Drawing and Viewing
Shikoku proposes that the reader use Hiroshima Sketches as a guide to “explore the meanings of Hiroshima and the allure of this city” (p. 158). Shikoku designs the book in a manner that explores not only the physical surroundings, but also layers of memory and history that contribute to the complexity of a city ambitious in its commitment to peace and social justice, even as it is burdened with a past deeply enmeshed in global currents of modern war and empire. Some pages represent sites with deeply personal meanings: the bridge Shikoku passed over as a repatriated imperial soldier after the war; the school where his brother was injured in the bombing; beneath the prosperous city, the bones of the dead. Although Shikoku aims to provide readers with a deeper understanding of Hiroshima as a living community and vital place beyond the Genbaku Dome, his method also works as a means of advocating for collective action in opposition to nuclear weapons, war, and injustice.