“Grandfather”

This is a portrait of my grandfather drawn from a photograph taken in 1942,  by Dorothea Lange when she was commissioned to photograph Japanese Americans being interned during the start of the US entry into World War 2. The marks are the text from Executive Order no. 9066 which established military areas excluding those of Japanese descent and establishing the internment camps.

I only met my grandfather in the hospital briefly as he died when I was very young. Drawing him was a way of getting to know him and imagining what he was thinking as he was led to an unknown future. Historical context is everything but hopefully by reaching back into history we might someday learn from our misplaced fear. Letting hatred go unchecked will only burn us alive

60″x37″ ink on panel

Detail:

Original Dorothea Lange Image: