In Tokyo, a man watches a woman slowly bind another with ropes attached to chains hanging from the ceiling. But this is no S&M bar, it's a workshop led by "shibari" master Hajime Kinoko.
Kinoko teaches the knot-tying techniques of Japanese bondage, untangling the practice from its associations with kink and emphasising instead art and aesthetics.
"I see attaching not only people, but also objects or spaces ... as a form of painting on canvas," said the 48-year-old at his studio in central Tokyo.
"It's simply another type of expression."
Kinoko discovered shibari – the art of ropes – in the 2000s while managing an S&M joint in Roppongi, an area of Tokyo known for its nightclubs and bars.
"I wasn't particularly drawn to fetishism at first," he said.
"At the time, the focus of BDSM was often on the dirty or degrading side, but I didn't see that part of it as necessary," he said.
Kinoko learned how to tie a woman's body by watching others before establishing his own style "based on beauty".
He started staging performances with a more artistic perspective, and attracted a growing audience.
"My goal is not to hurt ... I don't place myself in a hierarchical relationship," he said.
Criminal beginnings
The roots of shibari date back to the Edo period (1603-1868) when feudal lords used "hojojutsu" to tie up criminals.
The practice took an erotic turn in the 20th century through Ito Seiu's illustrations and books by Dan Oniroku, many of which became pornographic movies.
Another word for this in Japanese is "kinbaku" but this "refers to precise and restrictive techniques, such as wrists tied behind the back", Kinoko explained.
"Shibari is a broader, freer term. There is no single definition," he said.
The artist enjoys marrying the traditional heritage with an avant-garde approach and employing it in novel settings.
In Tokyo's Shibuya district, he enveloped an egg-shaped house called the "Natural Eclipse" in blue rope like a spider's web, transforming it into a living sculpture.
"It was the missing piece," said the owner of the building, who agreed to the project after seeing another of Kinoko's works.
"Today, passersby stop to photograph it. It has become a place of interaction," he added, declining to give his name.
Kinoko installed large cubes of red rope on top of a Tokyo shopping mall and erected a "shibari sanctuary" at the Burning Man festival in the United States in 2017.
"Why not stretch networks of ropes around the Eiffel Tower?" he said with a smile.
Create connections
Kinoko began offering workshops in London 20 years ago, before inviting fellow Japanese shibari masters to introduce their art to the European public.
"Shibari then spread very quickly," he says.
But international success has not been without risk.
"When I saw people tying without knowing what they were doing, I realised it was necessary to teach. Shibari can be dangerous," he said.
Reputed to be a hard taskmaster, he founded his own shibari school, Ichinawakai, where he trains a new generation of students, around 40 percent of them women.
One of them, Sen, travelled from France to learn the techniques.
"I discovered him in Paris during a performance. He has freed himself from the original dynamics," said the 25-year-old.
Kinoko offers "certification", although this is not an official licence.
Students must pass a 10-stage course, master a variety of knots and guarantee the safety of those they are tying up.
"You have to know how to communicate, make things beautiful and not hurt. That's what I try to convey. I feel responsible," said Kinoko.
"I want shibari to transform society," he added.
"Because, deep down, shibari is a way to create connections." – AFP
