Artist's Message to the People of Hiroshima

When I visited Hiroshima in 1989 I never thought that I would be reading and making art about Hiroshima for the next eleven years.  But that is what happened.  I know that I can never fully understand or imagine the horror of the bomb, but my visit to the museum and the Peace Park made me think and led me to read books about it.  I made these quilts to cause others to think and to help give the message that atomic bombs must never be used again.

At first glance, the quilts are soft and often pretty.  Hidden in each of them and perhaps not seen by many observers are messages of suffering and death. The same is true of the atomic bomb itself; some people aren't aware of, or don't want to think about, the widespread suffering and the hundreds of thousands of deaths caused by the bomb.

It has been my dream to actually exhibit these quilts in Hiroshima.  Now that dream is being fulfilled.  As you look at the quilts I hope you will understand what I feel in my heart.  I don't pretend to be able to answer the question of whether dropping the bomb was justified.  But after making these quilts, I am better able to understand the feelings of the Japanese people.

If you would write your comments about specific quilts, I would be most grateful.  I hope to learn from you, the people who are here in Hiroshima today.  Most of all I thank you for looking at these humble attempts to express my thoughts.

Barbara Moll, August 2000

Please e-mail your comments to barbmoll@hotmail.com.  

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