‘You are our First Star’ is a project which involves Ryoichi Wago, one of Japan’s leading poets. Through heartfelt interviews, Wago captures the voices of Myanmar mothers who fled civil war and faced the challenges of giving birth and raising their children in Japan.
In Tokyo in 2024, despite the ever-increasing number of multinationals raising children in the city, ethnic and national communities remain isolated. In addition, cross-cultural barriers persist in local communities in Japan, and interest in multiculturalism is steadily declining —evident in the decreasing number of young people studying abroad.
As society adapts to the increasing number of “unknown neighbors,” even small misunderstandings can escalate into tension, fostering division, xenophobia and hate—trends observed in other parts of the world, including Europe and the US.
To bridge these divides, this project will produce and publish a collection of poems with Myanmar translations, serving as a meaningful communication tool to connect the Myanmar and Japanese communities. Poetry, deeply cherished in both cultures, offers a unique way to connect through shared emotions and experiences. This initiative, rooted in the universal theme of “mother and child,” aims to nurture understanding, highlight the challenges of multicultural child-rearing, and encourage empathy across communities.
Through our interviews with Myanmar mothers, we came to understand not only their personal struggles but also the dire circumstances faced by children in Myanmar, many of whom are deprived of education and opportunity for a better future. Wago’s poem “The First Star,” featured in this exhibition, captures the deep love these mothers hold for their homeland, which they may never return to, as well as for their children growing up in Japan. It also conveys the intense emotions of sorrow and anger over the uncertain future of young people trapped in Myanmar, caught in the turmoil of the civil war.
This exhibition showcases 16 poems written by Wago as a part of this research project, divided into two series: “The First Star” and “The Sea and The Stars in My Hand.” These works have been published as a poetry collection titled You are our First Star. The pictures accompanying the poems were taken by world-renowned picture book artist Ryoji Arai. The exhibition is a joint collaboration between mothers, a poet, and an artist, which is more than just an artistic endeavor. It is a message to the future, dedicated to the young people who will lead the next generation.
Planning cooperation: NPO Mother’s Tree Japan + Takenori Miyamoto Laboratory, Tokyo University of the Arts
Grant: Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture, Arts Council Tokyo (Grant for Social Support through the Arts and Culture)
Subject project: Research on Multiculturalism through Art – Mothers in the Forest, implemented as part of the “Mothers’ Tree Project.”
