Traditions centered around female divers, called Ama, for centuries provided shellfish, abalone, seaweed, and even pearls for Shima, a town in the Mie Prefecture of Japan. This image endorses the feeling of what it meant to be an ama, during the 60’s. The picture shows a young woman marching her way, as it appears, away from her recent dive. The women divers of this city obviously take great pride in being able to provide such necessary products for food and commerce. The second image shows the product of this developing tradition in modern day. This image creates a sentimental value and character for the first image that it previously lacked. The photographer for this first image was Fosco Maraini. He captured the spirit of the young women in this town in order to make a point about who they are and the traditions they hold for their community, while making a larger message about how modern day lacks such traditions. 

The subject of this first photo is a woman standing with her chest high to flaunt her commitment to her job. She is gazing at the ocean; the ama recognizes the vast open water as her work space. This ama diver is wearing nothing, but a loin cloth, as it is a tradition for these Japanese divers to dive into cold water in only this little covering. She has no problem having her breasts exposed because she truly feels, as does majority of citizens in Shima, that her job is an important asset to the community. The photo appears to be a stance on the relationship of these divers to their affiliated town. The woman carries what appears to be a handmade basket that she is using to gather. The basket shows sign of wear and tear, as does the net that she holds. This shows the work that she has put in with her materials. She has he hair back in a bandana because she probably has finished her dive for the day and just needs to keep her hair out of her face for the rest of the day. The fact that she has her hair back, but is still shirtless seems to show that she has a responsibility and work to do after her dive is complete.

 This picture, and the others in the collection, represent a type of culture that, is to believed, lacking in western civilization. This theme seems to create the message that the photographer wants to convey. Fosco is making a point that western society could use more attachment to their ancestors and family values, like these cultures in the east, but specifically in Japan. It seems that Japan was selected by Maraini, specifically, because of its almost opposite cultural standing and development. 

The second image in this visual analysis represents the same values that have been displayed in the first, but with a modern touch. The picture was capture by Japan Times as part of an article about the introduction of male presence in the ama diving tradition. The second though is similar in feel really proves the commitment of the locals in Shima to this tradition throughout the ages. There is a picture placed on a shelf in this image. This picture is of a great ama that once served her community and has now passed. The shadow figure is her grandson and he sits every day and prays to this image of his grandmother. The gaze in this image is between the two figures within the photo. It is a very personal gaze that accurately represents the personal connection between the people of this town. 

The image also represents the way that traditions and values evolve over time. The tradition of this town in Japan has always held women as the great divers, but now has stretched to include men. Modern day traditions all seem to stretch gender boundaries so it was no surprise that this one would be any different. This diving tradition has also been held through the years without an association to a particular family, however, this role seems to have moved to bloodline rather than the people of the town. The second image gives a lot more credit to family values over communal, but still credits tradition for this town’s success. These two images collectively create an emotional state within all viewers that remind them of the nostalgia that comes with family and tradition. Presumably, this was Maraini’s goal and he definitively did a good job of conveying such emotion to his audience.

These two images were coincidentally part of the same message though they were taken by separate photographers. They represent the past and present of a society that has strength in themselves and that bonds together to be happy and communal. Japan as a whole has held a culture for centuries that is not very invasive and keeps to itself when it comes to culture. I believe that Fosco understood this and took to utilizing the strength of Japanese bonds to deliver a message to the western world about the importance of holding traditions and history.
