Japan Political Pulse

While Japan's new defense minister was making absurd statements on public broadcaster NHK's "Nichiyo Toron" (Sunday Debate) program on Jan. 15, NHK's educational channel was airing a feature on artist Ben Shahn (1898-1966) in the program "Nichiyo Bijutsukan" (Sunday Art Museum).

After the broadcast, there was an immediate increase in visitors to the Ben Shahn exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in Hayama, Kanagawa Prefecture, which will continue until Jan. 29. I also went to the exhibition, which features about 500 exhibits, but something I heard at the information counter surprised me: The exhibition was heading to Nagoya, Okayama and Fukushima, but 70 items on loan from six museums in the United States would only go as far as Okayama. In other words, Fukushima would not see them.

What was the reason for this? When I asked the Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art, the answer was just as expected: because of radiation.

From the outset, a certain U.S. museum made it clear that its works were not to go to Fukushima. The other five had supported the idea of making a decision at the last moment. An official from Fukushima sought understanding on bringing the works to the city, saying it would make an effort to release radiation measurement data, but it didn't receive a favorable response. With the museum sticking to its position, no progress was being made, so organizers reportedly gave up on taking the 70 works to Fukushima.

To me, this turn of events is strangely ironic. Shahn was an artist who displayed an interest in nuclear weapons. At the same time, the Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art has been collecting 20th century American figurative art, and has expanded its collection of works by Shahn. Fukushima was prepared for a full-scale Ben Shahn exhibition, but following the explosions at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant -- a facility representing the peaceful use of nuclear power -- valuable works have been kept away from Fukushima.

In 1954, the United States conducted a hydrogen bomb test in the South Pacific Ocean, and a Japanese fishing boat in the area, the Daigo Fukuryu Maru (Lucky Dragon 5), was hit by fallout that killed the ship's chief radio operator. Moved by this, Shahn painted his "Lucky Dragon" series, an important part of which remains at the Fukushima museum. A woodblock print from Shahn's later years modeled on the ruins of Hiroshima is also at the museum.

Works by Shahn in the possession of the Fukushima museum form an important part of the touring exhibition, but now Fukushima is unable to introduce all of Shahn's works.

Shahn was a Jewish American. He was born in the Russian Empire in an area that is now part of Lithuania. He made a living in lithography, and left behind memorable works in the form of paintings, posters, book bindings, illustrations, and record jackets. I think one of Shahn's pictures appeared on the cover of a school manual arts textbook in the 1960s.

The artist had a strong influence on graphic art during Japan's period of high economic growth. In his early years his works on false charges and discrimination earned him a reputation as a social artist. Later the political and accusatory tone of his works quieted down, and he depicted people's daily activities, adding depth to his works.

The latest exhibition marks the third time for a major Ben Shahn exhibition to be held in Japan, following one in 1970 at the height of Japan's period of economic growth, and one in 1991, just after the collapse of Japan's economic bubble. It is said to have taken 10 years for the various museums in possession of Shahn's works to bring the plans for the latest touring exhibition to fruition.

When Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art curator Yasuko Araki, who wrote a commentary on Ben Shahn in the January issue of Geijutsu Shincho, was asked "What work did you most want to come to Fukushima?" she replied, "Liberation" (1945), a work which is kept at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

The work depicts children swinging from a metal pole in a devastated area. Contradicting the title, the faces of the children are dark and empty. A damaged building and rubble lie in the background. The theme is the liberation of Paris and the end of the war.

"I think this is like Fukushima now," she says. The children, who look innocent, are hit with sharp anxiety from their completely changed surroundings. There is indeed something similar in these two scenes. (By Takao Yamada, Expert Senior Writer)