Peace Memorial Museum’s new exhibition plan approved for reopening in July 2018
Jul. 27, 2017
by Kanako Noda, Staff Writer
On July 26, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Naka Ward held a meeting in the east building to discuss its renewal of the museum’s exhibitions. The committee that met is composed of experts who provide advice with regard to the new exhibitions in the main building, which will reopen next July after renovations have been completed. At the meeting, the idea of displaying the personal effects of A-bomb victims in the middle of one exhibition room, surrounded by larger artifacts, was approved. The entire space will be devoted to conveying how the atomic bomb destroyed the city and the lives of its inhabitants.
According to the museum, the zone which shows the catastrophic consequences of the atomic bombing on August 6, 1945 will exhibit burnt school uniforms, bags, and other items of the mobilized students who perished in the bombing within a large glass case located in the center of the room, and larger items, like an iron door that was damaged by the A-bomb blast, will be placed around the case.
At the previous meetings, it had been decided that the personal belongings and larger artifacts would be exhibited together in the same case. However, after examining this plan further, the museum was concerned that, with this arrangement, the larger artifacts alone might attract the attention of visitors because personal belongings that were to be placed between the larger artifacts and the visitors might receive little attention from them. So, in yesterday’s meeting, the decision was made to place the personal belongings and larger items in separate areas.
In the wake of the excavation work that was undertaken beneath the museum’s main building, which unearthed various A-bomb artifacts, some participants of the meeting suggested that the exhibits in the August 6 zone show that local communities and traditions were also destroyed by the atomic bomb, while others suggested that the exhibits also include the belongings of other people in addition to the mobilized students.
The museum also raised the idea of enlarging some of the drawings contained in A-bomb Drawings by Survivors, a collection of pictures in which A-bomb survivors illustrated the catastrophic consequences of the bombing, and displaying these in various locations in the main building. The committee members voiced support for this idea, saying that the drawings are expressions of the survivors’ thoughts and feelings and would therefore be very effective. At the same time, the request was made that the drawings be arranged together with photos which could show the same scenes.
The committee to discuss the renewal of the museum’s exhibits was formed in August 2010 and yesterday’s meeting was the 21st session. The museum will continue to consider the new exhibits.
(Originally published on July 27, 2017)
On July 26, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Naka Ward held a meeting in the east building to discuss its renewal of the museum’s exhibitions. The committee that met is composed of experts who provide advice with regard to the new exhibitions in the main building, which will reopen next July after renovations have been completed. At the meeting, the idea of displaying the personal effects of A-bomb victims in the middle of one exhibition room, surrounded by larger artifacts, was approved. The entire space will be devoted to conveying how the atomic bomb destroyed the city and the lives of its inhabitants.
According to the museum, the zone which shows the catastrophic consequences of the atomic bombing on August 6, 1945 will exhibit burnt school uniforms, bags, and other items of the mobilized students who perished in the bombing within a large glass case located in the center of the room, and larger items, like an iron door that was damaged by the A-bomb blast, will be placed around the case.
At the previous meetings, it had been decided that the personal belongings and larger artifacts would be exhibited together in the same case. However, after examining this plan further, the museum was concerned that, with this arrangement, the larger artifacts alone might attract the attention of visitors because personal belongings that were to be placed between the larger artifacts and the visitors might receive little attention from them. So, in yesterday’s meeting, the decision was made to place the personal belongings and larger items in separate areas.
In the wake of the excavation work that was undertaken beneath the museum’s main building, which unearthed various A-bomb artifacts, some participants of the meeting suggested that the exhibits in the August 6 zone show that local communities and traditions were also destroyed by the atomic bomb, while others suggested that the exhibits also include the belongings of other people in addition to the mobilized students.
The museum also raised the idea of enlarging some of the drawings contained in A-bomb Drawings by Survivors, a collection of pictures in which A-bomb survivors illustrated the catastrophic consequences of the bombing, and displaying these in various locations in the main building. The committee members voiced support for this idea, saying that the drawings are expressions of the survivors’ thoughts and feelings and would therefore be very effective. At the same time, the request was made that the drawings be arranged together with photos which could show the same scenes.
The committee to discuss the renewal of the museum’s exhibits was formed in August 2010 and yesterday’s meeting was the 21st session. The museum will continue to consider the new exhibits.
(Originally published on July 27, 2017)
