NAKAYAMA Matsujiro
Born: 2 August 1885 – Died 11 March 1943
Particulars:
Matsujiro was born in Japan. He was a single man with a brother in Tokyo. When the Pacific War broke out, he was working as a cleaner in Sumatra in what was then the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia. He was taken to South Australia and was interned at Loveday Internment Camp. He was in and out of the camp hospital as well as the Barmera Base Hospital until he died of kidney disease, aged 59. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Mayu Kanamori
More info:
Kao and Mirai
Artist/s Statement:
While thinking about Matsujiro Nakayama, I wondered what it is that I could do now. So, I told my 7-year-old son about the war and about Matsujiro san.
Then, with feelings much like offering flowers at a grave, the two of us drew pictures and picked flowers that were blooming on the balcony today, and arranged them. After that, we put the flowers in a small vase and placed them on our dining table as decoration.
Artist Bio:
Kao and Mirai are mother and son living in Tokyo, Japan. They live in a house with a dog and Mirai’s dad. Grandmother lives next door. Kao and Mirai’s house has been standing since before the war. During World War II air raids, it was the only house in the neighbourhood that wasn’t burned down, so many people sheltered there. The house narrowly escaped destruction because an incendiary bomb happened to get stuck on a silver tray inside a wardrobe.
Kao treasures her memories of visiting her sister in Australia, especially memories of going on drives and swimming in the sea.