A Geisha's Journey: My Life As a Kyoto Apprentice
Review"A Geisha's Journey is a captivating story of both will and serendipity, told through the lens of Naoyuki Ogino and the narrative of Komomo, a young girl determined to become a geiko." --The International Herald TribuneProduct DescriptionThis is the story of a contemporary Japanese teenager who, in a search for an identity, became fascinated with the world of geisha, and discovered in herself the will and the commitment to embark on the many years of apprenticeship necessary to become one. It is also the story of a young Japanese photographer who grew up overseas, and who also was captivated by the traditional lives of these women who choose to dedicate themselves to their art.The photographs are accompanied by autobiographical text and captions by Komomo, as she shares her thoughts and emotions, and describes the day-to-day existence of a Kyoto apprentice.  It is an illuminating view of seven years in the life of a very special young woman.A Look InsideA Geisha's JourneyKomomo, a contemporary geisha from Kyoto, Japan, undergoes the elaborate makeup application that completes her transformation.Naoyuki Oginos's photography documents the transformation of the fifteen-year-old school girl, Ruriko, into the adult geisha, Komomo. His images provide a behind-the-scenes look at Komomo's apprenticeship, tracing her journey from her tentative arrival at the geisha house to the ceremony in which she officially became a geiko, as Kyoto's geisha are known. From the cobbled streets where Komomo walks in her elaborate kimono (in bottom left photo) to the inner sanctum of her dressing room,A Geisha's Journeyoffers a rare look at the contemporary practice of a traditional art.