Hon. William M. Marutani

[Garth Herrick]

Here is a recent portrait that will be formally unveiled in City Hall in Philadelphia, this Monday, June 7th, 2004. It was commissioned by the Asian American Bar Association of the Delaware Valley to honor the first Pennsylvania judge of Asian American descent. Fortunately, this judge is still alive and with us. I hope to see him again at the unveiling. His identity:

William M. Marutani

Former Judge, Court of Common Pleas of Pennsylvania
Member, Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians

The portrait is oil on linen, and is 36 inches by 30 inches in size.

It has been a real treat to get to know this soft-spoken and honorable gentleman who prefers me to call him simply "Bill". He has had quite an interesting life. Born in Washington State, he and his family were among those numerous U.S. civilians of Japanese descent who were wrongfully interned and relocated during World War II. In 1946, after being released, he visited a cousin who was a victim of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima, Japan. I was spellbound by his vivid recounting of the atrocities and after-effects of the nuclear annihilation of a once great city. He described to me the true meaning of a "Silent Spring". There was not a single bird alive to sing for the dead for a hundred or so miles. I was moved by the gravity of his message, and in all fairness we mostly talked about happier moments in life, and especially what it is to be an American and to be proud of it.

I tried to get a sense of his wisdom and intellect to shine through in the portrait. He willingly sat for me to paint him from life on several occasions. I also worked with some photographic references derived from my digital camera. I took the liberty of fitting him into his judicial robe in the painting. He originally wore a suit of traditional Japanese design and textile which was very appealing, but we decided it was more important to make him appear more as a judge. The positive experience of painting this great man was worth all the small challenges and adjustments that were presented along the way.

Garth