Mao Ishikawa

Mao Ishikawa (b. 1953, Ōgimi) is an Okinawan photographer and activist whose photographs largely feature bar girls, performers, soldiers and others on the margins of Okinawan and Japanese society. Her early work grew from immersion in her subjects' environments, living with them or working alongside them. Beginning in the 1990s, her images of soldiers and military bases addressed more directly the U.S. military presence in Okinawa and distrust of the Japanese government. Her ongoing series "Great Ryukyu Photo Scroll" (2014–) approaches these themes through satire and pop culture references.