Statement

REGARDING THE ECHO OF OTHERS

My birthplace, Nagaoka city in Niigata, has a site where a mock atomic bomb was dropped by the U.S. forces before the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. Instead of plutonium, the bombs were filled with trinitrotoluene and were used for mere flight training and data collection. Four people lost their lives in Nagaoka. Now, this site has turned into banks, fields, and a river with abundant weeds where the locals grow vegetation. Regardless of how much we see photographs or videos from these past atrocities, it seems impossible for us to experience the same feelings as those who actually endured the event and to understand the essence of their stories. With the premise that we cannot fully comprehend each other, I created this work thinking how we can imagine and communicate with history and dead souls.

Profile

Yurika Kono

Born in Niigata, Japan.
Selected by Risaku Suzuki for the Jury's Encouragement Prize at the 20th "1_WALL" photography exhibition.
Inspired by researches of land, history, architecture, space, and personal narratives, she creates works based on the theme of "her-story" as a response to the idea of "history: his-story," imagining those who are nameless in history. Her work focuses on architecture, space, environment, and scenography.

Jury selection

Judged by Tomoko Yoneda:

Where the traces of war have been lost lies a plant-covered bank and a gushing river. As indicated by the title, how do we face the uninterrupted flow of the past to the present? She has excellently articulated the difficulties of such an act by trying to express herself in her own ways.

Links

• HP：www.yurikakono.com