INTRODUCTION:

On December 26, 2004 an undersea earthquake occurred off the northern coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Shortly after the intense tremors were felt, a huge tsunami hit the coastal areas of Aceh province in northwestern Sumatra and continued its devastation in Sri Lanka, South India, Thailand and the Maldives. People reported that waves measuring more than 100 feet landed on their coasts. The first news reports mentioned between 700 and 800 deaths, but within months the staggering figures climbed to 200,000 and 300,000. The world responded with an outpouring of sympathy and aid.

In mid-January Marco Garcia, a young photographer from Hawai'i, was given the opportunity to travel with the U.S. Air Force to Thailand and then to Aceh. According to Marco, "The tragedy changed my life. It wasn't the overall disaster. It was the strength and resilience of the survivors, and their ability to move forward. All those who had lost something were able to smile at me and greet me with such kindness. I witnessed the struggle to rebuild, to survive."

After Marco returned from Indonesia he noticed the U.S. media's waning interest in the tsunami and "feared people would lose interest and forget about Aceh and everyone lost to the tsunami." He then decided to approach the East-West Center.

This exhibition is a result of Marco's work during the early days of the rescue operation and a subsequent trip in May 2005 under the auspices of the East-West Center. Through photography and excerpts from Marco's journal, the exhibition explores themes of disaster, rescue, recovery, and rebuilding, and emphasizes the indomitable spirit of both survivors and rescuers and the hope for renewal despite horrible adversity.

VIRTUAL EXHIBITION:

Please note that Flash is required in order to view this online exhibition. You can download it for free from Macromedia.

Click HERE to view the images.

View the East-West Center Gallery informational flyer (pdf) here.