Megumi Igarashi

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Megumi Igarashi (2016)

Megumi Igarashi ( Japanese 五十 嵐 恵 Igarashi Megumi ) (pseudonym Rokudenashiko ; Japanese ろ く で な し 子 rokudenashi; born March 14, 1972 ) is a Japanese sculptor and manga artist . She received a lot of attention for her artistic endeavors to remove taboos on female genitals in Japan. In her opinion, these are "too hidden" in Japan compared to male genitals.

Artistic motivation

On her website, she says that when she was growing up, she never saw what female genitalia should look like and was very concerned about whether hers were abnormal. When she started using prints of her vulva as dioramas, she saw the artworks more as playful experiments. However, after receiving a lot of criticism and backlash for the works, she began to see their works as important statements. She wants women to be able to talk about their bodies without shame and believes that the vulva should be just another part of the body "... just like legs and arms." She wants to make the vulva into something “everyday and trendy” in the public eye. She says: "The vagina is treated as if it were something that should be kept underground and hidden, that's why I want to industrialize it and mass-produce it."

plant

Igarashi has created various works with vulva themes. These include candle holders, toy cars , jewelry, and iPhone cases. The small dioramas are part of the “Decoman” series (which is a Japanese play on the word manko , Japanese for “cunt”). Many of her works of art were confiscated by the police during a raid. Nevertheless, the works are documented through photographs. In trying to create a larger piece of art on the theme, Igarashi considered making a door or a car. In the end, however, she decided on a kayak, inspired by the connection between female sexuality and the sea. She made a kayak, the shape of which was modeled on a 3D scan of her vulva. She financed the project through crowdfunding . The 3D data for the kayak was sent to all donors who donated more than 3,000 yen.

Igarashi also developed a character in her manga by the name of Manko-chan (translated "little cunt"). She hopes this character will eventually become a pop culture icon. Manko-chan has been featured in other manga. There are dolls, costumes and characters from her.

Litigation

In July 2014, Igarashi was arrested for violating Japanese moral law. The violation lay in sending the data from the 3D scan of your vulva to the donors of your crowdfunding campaign for the vulva kayak. More than 21,000 people signed a petition calling on the government to release them. She was released a week after appealing her detention.

On December 3, 2014, Igarashi was arrested on suspicion of having displayed an obscene object in public with Minori Kitahara (author, feminist activist). Watanabe was later released. On December 24th, Igarashi was charged. She pleaded not guilty on the advice of her lawyer. She has been accused of "displaying profanity" and "spreading profanity through an electronic medium". She was released on bail on December 26th. The trial began in Tokyo on April 14, 2015. On May 8, 2016, the court announced its decision. She was found not guilty of the first allegation about her kayak. The reason for this was that the kayak "through the bright colors and decoration" did not immediately show that it was modeled on a vulva. However, she was found guilty of the second point of spreading profanity and fined 400,000 yen, half the amount requested by the prosecutor.

The process received international attention. For example, there was a sequence on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart where he said that female sex organs are taboo in Japan, while there are festivals like Kanamara-Matsuri , where large penis statues are carried through the streets. Megumi Igarashi was portrayed in the German-Swiss documentary #Female Pleasure alongside Deborah Feldman , Leyla Hussein, Doris Wagner and Vithika Yadav in 2018.

Private life

Igarashi has been married to Mike Scott since October 2016. He is the former singer of the band "The Waterboys". Their first son was born on February 2, 2017.

See also

Publications

  • Rokudenashiko: What is Obscenity? The Story of a Good for Nothing Artist and Her Pussy. (What is profanity? The story of a non-profit artist and her pussy.) (Koyama Press, 2016), translated from Japanese by A. Ishii, ISBN 978-1-927668-31-3 (English).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Translation "nefarious", "bastard", "do not good" + feminine suffix -ko .
  2. ^ Artist denies obscenity charge: 'My vagina is like my arms and legs' . Asahi Shimbun . July 16, 2014. Archived from the original on July 19, 2014.
  3. ↑ 3D Printed Vagina Kayak Artist Asserts Innocence Again In Japanese Court . April 15, 2015 (retrieved May 13, 2016)
  4. ↑ Justin McCurry: Vagina selfie for 3D printers lands Japanese artist in trouble . In: The Guardian , July 15, 2014. 
  5. ↑ Megumi Igarashi: Profiles . Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  6. ↑ "I make art pieces with my vagina, which I would rather call Manko (MK). I thought it was just funny to decorate my vagina and make into a diorama, but I was very surprised to see how upset people get when they see my works or even hear me say the word deficiency. "
  7. ↑ Japanese artist makes quirky sculptures from molds of her genitals .
  8. ↑ Michael Hoffman: Ah, vaginas! In defense of taboos (en-US) . In: The Japan Times Online , August 9, 2014. Retrieved February 27, 2016. 
  9. ↑ In the Studio With Japan's Controversial Vagina Artist ( en-US )
  10. ↑ Philip Kendall: Here's that “vagina kayak” Japanese artist Megumi Igarashi made with the help of crowdfunding . Socio Corporation. July 18, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
  11. ↑ Tokyo prosecutors seek fine in trial against 'vagina artist' Megumi Igarashi (en-US) . In: The Japan Times Online , February 1, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2016.  (en-US) In: The Japan Times Online , February 1, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  12. ↑ Japanese vagina artist Megumi Igarashi released after week in jail . In: IANS . news.biharprabha.com. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  13. ↑ Tokyo vagina artist released by police . In: Japan Today , July 19, 2014. Retrieved July 20, 2014. 
  14. ↑ Manga artist arrested after displaying 'obscene' work in Tokyo shop . In: The Asahi Shimbun Company , December 4, 2014. Archived from the original on December 31, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014. 
  15. ^ Writer released after arrest over displaying salacious objects at adult shop . In: The Japan Times , December 8, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014. 
  16. ↑ Vagina artist Megumi Igarashi indicted on charges of obscenity . In: The Japan Times , December 24, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014. 
  17. ↑ Vagina Kayak Artist Moves On to Painting - artnet News ( en-US )
  18. ↑ 「お 酒 を 飲 み た い」 保 釈 さ れ た マ ン ガ 家 ・ ろ く で な し 子 氏 自身 の キ ャ ラ ラ ク タ ー を 並 べ て 記者 会見 に 臨 む . In: otapol , December 26, 2014. 
  19. ↑ Tokyo prosecutors seek fine in trial against 'vagina artist' Megumi Igarashi . In: The Japan Times . Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  20. ↑ Justin McCurry: Japanese artist goes on trial over 'vagina selfies' Megumi Igarashi, aka Rokudenashiko, who made kayak modeled on her genitalia, argues in court that her artwork is not obscene . In: The Guardian , April 15, 2015. "If found guilty, Igarashi could face up to two years in prison or a maximum fine of 2.5 million yen for distributing obscene objects." 
  21. ↑ Japan vagina artist cleared over kayak model but fined for data distribution . Retrieved May 9, 2016. 
  22. ↑ On February 2, 2017, I Had a Healthy Baby Boy . In: Rokudenashiko (official website, in Japanese) , February 8, 2017. Archived from the original on May 25, 2017. Retrieved June 26, 2017. 
personal data
SURNAME Igarashi, Megumi
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Rokudenashiko
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Japanese artist
DATE OF BIRTH March 14, 1972