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Towards the last two months of my last visit to India in the spring of 2012, I encountered the Tibetan community in exile in India experiencing painful news of their people self-immolating in fire one after another in China-occupied Tibet. My experiences in the past visits in India (drawing a cremation site in Varanasi, documenting fire pits, cremation alters, and contemplating on life and death around fire) synchronized with this particular movement, an extreme way of ‘offering’ their bodies to ‘fire’ for asking freedom and peace.I could not help drawing large and small drawings as emotional response and with a sense of mourning.

After coming back to Vancouver, the self-immolation kept happening and I felt that my personal and professional task is not finished.

I have come back to India to continue to document and draw under the same theme. tomoyoihaya@hotmail.com

5 October 2021

"Whose Stories" @ Kamloops Art Gallery



 "Whose Stories", curated by Makiko Hara, is up on view at Kamloops Art Gallery. Along with 5 artists' works, there are 17 works ( mixed media drawings, installations and a video) from "Drawings from Dharmsala" and "Gwangju - City of Light" created between 2012 to 2019.

"Reflecting on the experiences and narratives of "others", 'Whose Stories?' shares the work of six artists of Asian descent. Through video installation, photography, animation, print media, drawing, collage, and restored ceramic works, artists Diyan Achjadi, Load na Dito, Naoko Fukumaru, Tomoyo Ihaya,Mark Salvatus, and UJINO convey personal histories told within a community of artists and woven across generations."
Much gratitude for all the professional and sincere work to: Makiko Hara and everybody at KAG; Charo Neville, Krystyna Halliwell, Garnet Dirksen, Matthew Trembley, Emily Hope and Rachel Thompson.
Heart felt congratulations to Makiko Hara and all artists.
Here are some gallery shots and my thoughts below.





The most of works included in this exhibition were made while/after I stayed in the Tibetan community (Dharamsala) in exile in India in 2012. Self immolation protests in Tibet were happening every few days at peak. Other two are related with Gwangju, Republic of Korea and Taiwan where I stayed, made art related with their human rights related struggles and exhibited those works.
Since these visits, I carry so many faces and hearts of people whom I met in my heart. Some have passed away without going back home. Younger friends who live in exile and can not see their families back in their homeland. Never erased wounds after witnessing their comrades died in protest.
I always feel those works are physically drawn by my existing body but emotionally/mentally drawn together with these friends whom I came across in my nomadic life. I learned about their lives, and pain, shared food and laughters, and shed tears together and I owe them lots.
So at this occasion, I feel touched as if their lives were acknowledged and felt by other humans in such a far away place where a history of a tremendous suffering has been recognised recently as well.