Cloaked in mystery and perhaps a certain degree of myth, the yakuza constitute one of the hardest subculture groups in Japan to infiltrate. But when Belgian photographer Anton Kusters and his brother, Malik, saw a gangster walk by as they were drinking at a bar in Tokyo's entertainment district of Kabukicho, they knew they wanted to know more.
"We were intrigued by his clothing style and polite manners," Anton said, "And it was then that we got the idea to do a photographic project following a yakuza family long term."
That might sound like an ambitious and even romantic project, but what the Kusters brothers achieved is a more realistic photographic portrayal of the yakuza than many have seen before. And it took persistence and a high degree of tact.
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