博
Artist: Zhao Puchu
Date: Modern
Material: Ink on paper
Dr Tomin Harada (1912-1999) was a Hiroshima-born surgeon who returned home after the atomic bomb attack. He devoted his life to treating victims of the bombing and promoting world peace. He bred his own hybrid roses and named them 'Hiroshima', sending them as tokens of peace to peace activists in various countries. In September 1986, Dr Harada travelled to Beijing in the hope of meeting Zhao Puchu, bringing with him three varieties of Hiroshima rose. However, Zhao was on an official visit abroad at the time. Upon his return, Zhao composed an ode in response to Dr Harada's roses. In the poem, Zhao openly expresses his views on nuclear weapons, advocating their complete prohibition and destruction so that children in Hiroshima can enjoy safe food and sound sleep. This modern poem, deemed as a 'cry for peace', was passed on to Dr Harada by Yuhua Chen, a Chinese artist specializing in rose paintings. This calligraphic work, a preliminary draft of the one presented to Dr. Harada, was created by Zhao Puchu at the age of eighty.
