Adorable Pigs and Their Adoring Owner

Toshiteru Yamaji spent years capturing the special relationship between a pig farmer and his pigs in ‘Pigs and Papa.’ Otchan stands in the middle of it all as the star personality of the heartwarming images featuring the forged bond shared between owner and animal. Yamaji came to know Otchan during his tenure as a city worker for agriculture, forestry and fisheries and during that time, he witnessed and documented the adoration that the pig farmer had for his pigs. The self-taught photographer captured a decade’s worth of images and self-published the collection which subsequently landed him the honor of winning the 13th Japan Self-Publishing Award’s graphic prize. In the book, Otchan is seen as serenading his pigs, taking his piglets for walks, and even sharing naps with them. It’s refreshing to see that this type of relationship can exist between a farmer and his animals in a world where we hear nothing but the inhumane ways that animals are treated in big business factories.