The Story of "The Gift of Dolls"

Description

At the opening of "The Gift of Dolls" at the Rochester Museum & Science Center on Sept. 30, 2017, visitors reflected on the U.S.-Japanese friendships central to the exhibition.

An interview between mother and son, Annelise and Xavier, discusses his love of dolls and how his interest sparked the idea for this exhibition. Xavier once received a book called “Ship of Dolls” as a gift, which explored the 1927 doll exchange between the U.S. and Japan. He then discovered that the Rochester Museum & Science Center had one of these dolls, Nagasaki Tamako or Miss Nagasaki, and was inspired to explore further. On a trip to the doll's home city, Nagasaki, Japan, Xavier found different perspectives on World War II and the Nagasaki bombing. He also talks about how his American and Japanese grandparents experienced the war differently.

With this knowledge, Xavier sought to find a way to help other schoolchildren understand what he had learned with the help of Nagasaki Tamako. Now, children in Rochester, NY, and Nagasaki, Japan, continue the citizen diplomacy exchanges with a collaborative mural project.

Participants

• Annelise Riles
  
• Xavier Miyazaki
  
• Hannah Barry
  

Interview By

• Rochester Museum & Science Center