Saturday, March 26, 2011

Hold Close (Tsunami Essay)

In the midst of the initial batch of headlines coming out of Japan, I found myself viscerally compelled to respond in some way. Perhaps on the second or third night after the tsunami hit, I had jotted down some notes about an initial idea for this piece, before going to sleep. I couldn't sleep, and got up to put sketches down - that ultimately are pretty much what I ended up doing in the final piece. The piece kept changing throughout the process before returning back to nearly what I'd come up with that first night. There are no neat answers in this situation and as further horrors stack up, I find myself coming back to that last line over and over again "hold close..." - Nick

7 comments:

Karen said...

Nick, that's lovely. Are the images in the water supposed to be like candles?

I like the opposing image of waves and tides.

nsousanis said...

Hey Karen,thanks. Japanese lanterns - which they do float at sea as spirit vessels... N

Karen said...

Ah, yes--I was, in fact, thinking of candles in paper lanterns (except my brain couldn't come up with the word lantern: just "paper bag" which seemed unworthy). So that makes sense.

nsousanis said...

hmmm - my intentional over-sketchiness, might have been unintentionally over-sketchy...

Allicette said...

wow Nick, just wow.

nsousanis said...

Thanks, Allicette.

Daiyu said...

First of all, Nick, I am so grateful for your work in response to what happened in my home country. Ever since the earthquake struck, we Japanese people have been so touched by the goodness of the people around the world. These natural disasters are bringing various peoples together by reminding all of us that we are all human beings, with the same blood and feelings for the loved ones, who share the limited moments on this place called the earth. Your work reminds us that, Nick. Thanks again. Daiyu