Chapter 03

Character Design

About Cotton Candy Usagi . 綿菓子うさちゃん

綿菓子うさぎ (綿花糖兔兔) 的設計靈感來自幾年前到訪広島的大久野島。島上住了很多很多可愛的兔兔，牠們都很熱情，很樂意跟我們玩。可是其實牠們藏著可憐的歷史故事和戰爭秘密。在二戰時期，大久野島被用作製造毒氣，可憐的兔子是試毒氣實驗的對象。而且當時生產戰爭用途的毒氣是秘密進行，因此大久野島在地圖上曾經是個消失的小島。

時間過去，戰爭結束。剩下來的兔子繼續在島上繁生和生活。很慶幸當地還會帶小學生去了解這段歷史，使之不被遺忘。島上也設有毒氣資料館，讓遊客認識大久野島的過去。相反，香港卻在嘗試修改或淡化英國殖民地的過去和近年社會運動的事實…

最近創作的這個綿花糖兔兔，是以自己在島上拍攝的兔兔為設計藍本。希望可以藉此記著戰爭對小動物的禍害，也提醒香港這邊能夠正視本地歷史，不應該修改或隱藏。

The design of my character, Cotton Candy Usagi, is inspired by the bunnies on a little island in Hiroshima Japan, ōkunoshima. The bunnies there are very cute and friendly. But behind their lovely faces, they carry a pitiful history. During WWII, the island was taken to produce toxic gas and chemical weapons for the war secretly. Poor rabbits were used in the plant for testing the effectiveness of the chemical weapons…

Nowadays, the rabbits there are healthy and happily living on the island. I am glad that there are local tours continuously guiding students to understand the island’s history. There is also a poison gas museum for tourists to explore the past. In contrast, it’s a shame that Hong Kong is trying to alter or soften the fact of its history being a British Colony and the recent democratic movements.

The Cotton Candy Usagi that I drew was inspired by the pictures of rabbits which I took on the island. I hope that through this character design, it can remind people how animals were suffered from wars and to Hong Kong that we should not alter or soften the city’s history.

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