Japan’s queer community has been strengthening its presence in recent decades, with many individuals increasingly taking on roles as LGBTQ activists or carving out safe spaces from HIV/AIDS awareness centers to cabaret bars.
In Edges of the Rainbow, published by The New Press, we receive intimate portraits of this community that center and celebrate those typically seen as on the fringes of Japanese society. The book focuses on the everyday lives of about a dozen individuals and couples, with over 150, snapshot-like photographs by Michel Delsol accompanied by short interviews by journalist Haruku Shinozaki that amplify each story.
Far from romanticizing this community, his photographs simply offer insight into the lives of LGBTQ individuals, allowing them to present their stories on their own terms to an international audience.
The Rainbow of Japan’s LGBTQ Identity, Captured in Photos (Claire Voon)
Los Angeles. He’s the director of the short film The House of Gay Art, and the co-director, with Dorian Wood, of the short film PAISA. His documentary web series, Rad Queers, profiled subjects including trans artist Edie Fake and Latinx leather organization Payasos L.A. The Japan-U.S. Friendship Council named Kolbeins a recipient of their Creative Artists Exchange Fellowship in 2016, and he subsequently spent five months directing Queer Japan, a feature documentary about sexuality and gender identity in Japan.
