ARAKI Kisai
Born: 9 July 1878 – Died: 23 December 1944
Particulars:
Kisai was born in Shimabara, Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan in 1878. She arrived in Western Australia aboard the SS Saladin in 1895. Her religion is recorded as ‘Mohammedan’, a term no longer used meaning Muslim. She was married to Araki Kikumatsu, who managed a boarding house at the back of John Chi Lane in Rubibi / Broome. He died in 1936. Kisai worked as a cooldrink shop attendant, which is known to have been popular during Broome’s wet season. When arrested in 1941, the Japanese had to give up all their property and valuables. Government records stated Kisai’s three bedroom house, furniture, small shop, and fittings were left in the care of local pearler and businessman Captain Ancel Gregory. In 1942, Kisai was interned at Tatura Internment Camp on Yorta Yorta Country, Victoria. She was admitted to the camp hospital and died on 23 December 1944. She was 66. No cause of death is listed in documents held at the National Archives of Australia. Kisai now rests in the Japanese Cemetery in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Jo Anne Shiosaki
More info:
Michael Jalaru Torres, Jo Anne Shiosaki, and Yvonne Ishiguchi
Artist/s Statement:
I was honoured to represent Kisai Araki in this photograph. This project holds deep significance, shining a light on a chapter of history too often left unspoken. I feel Kisai’s bravery in travelling to a foreign land; I see pride in working hard to make a living. I feel her sorrow at losing a husband. I see the worry and confusion when she was interned. She didn’t dive for pearl shells, but her contribution to the community was no less meaningful. My grandfather Noboru Ishiguchi, was also interned – first at Loveday Interment Camp in South Australia, then transferred to Hay in New South Wales. To this day, our family continues to feel the weight of transgenerational grief, especially when reflecting on how we lost our grandfather. After the war, he was forcibly repatriated to Japan, leaving behind a large family. His absence is still felt, a sad ripple through the generations.
–Yvonne Ishiguchi (photographed)
Artist Bio:
Michael Jalaru Torres is an Indigenous fine art photographer and poet, born in 1976, in Broome, Western Australia. He is a Djugun-Yawuru man with tribal connections to the Gooniyandi / Jabbir Jabbir / Ngarluma peoples. He draws inspiration from the unique landscapes and people of the Kimberley region, which feature prominently in his work.
Jo Anne Shiosaki is a fourth-generation Nikkei who lives in Rubibi / Broome, Western Australia. Jo’s great-grandparents were one of the earliest Japanese families to migrate to Broome in the late 1800s. Her great-grandfather served as the President of the Japan Club in Broome before the war. She acknowledges the Nikkei community of Broome for helping to create these photographic images, and their willingness to share deeply personal experiences in order to preserve the memories of those who endured internment.
Yvonne Ishiguchi has lived in Broome all her life. She is the proud granddaughter of Noboru Ishiguchi, an internee who was tragically deported after the war. Yvonne’s story carries the weight of both resilience and deep cultural memory.