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Yukiyo Kawano, Little Boy folded (#2)

Yukiyo Kawano, Little Boy folded (#2), 2016

Yukiyo Kawano
born 1974 Hiroshima, Japan; lives Portland, Oregon
Little Boy folded (#2)
2016
silk fabric, kakisibu-dye, bamboo, wood, wire, washi paper, hair
10 x 2 ½ x2 ½ ft.
lent by the artist, © 2020 Yukiyo Kawano
photo courtesy of the artist

Yukiyo Kawano is a third-generation hibakusha (atomic bomb survivor) of the detonation of Little Boy over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. Her sculptures are replicas of the bombs detonated over Japan, but their construction alludes to Japanese kites and lanterns.

Yukiyo Kawano, Little Boy detail

The understructure of Little Boy is covered with silk fabric from her grandmother's kimono and sewn with Kawano’s own hair.