HORIO Risaburo
Born: 5 October 1877 – Died: 4 April 1943
Particulars:
Risaburo was born in Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan. Since his arrival in Mackay, Queensland on the Tokyo Maru at the age of 21, he lived in Australia and never revisited Japan. He spent three of his 43 years in Mackay and 40 years in Macknade, Queensland. He was a single man working as a ganger or foreman in Ingham, Queensland when the Pacific War broke out. He was interned at Hay internment Camp in New South Wales. He died of cancer at the Australian General Hospital in Goulburn. According to records, he was initially buried in Barmera, situated 1,000 km away in South Australia, two days after his death. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Alli Parker
More info:
Alli Parker
Artist/s Statement:
When researching Risaburo, it struck me how little information there was about him. I was only able to find five files in various archives, one of which was a duplicate. I couldn’t find references to him in the newspaper archive either, which is often a source of information and surprise. So, while I listed all the official data available (even his birthday is contradicted by two different documents), I wondered about the gaps in between, the gaps that make us human and, even though his marital status lists him as ‘single’, I couldn’t help but think about what that might actually mean, even though it’s a mystery I will never know the answer to.
Artist Bio:
Alli Parker is a Japanese Australian author and screenwriter living on the Lands of the Wurundjeri people in Melbourne, Australia. Her debut novel, ‘At the Foot of the Cherry Tree’ became an instant bestseller and is a novelisation of the true story of Australia’s first Japanese war bride, Cherry Parker, also Alli’s grandmother. Her second novel, ‘Until the Red Leaves Fall’, was published in 2025 and explores more Australian Japanese forgotten histories. Her screenwriting work includes ‘Jack Irish’, ‘Secret Bridesmaids’ Business’ and ‘Ms Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries’.