HONOLULU, HAWAII.- The Honolulu Museum of Art (HoMA) presents Navigating a Minefield: A Manga Depiction of Japanese Americans in the Second World War from Oct. 27, 2022-March 5, 2023. The exhibition features genga (original, digitally produced sketches) from the graphic novel “Journey of Heroes: The Story of the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team” (2012), written by author and producer Stacey Hayashi and illustrated by comic artist Damon Wong, both of whom are from O‘ahu.

“Journey of Heroes” was created in preparation for Hayashi’s live-action film “Go for Broke: An Origin Story” (2017). Hayashi partnered with Wong to draw key scenes from the script, which evolved into a complete graphic novel. To communicate difficult subjects such as war to a multi-generational audience, the pair reimagined the characters as chibi (cute figures) with endearing, childish features.

"Manga's ubiquity provides a platform to tell complex and often untold stories," said Stephen Salel, curator of Japanese art at HoMA. "The impactful and affecting images found in these graphic novels can make difficult subjects more accessible."

In addition to selections from “Journey of Heroes,” the exhibition includes memorabilia from the 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team, on loan from Hayashi’s collection, and film clips from “Go for Broke.”




Beginning in 2014, HoMA has presented recurring exhibitions around manga, Japanese graphic novels or comics, including Visions of Gothic Angels: Japanese Manga by Takaya Miou (2017) and Disasters of Peace: Social Discontent in the Manga of Tsuge Tadao and Katsumata Susumu (2019). Navigating a Minefield is the first exhibition from the museum’s multi-year series that addresses the internationalization of manga and its connection to Japan’s cultural diaspora. In this case, it is used by a Japanese American author to discuss the history of the nisei (second-generation Japanese American) community in Hawaiʻi. The exhibition commemorates the eightieth anniversary of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team’s formation in 1943 and pays tribute to the many Japanese Americans who were unjustly incarcerated that year.

Playing a vital role in contemporary Japanese culture, manga’s popularity can be partly attributed to the genre’s historical connection with ukiyo-e (woodblock prints and paintings), which were produced in Japan throughout the Edo period (1615-1868).

Related Programs at HoMA:

Film Screening: “Go for Broke: An Origin Story” (2017)
Dec. 2-4, Doris Duke Theatre

Fighting not only the Germans but rampant racism at home in the United States and in the military, the brave Japanese Americans in the 100th Infantry Battalion/442nd Regimental Combat Team went on to be the most decorated unit for their size and time in battle in U.S. history. Originally premiering as part of 75th anniversary of the Japanese Incarceration during World War II, “Go For Broke: An Origin Story” explores the complex emotional framework that allowed these young men to serve their country while their families were incarcerated or lived under martial law — all in a bid to prove their loyalty and "Americanness" to those who doubted it.