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Thursday, 18th September 2014
In General Japan News,

Hiroshima art goes on show

Those who experienced the terrible power of the Atomic Bomb are unlikely to ever forget the moment of its impact. An exhibition that showcases art created by those who survived the impact is about to go outside of Japan for the first time, taking up residence in Manchester over the next month.

The paintings, which feature powerful and often disturbing scenes from August 6th 1945, were created following a request from Japanese broadcaster NHK in the 1970s and later toured Japan.

Created by so-called 'hibakusha', or 'bomb-exposed people', these creations will be included in a larger exhibition called The Sensory War 1914-2014 in Manchester's City Galleries venue.

The paintings were initially selected from a pool of more than 2,000 submissions that were sent to NHK as part of the original competition in 1974, and they were subsequently exhibited at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and in other high-profile venues across the nation.

Among the hardest hitting images is Masahiko Nakata's Bloated Bodies in the River Over Yokogawa Bridge, which sees hundreds of dead flooding what was previously a well-known beauty spot.

Yasuko Yamagata's Woman and Child Statue, Gisaku Tanaka's Lights Blinking On In the Atomic Desert and Goro Kiyoyoshi's City Burning, Black Cloud in the Background are also worth watching out for.

All of the paintings are completed in traditional Japanese painting style, with surrealism favoured over realism.

Those heading to Japan who are looking to experience its vibrant art scene, look no further than the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, which boasts an impressive range of exhibitions both permanent and temporary.

The National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto is similarly impressive, devoted as it is to the collection and preservation of artworks that are deemed to be extremely relevant to Japan's past, present and future.