Unearthing the Resilience of Japanese American Women Artists

At the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., a new exhibition titled “Pictures of Belonging” offers a moving tribute to three Japanese American women artists—Hisako Hibi, Miné Okubo, and Miki Hayakawa—whose lives and work were dramatically shaped by the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Running through August 17, 2025, this exhibition gives voice to a generation of artists whose creativity endured, even in confinement.

The exhibition is not only a showcase of art; it is an act of historical reclamation. Each artist featured navigated a tumultuous chapter in American history when approximately 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry—most of them U.S. citizens—were forcibly relocated to incarceration camps following Executive Order 9066 in 1942. While much has been written about this injustice, Pictures of Belonging emphasizes something often overlooked: how Japanese American women artists captured this experience through their own eyes, hands, and brushes.

Hisako Hibi: Painting the Pain and Persistence

One of the central figures of the exhibition is Hisako Hibi (1907–1991), who was imprisoned at the Topaz War Relocation Center in Utah along with her husband, artist Matsusaburo Hibi, and their young son. While in the camp, Hisako continued to paint, often drawing from the harsh desert surroundings and the daily routines of life under surveillance. Her use of color and composition—sometimes austere, sometimes quietly luminous—evokes both personal endurance and collective sorrow.

In one of her most striking works, a woman is seen staring out of a makeshift barrack window, the light falling harshly on her profile, hinting at both entrapment and reflection. While somber in tone, Hibi’s art also contains subtle hope—perhaps a nod to the quiet resistance of maintaining identity in the face of dehumanization.

After the war, Hibi continued her work in San Francisco and helped shape a small but significant Japanese American art community, but her contributions remained largely unrecognized until recent years.

Miné Okubo: Bearing Witness Through Ink

Miné Okubo (1912–2001), another artist featured in the exhibit, is best known for her graphic memoir Citizen 13660, one of the earliest personal accounts of life in the camps. Through black-and-white drawings and sharp, concise prose, she chronicled everything from communal showers to military inspections. While her style is simple—almost cartoon-like—it is laced with emotional nuance.

Many of Okubo’s sketches depict moments of quiet indignity: waiting in food lines, living without privacy, watching children play under barbed wire. But she drew everything, she once said, “so that it would not be forgotten.” The exhibition features original ink works from Citizen 13660 and lesser-known oil paintings that reveal her versatility as an artist.

Okubo, who trained under Diego Rivera and worked on WPA murals before the war, saw her art as a social instrument. After her release from Topaz, she moved to New York, where she pursued an independent artistic career but rarely received the critical recognition her male peers enjoyed.

Miki Hayakawa: A Life Outside the Camps

Miki Hayakawa (1899–1953) represents a different thread in the exhibition’s narrative. Unlike Hibi and Okubo, Hayakawa was not interned. She had moved to New Mexico before the war and was spared the forced relocation that swept up most Japanese Americans living on the West Coast. Nevertheless, her identity and work were shaped by the same cultural tensions.

Hayakawa’s landscapes and portraits radiate serenity and introspection. A teacher and mentor to younger artists, she painted quiet scenes—rolling hills, isolated trees, lone figures—that, when viewed today, seem charged with a sense of distance and melancholy. Her inclusion in this exhibition broadens the scope of what it meant to be Japanese American during wartime: that even those who avoided the camps bore the weight of suspicion, exclusion, and silence.

Art as a Site of Belonging

Pictures of Belonging goes beyond biographical storytelling. Curated by a diverse team of scholars and community advisors, the exhibition includes archival photographs, letters, and personal items alongside paintings and sketches. The aim is not only to honor these women but also to confront the erasure that followed their postwar lives.

Visitors are encouraged to reflect on what it means to belong in a nation that once branded these artists and their families as threats. The exhibition frames art as a form of resistance and resilience, showing how creative expression can affirm dignity in even the most adverse conditions.

“This show is about remembrance,” says one of the exhibit’s curators. “But it’s also about recognition—giving these women their rightful place in the story of American art.”

Legacy and Relevance Today

As anti-Asian racism continues to be a pressing issue in the United States, Pictures of Belonging serves as a poignant reminder of the consequences of xenophobia and the importance of representation. For many visitors, especially young Asian Americans, the exhibition is a powerful affirmation of identity and creative agency.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a series of talks, community forums, and art workshops aimed at exploring the intersections of race, gender, and memory in American art. A digital catalog and educational resources will also be made available to ensure its reach extends beyond museum walls.

The project is a joint effort between the Community Arts Stabilization Trust (CAST) and the San Francisco Port Commission, designed to address both the scarcity of affordable studio space and the diminishing visibility of arts in the Bay Area. Announced in April 2025, the transformation of Pier 29 is set to unfold over the next two years, with a potential two-year lease extension if successful.

The indoor space, totaling 47,000 square feet, will host working artist studios, exhibition halls, classrooms, and performance stages. The remaining 23,000 square feet, largely outdoors, will become a venue for installations, festivals, and open-air workshops with breathtaking views of the Bay Bridge.

According to CAST CEO Ken Ikeda, the project emerged from a deep need to redefine what cultural resilience looks like in an economically pressured urban setting. “San Francisco has always had a strong artistic heart,” he says. “But we’ve lost so much talent because the city just isn’t livable for creatives anymore. Pier 29 gives us a chance to reverse that trend.”

The facility is envisioned as a flexible and inclusive home for both emerging and established artists. Large-scale sculptures, experimental installations, and multimedia performances—many of which had previously been impossible due to prohibitive real estate costs—will be given new life.

Importantly, Pier 29 won’t just be an art gallery or studio compound; it will be a community hub. Local residents, schools, and organizations will be invited to participate in cultural programming and educational initiatives. The design concept includes accessible public art, interactive workshops, and residencies for underserved artists.

The economic impact of the arts in San Francisco has long been underappreciated, despite contributing an estimated $1.45 billion annually. This initiative seeks to spotlight that value—not just through income, but by nurturing a sense of belonging and cultural vitality in a rapidly changing city.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed voiced support for the project, calling it “an essential investment in the soul of our city.” She added that revitalizing Pier 29 could serve as a blueprint for other U.S. cities grappling with gentrification and arts displacement.

There are also environmental considerations. Pier 29, a site that has been underutilized for decades, will be retrofitted with sustainable building systems, including solar panels and energy-efficient heating and cooling. The plan is to maintain the architectural integrity of the structure while adapting it to modern needs.

Funding for the project comes from a mix of public and private sources. CAST has raised several million dollars through philanthropic donations, with additional support from the city’s arts and culture budget. Negotiations are underway with potential corporate sponsors and community foundations to ensure the long-term sustainability of the space.

Despite the enthusiasm, challenges remain. Coordinating logistics with the Port Authority, managing rising construction costs, and navigating the complex permitting process of a major city are just a few of the hurdles ahead. But the project’s leaders remain optimistic.

“This isn’t just about artists,” says Ikeda. “It’s about neighborhoods. It’s about youth. It’s about building an ecosystem where creativity can flourish alongside commerce and innovation.”

The first resident artists are expected to move in by late 2025, with the full opening projected for early 2026. If successful, Pier 29 could reestablish San Francisco as a city where artists not only showcase their work—but live, collaborate, and thrive.