On Tuesday Jan 28 2020 at 11:30 a.m. Joseph Gallivan interviews Laura Mueller, art curator at Portland Japanese Garden [NO “THE”] about Spirits Rising: Hiroshima by photographer Ishiuchi Miyako [PRONOUNCED; ISH-OO-CHY MEE-AR-KO]. World class photographer Miyako took photos of objects from the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, mainly children’s clothing that shows the impact of the surprise nuclear bombing in August 1945. She prints the images larger than life so that seams and labels are clearly visible, and presents them without commentary in the Japanese Garden’s Pavilion Gallery. Mueller talks about Miyako’s choice of subjects which restore some of the humanity to the dead.
Spirits Rising runs through March 15, 2020.
FROM THE PRESS RELEASE:
Spirits Rising: ひろしま / hiroshima by Ishiuchi Miyako
January 18, 2020 - March 15, 2020 / Garden Hours
LOCATION: PAVILION GALLERY & TANABE GALLERY
Included with Garden Admission
Maki Ishii, Ishiuchi Miyako ひろしま / hiroshima #123
Donor: Hosokawa, K. 2018
Portland Japanese Garden is commemorating 2020 as the Year of Peace in recognition of the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. Throughout the year, the Garden will be taking the opportunity to stimulate conversation and facilitate thoughtful discussions on the importance of cultivating peace and cross-cultural understanding.
This exhibiton will include a selection of the internationally acclaimed photographer’s monumental ひろしま / hiroshima series, documenting cherished items and clothing left behind by victims of the atomic bomb detonated in Hiroshima at the close of World War II that are now housed at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum.
The subjects are captured in her unique, moving style that resurrects and gives voice to those who suffered and died on that fateful day, bringing to life a renewed appeal for humanity and global peace.
The Pavilion will be open at 9am Tuesdays-Sundays for members throughout the entire Exhibition.
Portland Japanese Garden will present additional events and programming in conjunction with the exhibition. These will include a pair of lectures featuring the artist and curator in collaboration with the NW Film Center, and a film screening exploring the significance of the art displayed. Explore all related events here.
This is the first exhibition for the Garden’s themed “Year of Peace.”
The exhibition, “Spirits Rising,” is showing about 40 rare photographs of items left behind after the atomic bomb was detonated in Hiroshima.
Our programming throughout the year is intended to create an opportunity for conversation and facilitate thoughtful discussions on the important topic of peace. Introducing a wide array of artists and art forms, Garden+ lectures and a symposium, you’ll notice that the 2020 programming by Portland Japanese Garden will reflect on ways we experience peace through connections to art, nature, and one another.
Maybe you’re asking - why is a garden talking about “peace”? What is the connection between Portland Japanese Garden and peace?
I know you know so much of our history and that Portland Japanese Garden was born out of a hope that the experience of peace can contribute to a long-lasting peace. Drawing from its history as a place of healing between the peoples of the U.S. and Japan in the aftermath of WWII, Portland Japanese Garden represents a successful case study on how public spaces at the convergence of culture, art, and nature can facilitate peacemaking and intercultural understanding.
Today, more than ever, in the face of the many political and cultural challenges, there is need for cross-cultural understanding in communities around the world. Gardens present a unique opportunity to build understanding and mutual appreciation among people of different national, racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds.
To hear previous episodes of this show or any of our KBOO public affairs programming, just go to KBOO dot F-M or listen on iTunes, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Joseph Gallivan has been a reporter since 1990. He has covered music for the London Independent, Technology for the New York Post, and arts and culture for the Portland Tribune, where he is currently the Business Reporter. He is the author of two novels, "Oi, Ref!" and "England All Over" which are available on Amazon.com
This show was recorded at KBOO on Jan 22, 2020, in Production 3.
- KBOO