Chloe Jaffe and her intimate photos of yakuza women
French photographer Chloe Jafé is an incredibly passionate and purposeful person. She left everything and moved from France to Japan because of one project. This is a series of black-and-white pictures "I give you my life" dedicated to yakuza members. There are different people in Chloe's photos, but most of all mafia wives, taken without clothes from the back.
The angle chosen by Jaffe makes it possible to preserve anonymity for those who need it. But the main idea of the works is a demonstration of traditional tattoos. They are on the body of everyone who is somehow related to the Yakuza and, of course, are present in the female members of the mafia.
The project "I give you my life" is sometimes called "Yakuza Rear". Firstly, Japanese women are depicted in the pictures from the back, and secondly, these women actually provide their husbands with a reliable rear.
To take the cherished pictures, Chloe had to work hard. She got a job as a waitress in a bar located in Tokyo's Ginza district. The Frenchwoman managed to get acquainted with one of the Yakuza and his wife. Gradually, the woman photographer managed to make other acquaintances in the underworld of Tokyo.
Japanese mafiosi are very reluctant to let outsiders in, so it took several years. But Chloe's patience was rewarded in the end. She received permission to shoot and publish photos. Now we can enjoy watching the mysterious, atmospheric world of the Yakuza and reflect on the fates of women who have become part of the criminal world thanks to their husband.