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Photo: Seiha Yamaguchi
Chim Pom took this artist photo in 2019 at the Motomachi Apartment Complex, known for thearea’s former history as a so-called genbaku suramu (atomic bomb slum) in Hiroshima City. Oneof the collective’s members lives here with his family.

Chim Pom: A Brief
History of Making theSky of Hiroshima "PIKA!"
photo commentary by
Chim Pom, essay by
Kenichi Abe

Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!”
2009 video (5’ 35”), lambda print (66.7×100cm)
Photo: Cactus Nakao
Courtesy of the artist and MUJIN-TO Production
The work consists of Chim Pom spelling out “pika!,” the onomatopoeic
Japanese word for flash, in skywriting above the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.
Creating a manga-like scenery, the collective re-inscribed the clouds’ gradualdisappearance with the fading of collective memory and presented acontemporary sense of history concerning peace in post-war Japan.

Misinterpretation, Reconciliation,
Understanding
For Chim Pom, 2008 was a year in which, for better or for worse,
their name became more widely known. In the previous year, they
had answered a call for entries for a public exhibit held by theHiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, and received theMuseum’s award, which could be equated with the grand prize, inthat exhibit. At the same time, they won the right to stage a smallscale solo exhibit in a studio within the Museum beginning inNovember 2008. But it was not that their entry for the exhibit wasapplauded.
On October 21, 2008, Chim Pom created the work Making the Skyof Hiroshima “PIKA!” for display in the aforementioned solo exhibit.
They did so by having a small aircraft write the characters of theJapanese “katakana” syllabary for “pika,” meaning “flash,” in the sky
over the Genbaku Dome (Hiroshima Peace Memorial), and captured
this skywriting on photographs and video. For this purpose, they
hired a pilot highly skilled in skywriting, who actually flew a planeand wrote “pika” five times. The writing in pale white stood out wellagainst the clear blue sky, and the photography and video recording
were completed without a hitch.

Untitled2009
paper, pencil, colored pencil
31.2×20.1cm (image size)
Cooperation: Kenji Itagaki
The drawing reproduces the artwork’s first coverage byChugoku Shimbun, Hiroshima’s local newspaper, which led tocontroversy. When Chim Pom contacted the media outlet toask for permission to use the front page in their book Why
Can’t We Make the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!”?, the request
was rejected. The collective then created a replica drawing tocite in the book.

However, the October 22 edition of Chugoku Shimbun, a local
newspaper, ran an article that strongly criticized Chim Pom, basedon a photo provided by a citizen who had seen the writing in the sky.
More specifically, it introduced comments by people who felt thewriting was “unpleasant” and “eerie,” as well as complaints by arepresentative of an organization of atomic blast survivors in
Hiroshima. The critics charged that the work crossed the line ofdecency because “pika” called to mind “pikadon,” a term that issynonymous with the atomic blast. Naturally, Ryuta Ushiro, theleader of Chim Pom, was also interviewed by a reporter.

Various newspapers reporting on the controversy.
After Chugoku Shimbun’s initial story, many news outlets followed suit, instantly turning theartwork into a controversy. When the collective asked a Chugoku Shimbun journalist about thecomplaints the press actually received, they discovered that it had only received three inquiries
from residents curious about the work before the report. Chugoku Shimbun reporters also became
divided on the matter. Masakazu Domen, one of its journalists who covered the National Diet atthe time, later contributed an essay to Why Can’t We Make the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!”? Theartwork became a huge point of debate in the Japanese art world. During the dispute, Chim Pom
told the Hiroshima City Museum that they wanted to explain the project directly to members of Abomb survivor organisations without media or municipal intervention. Still, the Museum did notprovide a response. This led to an apology press conference organized by Hiroshima City.

One morning, the katakana for “pika” suddenly appeared in the skiesof Hiroshima, and then slowly disappeared. The happening was also
instantly taken up by numerous mass media. The flap quickly spreadto the Internet, where ChimPom were subjected to a barrage ofbashing by anonymous individuals. Two days later, Ushiro held apress conference to make an apology about the “neglect to inform all
A-blast survivors and the families of victims in advance,” before
representatives of survivor organizations. Chim Pom also
voluntarily postponed the scheduled solo exhibit indefinitely.
Chim Pom therefore temporarily lost the opportunity to exhibit
Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” as art.

Ironically, the jump in recognition of their name resulted from thissort of controversy that embroiled the mass media and netizens,
including people who learned of everything after the fact.

Ryuta Ushiro apologizing at a press conference.
Photo: Tetsuya Ozaki
One night, Ryuta Ushiro received a phone call from a journalist
who told him that Chim Pom was scheduled to speak at
Hiroshima City’s apology press conference. Ushiro hadn’t been
informed, so he confirmed with one of the curators. Althoughmany people in the art world had expressed that the collective
shouldn’t apologize for their art, Chim Pom had no intentionof going against the survivor organizations and attended theevent. Leaders from seven prominent organizations
participated in the press conference, but they had no idea
about the work. It appeared they only came because they wereinvited by Hiroshima City. Afterward, Chim Pom personallyreached out to meet with each group. Their conversations led
to the idea of creating Why Can’t We Make the Sky ofHiroshima “PIKA!”?. The collective explained the intention
behind the artwork, and the organization members shared
their personal stories around the atomic bomb. While they all
criticized the guerilla approach in creating the piece, they also
shared their concerns of not knowing how to pass down theirexperiences to the younger generation and showed
understanding towards PIKA! as a new approach.

The important part is what happened afterward.
Chim Pom immediately began to build personal ties with themembers of two survivor organisations. They held symposiums withrepresentatives of these organizations and set about preparation of abook titled Why Can’t We Make the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!”? This
book contained numerous contributions by art critics and artists,
and was published in March 2009. To prevent the book from being
about the work of art, Chim Pom decided not to show the Making
the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” to anyone until the book had been
finished. The book consequently examines the whole controversy as
outlined above while viewing the question from perspectives such as“freedom of expression and restrictions,” “war and peace,” and “theatomic blasts and modern society.”

Conversation with Miyako Yano (Vice-Chairperson, Hiroshima
Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organization)
and Yukio Yoshioka (Secretary-General, Hiroshima Prefectural
Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organization), later
published in Why Can’t We Make the Sky of Hiroshima“PIKA!”?

Round-table discussion with Ichiro Haryu (critic),
Yukinori Yanagi (artist), Makoto Aida (artist), Ryuta
Ushiro (Chim Pom).

Conversation with Sunao Tsuboi(Co-Chair, Japan Confederation of
A- and H-Bomb Sufferers
Organizations; Chairperson,
Hiroshima Prefectural
Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers
Organization), later published in
Why Can’t We Make the Sky ofHiroshima “PIKA!”?

Book: Naze Hiroshima No Sora Wo Pika! To Saseteha
Ikenainoka [Why Can’t We Make the Sky ofHiroshima “PIKA!”?]
Editor: Chim Pom, Kenichi Abe
Publisher: MUJIN-TO Production, 2009
Photo: Kei Miyajima
Courtesy of the artist and MUJIN-TO Production

Chim Pom, needless to say, had not abandoned the idea ofexhibiting Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” in order to present
the true intentions behind its creation.
Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” was first shown at the“Hiroshima!” exhibit that was planned and held by Chim Pomthemselves in March 2009 (at VACANT gallery in Tokyo). RealThousand Cranes, which was originally slated to be shown at thesame solo exhibit in Hiroshima, was also displayed then. Copies ofthe aforementioned book were available at the venue for advancesale. Furthermore, the exhibit run included a talk session with Sunao
Tsuboi, Co-Chairperson of the Japan Confederation of A- and HBomb Sufferers Organizations. The three-day exhibit was carefully
put together and drew good crowds. Chim Pom sporadicallycontinued to show the work thereafter as well. In 2011, it held theexhibit “Level 7 feat. 'Hiroshima!!!!’” (one additional exclamation
mark is added for every holding of the “Hiroshima!” exhibit) atMaruki Gallery for The Hiroshima Panels (in the city of HigashiMatsuyama, Saitama Prefecture). The Gallery was built forpermanent exhibition of “The Hiroshima Panels” series by Iri andToshi Maruki, who are best known for their anti-war art addressing
the atomic blasts.

Installation view: “Hiroshima!,” Vacant, Tokyo, 2009
Photo: Kenji Morita
Courtesy of the artist and MUJIN-TO Production

Right from the start, nevertheless, Chim Pom fervently wanted thepeople of Hiroshima to see their work. They just had to show thecompleted Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” in Hiroshima,
where the local newspaper had run a stream of critical articles aboutthem, where they had even been kicked out of the museum, andwhere they were originally supposed to unveil it as a new work. Thechance came in 2013.

At their 2011 solo exhibit titled “REAL TIMES” (held at MUJIN-TO
Production in Tokyo), Chim Pom dealt with the catastrophe at theFukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. This and other works
such as Level 7 feat. “Myth of Tomorrow” and KI-AI 100 succeededin again underscoring their commitment to confronting nuclearpower and arms. Since 2008, meanwhile, they had continued toengage in dialogue with people in Hiroshima, including those whohad had a negative reaction toward them. In the process, they gained
the understanding of people who managed galleries and ran
restaurants in the city. This interaction culminated in the holding of
the “Hiroshima!!!!!” exhibit, with the cooperation of theseindividuals. The funding for this exhibit came from the display andsale of new Chim Pom works at their galleries.

Installation view: “LEVEL 7 feat. ‘Hiroshima!!!!,” Maruki
Gallery for The Hiroshima Panels, Saitama, 2011
Photo: Kei Miyajima
Courtesy of the artist and MUJIN-TO Production

Installation view: “Hiroshima!!!!!,” Former Bank of Japan
Hiroshima Branch, Hiroshima, 2013
Photo: Tadanori Tsukada
The “Hiroshima” exhibitions, held at the Maruki Gallery for
The Hiroshima Panels in 2011 and the Former Bank of Japan
Hiroshima Branch in 2013, served as a huge turning point for
Chim Pom. Local residents had formed a kind of committee
to realize the exhibition, especially in Hiroshima. Eleven local
businesses, ranging from galleries, music venues, flower shops,cafes to okonomiyaki restaurants, sold Chim Pom’s artworks
during the summer, gathering funds to hold a large-scale solo
exhibition in the winter. With over 5,000 visitors, the show
gained much attention. Well-known punk musicians previously
critical of the collective repeatedly visited and brought many of
their friends. A distinct feature of the exhibition was a survey
available at the venue, a cultural facility of Hiroshima City.
They received nearly two hundred responses that contained
lengthy, dense comments filling up the whole form. The show
led to Chim Pom’s commitment to work using folded paper
cranes sent to Hiroshima City from around the world. Laterone of the members married a local resident who worked as an
assistant during the exhibition, strengthening the collective’s
ties to Hiroshima.

The “Hiroshima!!!!!” exhibit was held at what had been theHiroshima branch of the Bank of Japan. The building was there
when the atom bomb was dropped, but it was not destroyed, and is
still in use today as exhibition space. Chim Pom staged an
impressive solo exhibit that encompassed many new works. The
visitors undoubtedly sensed Chim Pom’s considerable talent asartists, from not only Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” but also
their other works. Thanks partly to the assistance from the local
people who cooperated with it and stirred interest in it, the exhibit
was favourably received overall.
But the story does not end with Hiroshima. The “Hiroshima!” exhibit
is going to travel at long last to the United States itself, as
Chim Pom had earnestly hoped. It is going to be held in 2019 inNew York’s Art in General, an NPO exhibition space with a history ofmore than 30 years.* How will it appear in the eyes of Americans,
who have a completely different outlook on the bomb?

Installation view: “Threat of Peace (Hiroshima!!!!!!),” Art inGeneral, New York, 2019
Photo by Dario Lasagni
Courtesy of Art in General and the artists

Postal service connects the whole world
2017
video (3’ 05”), envelopes (package of origami that were
unfolded from paper cranes delivered to Hiroshima,
instructions on how to fold origami cranes, return envelopeand stamp)

For Chim Pom, Making the Sky of Hiroshima “PIKA!” isundeniably a milestone work. It was the one that manifested theirresolution and determination as artists. Through a course of events
that was emblematic of the six members, who can definitely be
counted on to come out of any predicament
they took initiation or not

regardless on whether

with flying colours, Chim Pom aresteadily widening the scope of their exhibition activity.

This photograph was distributed during the publication event for Why Can’t We Make the Sky ofHiroshima “PIKA!”? It depicts one of the collective members’ hair shaved to resemble theJapanese character for “book” as he prostrates to read the original news story. The event launched
the first “Hiroshima!” exhibition, a project that Chim Pom have committed to continue
throughout their career.

Solo Exhibitions of “Hiroshima”
2009“Hiroshima!”, Vacant, Tokyo“Hiroshima!!”, NADiff a/p/a/r/t, Tokyo

2010“Asia Art Award” (“Hiroshima!!!”), Soma Museum, Seoul

2011“LEVEL 7 feat. Hiroshima!!!!”, Maruki Gallery for The Hiroshima

Panels, Saitama
2013“Hiroshima!!!!!”, Former Bank of Japan Hiroshima Branch,Hiroshima
2019“ Threat of Peace (Hiroshima!!!!!!)”, Art in General, New York

Essay originally published in We Don’t Know God: Chim
2019 by Chim

Pom 2005-

Pom (United Vagabonds, 2019).

*After the publication of this essay, Chim

Pom held their solo show at

New York's Art in General. They have an upcoming exhibition this fall at
the Mori Art Museum. With an exclamation mark added to each
iteration, the “Hiroshima!” exhibition series will continue to expand
around the world.

Chim

Pom is an artist collective formed in Tokyo, 2015.

Chim

Pom has continuously released works that intervene incontemporary society with strong social messages. The six
members of Chim

Pom are Ellie, Ryuta Ushiro, Yasutaka

Hayashi, Masataka Okada, Toshinori Mizuno and MotomuInaoka.

Kenichi Abe is a freelance editor.
Issue 25: MONUMENTS, June 2021.

Back to Issues 21—26

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An Introduction toIssue 26: FIELD
NOTES

Doesn't it taste ofblood? by Elyas
Alavi

Expanses by Léuli
Eshr ghi

Time Flowers,
Desire Seeds byRaqs Media
Collective

Desire Archive by
Grace Marlow

Confined Space by
Alycia Bennett &Florian Cinco