NISHITSUJI Yoichi
Born: 27 November 1890 – Died: 19 May 1946
Particulars:
Yoichi was born in Wakayama Prefecture in Japan. He was a single man working as a merchant in Probolinggo, Java, Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia, when the Pacific War broke out. He was taken to Australia and interned at Loveday Internment Camp in South Australia. He was transferred to Moorook West Wood Camp the following year, but returned to Loveday later that year. He was admitted to the 64 Camp hospital in early 1945, and placed on the ‘seriously ill’ list in July 1945. Due to the closure of the Loveday Internment Camp after the war, he was transferred to Tatura Internment Camp in Victoria in March 1946, and died at the camp hospital there from advanced tuberculosis. He was 55 years old. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Mayu Kanamori
More info:
Ferina Ekawati
Artist/s Statement:
Nishitsuji Yoichi’s life took him from Japan to Java and then Australia, while my life took me from Java to Japan and then Australia. We both experienced migration and settling in countries different to our place of birth. I used batik from Java to represent Javanese society, with Nishitsuji san torn from this fabric. I used diverse photos from my travels in Japan to form the letters of his name, to create little windows into his background and show he was more than a name.
Artist Bio:
Ferina Ekawati was born in Bandung, Indonesia. She has always had a passion for Japan, reading manga in primary school, studying Japanese at university in Indonesia, and then in Shizuoka City in Japan. She settled in Australia 14 years ago, where she still enjoys Japanese food and anime with her two children and partner.