Art in the shadow of the bomb

An exhibition commemorating the 70th anniversary of Godzilla’s birth, at Tokyo’s Mori Arts Centre Gallery. From Godzilla’s fiery atomic breath to harrowing literary depictions of radiation sickness, the influence of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki runs deep in Japanese popular culture. — AFP

FROM Godzilla’s fiery atomic breath to post-apocalyptic anime and harrowing depictions of radiation sickness, the influence of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki runs deep in Japanese popular culture.

In the 80 years since the World War II attacks, stories of destruction and mutation have been fused with fears around natural disasters and, more recently, the Fukushima crisis.