Next month marks 80 years since the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, which ended the war in the Pacific. Aug. 6 is when Hiroshima was hit. Three days later, Nagasaki was also bombed.
Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi is traveling to Japan to mark the occasion in Hiroshima — Honolulu’s oldest sister city.
Here in Hawaiʻi, there will be an event at the Waikīkī Natatorium on Aug. 6. It’s part of what's called the Renkon Project. Renkon is the word for lotus root in Japanese.
A familiar voice joins us to share more about what's planned. Noe Tanigawa is a former culture and arts reporter for HPR. She is inviting the public to come down to Waikīkī, where lotus and war images will grace the walls of the natatorium to commemorate the 1945 bombings.
Tanigawa invited us into her art studio, where a mock-up of the natatorium is center stage.
We also got a chance to chat with the filmmaker whose images will grace the walls of the natatorium. Tanigawa and Vincent Bercasio visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial in Japan, where dignitaries will gather on Aug. 6. The current fragile geopolitical world tensions are something that Bercasio wants to convey.
This story aired on The Conversation on July 30, 2025. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m.
