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SAKAMOTO Takao
Born: 8 April 1892 – Died: 11 April 1944
Particulars:
Takao was born in Kumamoto Prefecture. He was a single man working as a miner in Paagoumene in Kanaky / New Caledonia when the Pacific War broke out. He had a brother in Morikama Mura in Kikuchi Gun in Kumamoto Prefecture. He was taken to Australia and interned at Hay Internment Camp in New South Wales. He had 910 francs with him, which was handed over to the authorities at Hay. He was later transferred to Loveday Internment Camp in South Australia, then sent to the Wooloonook Wood Camp. He later returned to Loveday and was admitted to the 121 Australian General Hospital and died one month later of cardiac failure. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery, Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Mayu Kanamori
More info:
Hideko Sueoka
Artist/s Statement:
I thank When You Call My Name Project very much for offering such a brilliant chance to encounter one of the internees. While writing a poem to Sakamoto Takao, I imagined his life again and again. Glad to see all the internees when exhibiting the project. Never forget such people.
Artist Bio:
Hideko Sueoka is a Tokyo based poet and translator, born and raised in Japan. Her translation on photography, ‘Shigeichi Nagano – Magazine Work 60s’, was published in 2009. She was the 2013 winner of Troubadour International Poetry Competition and the winning poem was highly recommended in the Forward Prize 2014 in the United Kingdom. Her debut poetry chapbook, ‘Untouched Landscape’, was published by Clare Songbirds Publishing House in 2018. Her poems have been published in British magazines such as ‘Stand’, ‘Porridge’, ‘Ink Sweat and Tears’, Canadian magazine ‘long con mag’, American magazine ‘ANMLY’, various anthologies and zines. She is currently obtaining a master degree at Manchester Writing School in the United Kingdom.