2011 – Emerging – Daisuke Ito
Losolmo gym is in Cuba’s second city of Santiago. The boys here train barefoot, dressed in little more than rags. The equipment is decrepit. The boxing ring floor is unevenly patched together, the ropes are frayed and there is barely enough equipment to go round and it has produced four world champions. Each of these impoverished Cuban boys carries the dream of becoming a champion. I think it is not for the money, not even for the fame, but for these boys to be a boxer is the noble and heroic pinnacle of human aspiration.
I have been working on this project since April 2009 and made an exhibition at Zen Foto Gallery in 2010, but even half of this project has not been done so far because my ultimate goal is to visit each of Cuban boys as boxers, in order to take pictures of their ordinary life. I wish I could provide photos showing how vigorously and positively these boys lead their lives in spite of their destitute environment.
Funding this project will assist in travel costs to complete this project, and film and processing. The Lucie Foundation is proud and honored to support his efforts in Cuba.
