Photog Ansel Adams and the concentration camps....

[CoyoteChris]

Most of us Westerners know Environmental conservationist Ansel Adams for his sweeping black and white pics of the American west. Few (certainly not me) knew him as someone deeply effected by American concentration camps....He asked for permission and was allowed to photograph the camp at Manzanar and produced these stunning and haunting photos...I have seen other photos visiting the museums at other camps but I had not seen these.

Life in the American concentration camp of Manzanar, 1943 - Rare Historical Photos

This is the story of Manzanar, an American concentration camp, for Japanese American people. These rare photos were taken by Ansel Adams.

rarehistoricalphotos.com

 

[Ravyn Rant]

Chris, thanks for the link. I've always loved Adams' work, but I've never seen these photos before.

 

[CoyoteChris]

Chris, thanks for the link. I've always loved Adams' work, but I've never seen these photos before.

One of my friends, Tosh, was in one of the concentration camps where his mom died....He was in the same horse stables quartered while the camps were being built as George Takai, Mr. Sulu on Startrek. Spokane had and has a strong Japanese community and they funded a tv speical you can watch on youtube.....

Injustice at Home: Looking Like the Enemy

During WWII, almost the entire population of Japanese Americans on the West Coast were forcibly removed from their homes and incarcerated. Their only crime w...

www.youtube.com

 

[elbkup]

Thank you for posting this Chris..
Having studied Art History at Boston University we students were never made aware of Ansel’s work regarding this subject.. probably because it was/is little known
We were told he was a Master of the Darkroom and the Yosemite he photographed was not the Yosemite as nature intended
My argument was “he used nature as a jumping off point”
But these photographs here are stunning
- especially the portraits - and are a testament to the spirit, strength, optimism of the unjustly oppressed.

 

[CoyoteChris]

Thank you for posting this Chris..
Having studied Art History at Boston University we students were never made aware of Ansel’s work regarding this subject.. probably because it was/is little known
We were told he was a Master of the Darkroom and the Yosemite he photographed was not the Yosemite as nature intended
My argument was “he used nature as a jumping off point”
But these photographs here are stunning
- especially the portraits - and are a testament to the spirit, strength, optimism of the unjustly oppressed.

USFS on FB today did a great story on Kristi's grandma and grandpa. Grandma was in Heart Mountain while gramps was off winning medals in Europe.

George A. Doi

“He is unquestionably the company’s best soldier.”

cgm.smithsonianapa.org

 

[skylark]

USFS on FB today did a great story on Kristi's grandma and grandpa. Grandma was in Heart Mountain while gramps was off winning medals in Europe.

George A. Doi

“He is unquestionably the company’s best soldier.”

cgm.smithsonianapa.org

I can't remember where I heard Kristi say this (it may have been one of the "Finding Your Roots" episodes; in fact, now I think it was.) Growing up, she didn't know about her grandfather's war record. Many of the WWII generation didn't tell their children and grandchildren about their experiences, not wanting to burden them with painful knowledge.

But what I remember vividly is that Kristi said that "of course," when they spent the night with the grandparents, they would often hear him having nightmares.

That also squares with what I know personally of WWII veterans, and from extensive reading as well.

 

[elbkup]

I can't remember where I heard Kristi say this (it may have been one of the "Finding Your Roots" episodes; in fact, now I think it was.) Growing up, she didn't know about her grandfather's war record. Many of the WWII generation didn't tell their children and grandchildren about their experiences, not wanting to burden them with painful knowledge.

But what I remember vividly is that Kristi said that "of course," when they spent the night with the grandparents, they would often hear him having nightmares.

That also squares with what I know personally of WWII veterans, and from extensive reading as well.

I saw this documentary too tho cannot remember where tho I think it was an Ancestry program ..

 

[elbkup]

USFS on FB today did a great story on Kristi's grandma and grandpa. Grandma was in Heart Mountain while gramps was off winning medals in Europe.

George A. Doi

“He is unquestionably the company’s best soldier.”

cgm.smithsonianapa.org

I do remember a televised interview with her where she talked about this.. so sad yet full of grit and courage..

 

[CoyoteChris]

I do remember a televised interview with her where she talked about this.. so sad yet full of grit and courage..

I love George Takai's (Mr. Sulu) remark. "Don't tell ME they werent concentration camps...I was in two of them!" There are members on this forum that had relatives in the concentration camps...I would love to sit down with their parents/grand parents and have a beer with them. I have talked with my friend Tosh who was in one and whose mother died in a camp. I watch every PBS special about the hero American soldiers of Japanese descent....Fun factoid. The US army knew that some of the men in the camps of draft age could speak at least some Japanese. And write it. They took the cream of the crop and sent them to interpreter school in Minnesota, and they were invaluable in interperting Japanese captured documents and interviewing Japanese solders.

Fort Snelling: Breaking the Code - Mississippi National River & Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

 

[elbkup]

I love George Takai's (Mr. Sulu) remark. "Don't tell ME they werent concentration camps...I was in two of them!" There are members on this forum that had relatives in the concentration camps...I would love to sit down with their parents/grand parents and have a beer with them. I have talked with my friend Tosh who was in one and whose mother died in a camp. I watch every PBS special about the hero American soldiers of Japanese descent....Fun factoid. The US army knew that some of the men in the camps of draft age could speak at least some Japanese. And write it. They took the cream of the crop and sent them to interpreter school in Minnesota, and they were invaluable in interperting Japanese captured documents and interviewing Japanese solders.

Fort Snelling: Breaking the Code - Mississippi National River & Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

Reminds me of the Navajo codetalkers who fought, died, and only honored for their contributions many decades later. The enemy was never able to crack the code and “warriors/soldiers” who provided communication on the battlefield avoided capture at all cost! All this was before I was born but it is so vital to keep repeating these stories so future generations know and learn from them.. And, a hearty shout out to Mr. Sulu and all things Star Trek!!
I so admire the Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi, a.k.a. Sam Gilmore who lived his personal life in ambivalence. He entered an internment camp voluntarily - was not forced to enter as most detainees were, ? In part due to his American heritage? - and tried to improve conditions there. He established two museums in his name, one in New York the other in Japan. When he died his ashes were split and buried in both .. what a wonderful, rich and diverse though conflicted culture we possess!

The Japanese-American Artist Who Went to the Camps to Help

Isamu Noguchi went to the internment camps of his own volition. Once he was there, he realized he would not be allowed to leave.

www.newyorker.com

 

[CoyoteChris]

Reminds me of the Navajo codetalkers who fought, died, and only honored for their contributions many decades later. The enemy was never able to crack the code and “warriors/soldiers” who provided communication on the battlefield avoided capture at all cost! All this was before I was born but it is so vital to keep repeating these stories so future generations know and learn from them.. And, a hearty shout out to Mr. Sulu and all things Star Trek!!
I so admire the Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi, a.k.a. Sam Gilmore who lived his personal life in ambivalence. He entered an internment camp voluntarily - was not forced to enter as most detainees were, ? In part due to his American heritage? - and tried to improve conditions there. He established two museums in his name, one in New York the other in Japan. When he died his ashes were split and buried in both .. what a wonderful, rich and diverse though conflicted culture we possess!

The Japanese-American Artist Who Went to the Camps to Help

Isamu Noguchi went to the internment camps of his own volition. Once he was there, he realized he would not be allowed to leave.

www.newyorker.com

Wow...way cool. Thanks! Great story.... You are very correct about education. I contribute to the Tuskegee airmen educational program so that their stories of predjudice are not forgotton. Imagine being a person with African heritage being captured by Nazis....and yes, as a student of history, I know the Navajo code talkers....good story.....As noted, Kristi Yamaguchi's grand ma voluntarily went back to Heart Mt when her husband left for war rather than face predjudice.... You had few choices. A Japanese family in say Illinois might sponsor you, for instance. Next time I go to Heart Mt this summer I will definately think about looking over the landscape and thinking about her....