Guest Lecture: Jun Yamana on Representations of the Atomic Bomb

Jun Yamana (Tokyo): Representations of the Atomic Bomb as Part of the Culture of Remembrance. On the Role of Art in Relation to Catastrophe, Using the Example of a Hiroshima Prize Winner

June 11, 2024
4pm, Room IG 1.414, Campus Westend

In Hiroshima – triggered by the dropping of the atomic bomb – a unique culture of remembrance has emerged. Against the backdrop of the growing threat of war in today’s world, this culture of remembrance seems to be attracting more and more attention. One indication of this is the number of Japanese and foreign visitors to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which rose to nearly 2 million in the period from April 2023 to March 2024. The culture of remembrance in Hiroshima is characterized by a complex interplay of different elements that affect both communicative and cultural memory. My talk will focus on the role of art in this process. Despite the difficulty of putting the experience of the atomic bombing into words, people have tried to capture it and represent it artistically.

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