s natural curves and recesses. Visually, the tight ropes and their texture provide a counterpoint to smooth skin and curves. The hard edges of the rope reinforce the softness of the body’s graceful shape: the model is like a canvas, and the rope is paint and brush.

______________________________________________________