A CRY FOR FUKUSHIMA Acrylic 24" x 24"
by Mary Lou Dauray
I have asked myself what can I do, as an artist, about
the worst industrial calamity in human history * ---the triple meltdown of the
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plants. I
am overwhelmed by the unprecedented scope of this disaster. I become paralyzed by the information that is
now coming forth—five years after the March 11, 2011, earthquake and
tsunami-caused destruction.
When I decided about 15 years ago to begin making art
about events in the world that concerned me, I did created work on a variety of
topics. Eventually I started painting
about global warming and climate change.
Then last fall I decided to do art about nuclear energy because I do not
believe nuclear power should be considered a reliable source of alternative
energy. How to begin? It took a while, but I felt that the disaster
at Fukushima would be my entry into the complicated world of nuclear
energy. I started with a drawing of the
black plastic bags that are filled with radioactive waste from the Fukushima
Daiichi area. Apparently there are now
30 millions of these one ton bags scattered all over the prefecture in an
unsuccessful effort to make the land livable again. It was determined that by cleaning out the contamination the soil
would be free from radioactivity. However,
when it rains or snows, the radioactivity returns.
My picture, “The Cry at Fukushima”, evolved through
many days and numerous layers of paint.
At one point, a tragic face, encapsulated in the storage bag, appeared. It
seemed appropriate and I kept it because approximately 160,000 people have been
displaced from their homes and the disruption has caused suicides, loss of
communities, and intense despair. In
addition, a governmental cover-up has lead to a lack of information as to
exactly what is happening. There has not
an answer yet as to how to even find the core that melted down in one of the
plants. A “Secrets” law has been enacted that forbids journalists to write
about the situation. Apparently thyroid
cancers are beginning to appear at a higher rate than average among children. Tons
of radioactive waters pour into the Pacific Ocean daily. No one knows exactly what to do and there
does not seem to be an end in sight. The
world has never experienced any situation like this.
www.maryloudauray.com
*A quote by Arnie Gundersen, Board of Directors,
Fairewinds Organization. Gundersen has
had more than 40 years of nuclear power engineering experience and he is
currently in Japan doing podcasts about the situation. www.fairewinds.org
Thank you so much for being willing to suffer through the truth of this and for having the courage to share what should not be forgotten. I appreciate it & you.
ReplyDeleteMary Lou, I appreciate your courage to bring this forth to view on a regular basis. It seems to me that the horror of it is so vast that it's hard for people to comprehend it. Certainly, we're living through quite a hedonistic time already (despite so-called 'austerity' measures imposed by governments). I don't mean everyone is throwing money around and living high, rather the turning away from the things we'd rather not see and deal with.
ReplyDeleteFrom what you say, the fallout from Fukushima is poisoning the entire Pacific Ocean! That means all life around the Pacific Rim will be radioactive to some degree. Where do we place our hope? At the moment, I can only think that the Blessing the Water event on March 19th is one thing we can do. There must be others, at the practical level as well. Yet the secrecy is hard to penetrate ...
Thank you Caite for your comment. My next blog discusses a bit more about the leaking into the ocean...a contamination of our planet definitely.
DeleteThere are no words that can articulate the Mask of Fury ventilating through the voice of fiery lungs. What an amazing piece.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment...great description of the art piece which I appreciate.
DeleteMary Lou, thank you for awaking our conscience. Conscience is a funny thing. Sometimes it can become overbearingly omnipresent, heightened and awakened by the slightest stir, or mega event of historic proportions like. At other occasions, conscience can go completely amiss, reduced to a bare minimal or even fall completely asleep. You brought it up and to raw emotion........and you influenced many of us. Thank you or Damn You! You choose. Ciao.
ReplyDeleteAlso If you want to joint our efforts to preserve our oceans please visit us at www.classicsailboats.org
HI Derek: Your comment blew me away! Thank you! Yes, this is raw emotion--and challenging even to bring it to a visual level. My next blog discusses a bit more about the radioactivity seeping into the ocean from the leaking Fukushima meltdowns.
ReplyDelete