Salt and Tears

Yulia Skogoreva

2019 – 2023  — Tokyo, Japan

About this series

Salt and Tears is a long-term documentary project exploring the hidden world of female sumo wrestling in Japan, where women are traditionally forbidden from entering the ring. The series follows young women who pursue the sport regardless, revealing stories of quiet resistance, discipline, and resilience.
At the center of the project is Nana, a teenage girl from Niigata who began practicing sumo in her childhood. Photographed over several years, her journey unfolds through training, competition, and moments of reflection. Her experience eflects a broader struggle for recognition and equality within a deeply traditional cultural framework. 
This intimate and atmospheric work focuses on ritual and emotional endurance. Salt, used in sumo for purification, and tears, shed in moments of triumph and frustration, become symbols of both tradition and personal release.
Presented with a fine-art sensibility, the series captures not only the physical intensity of the sport but also the inner lives of its subjects—their determination, vulnerability, and evolving identities. By documenting these young athletes, Salt and Tears challenges assumptions about gender roles in Japanese society and gives visibility to voices often overlooked.

Photographer: Yulia Skogoreva
Nationality: Russian
Based in: Tokyo, Japan
Website:  www.yuliasko.com
Instagram: @yuliasko.ph

Tokyo-based artist photographer Yulia Skogoreva began her journey studying Japanese at Moscow State University and working as an interpreter for Butoh dancers. Inspired by their art, she shifted to photography, later studying at the Nippon Photography Institute. She studied photography with prominent artists such as Sebastião Salgado, Albert Watson, and world-renowned dance photographer Isabel Muñoz. Yulia’s work explores identity, space, and contemporary Japanese society through the prism of the human body in motion. Rooted in research and collaboration, her practice bridges disciplines to create thoughtful visual narratives.