information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
13 Février 2015
February 10, 2015
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
Manga giant Katsuhiro Otomo hopes that a huge mural based on his illustration, to be displayed at Sendai Airport from March, will serve as a powerful reminder of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, particularly for children.
"(Memories of the Great East Japan Earthquake) are rapidly fading, and children are growing up," the 60-year-old from Tome, Miyagi Prefecture, told The Asahi Shimbun in a recent interview. "I hope they will always remember (what happened)."
Internationally acclaimed as the creator of the sci-fi saga "Akira" and its feature film adaptation, Otomo added that he expects the mural to represent what the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami left for the artist.
"There is something left in our hearts after the disaster," he said. "That something will manifest itself in your work as you do your job in a down-to-earth manner."
The mural, which measures 8.7 meters by 2.8 meters, will show how people relate to nature, even though it often poses a threat to humankind.
During the interview, Otomo also shared his thoughts about the disaster and continuing reconstruction efforts in the Tohoku region.
Excerpts from the interview follow:
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Question: What were you feeling when you were drawing the original illustration?
Otomo: I thought it would be better to give it a story rather than drawing something abstract.
I hope people will stop and look at the relief without passing by it, and ask themselves, "What is it about?" (Memories of the Great East Japan Earthquake) are rapidly fading, and children are growing up. I hope they will always remember (what happened).
If some children have no memory of the disaster, I hope they will ask their parents, "What is this?" and that it will lead to topics like the earthquake and reconstruction.
Q: The composition puts a "warashi" (child) in the center, with Fujin (god of wind) and Raijin (god of thunder) featured on both sides.
A: It is also intended for children to look at it. I wanted to attract their attention by giving it a dramatic feel with the warashi overcoming the rough waves.
The Fujin and Raijin are meant to conjure up images of natural threats. There is no way to beat nature, but there are ways that we can get information to prevent damage from typhoons, earthquakes and other disasters to stay safe. I thought it would be better for us to connect well with nature, which is always by our side.
Because the piece is horizontally long, I put in three essential points--namely the warashi, Fujin and Raijin--so that it would be good enough to serve its purpose as a piece of work when viewers take a sweeping view as they stand by it. I drew the "komainu" (lion-like guardian dogs) that the Fujin and Raijin are riding and the goldfish robot that the warashi is riding for enjoyment.
Q: Where were you at the time of the disaster?
A: I was in Tokyo. Fortunately, I was able to contact my family in my hometown of Tome and confirm that they were all right. But I was still worried and wanted to go there as soon as possible, but it was more than a month later when I could actually get there.
There was no major damage to my family home or its surroundings because it is located in an inland area, but I was shocked when I visited Minami-Sanriku.
The places I had visited since I was an elementary schoolchild on family trips--a place where we used to go to eat sushi--and all the others were completely gone. Rubble was everywhere, and the areas along the coastline were submerged under the sea. I saw a locomotive lying on its side in a spot far away from a park where it had originally been located.
Q: What did you think to do after the disaster?
A: I thought I should do something. But it was no use for me to remove debris piece by piece. I thought hard about what I could do, and hosted an exhibition of my original drawings for charity.
Q: It was held in Tokyo in 2012 and had a good following.
A: Actually, I had been preparing for an exhibition of original drawings to coincide with the release of my second art book. The earthquake took place during that time, so I made an abrupt change to hold the event for charity, hoping that part of the profits would be used to support reconstruction. I also increased the number of original drawings to be put on display to about 3,000.
Q: It will be four years in March since the 2011 disaster. How do you feel about the progress of the reconstruction efforts?
A: It's not making progress at all. At first, everyone (across Japan) was saying, "This is serious," but I feel that we are becoming lazy and our seriousness is fading away. There are a lot of people who are still living in temporary housing units.
Q: In such circumstances, what do you think of the power of manga and anime?
A: I try not to think about it too much. It sounds so light-minded, and I also feel it is going with the flow of the times. It's quite hard. But I think there is something left in our hearts after the disaster. That something will manifest itself in your work as you do your job in a down-to-earth manner. It is more beautiful that way.
Q: Is the mural at Sendai Airport one such work?
A: It's not complete yet, but I hope it will be so. When I saw it in the studio before it was given a paint job, it was very powerful. I want to see it on display at Sendai Airport.
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Measuring 8.7 meters by 2.8 meters, the ceramic mural will be in the first-floor lobby of the International Terminal in March. The Sendai Airport's runways and terminal buildings were deluged with floodwaters from the tsunami spawned by the Great East Japan Earthquake. The project was organized by the Tokyo-based Japan Traffic Culture Association, which continues efforts to donate artwork to airports and railway stations across the country. The mural has been completed at a studio in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture. About 10 artisans worked on the mural based on Otomo's design, using 12 tons of clay.
Otomo was born in 1954 in Tome, Miyagi Prefecture. After graduating from Sanuma Senior High School, he went to Tokyo and made his professional debut as a manga artist with "Jusei" (A Gun Report) in 1973. "Akira," which started its run in the Young Magazine weekly manga anthology in 1982, was published in other languages around the world. Otomo directed an animated feature film adaptation of "Akira" in 1988.
After the global success of the film, the multifaceted creator expanded his range of creative activities and continued to produce animated films including "Memories" (1995) and "Steamboy" (2004).
Over the years, Otomo's delicate drawing style and unusual compositions have made an impact on Naoki Urasawa and many other manga artists. In 2013, Otomo received the Medal with Purple Ribbon, which is given by the Japanese government to individuals to honor their contributions in academics, arts and sports.
(This article is based on an interview by Sakura Funazaki and Satoshi Kimura.)
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