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Echigo Tsumari may be an unfamiliar name to many people, but no one knows Yasunari Kawabata's Yukiguni, which is about the Echigo region, which is one of the few places in Japan with heavy snowfall, and the long tunnel through the prefectural border.
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The most representative of the soul of Echigo-Tsumari is the Echigo-Tsumari Earth Art Festival, held every three years, which is one of the two most famous art festivals in Japan, alongside the Seto Inland Sea Art Festival, and is the largest, highest-quality, and most influential international outdoor art festival in the world today.The festival is the largest and most influential international outdoor art festival in the world today. Every year, the festival brings together the works of many of the world's leading artists, making it a "rooftopless art museum".
The origin of the art festival is the history of Echigo-Tsumari."Echigo-Tsumari" is not an official name on a map, but is taken from the ancient Japanese name "Echigo-Kuni, Tsumari Sho," a mountainous area of 760 square kilometers including Tokaichi City and Tsunan-cho in the southern part of Niigata Prefecture, Japan.
In order to improve the situation in Echigo, where farming has been the main method of production since ancient times and which, because of its remoteness and economic backwardness, used to be one of the areas in Japan with the most serious aging and population loss, the local government came up with the idea of "conveying the charms of the area through art".There was a lot of opposition to the idea, and no one believed that art could save the countryside, but thanks to the efforts of the curator, Tomiro Kitagawa, and artists from all over the world, the first art festival was held in 2000, and 160,000 people visited the festival.The success of the festival has revitalized this dying area, and more and more people have begun to learn about the culture and history of the area through art, and the locals are now proud of the art and the land.
The Art Festival 2024, which runs from 7.13 to 11.10 (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays), is now in its ninth year, and features more than 300 exhibits, most of which are set in farmland, fieldhouses, and abandoned schools, and are scattered throughout the countryside and fields, blending in with the earth. Hundreds of these works are permanent exhibits and can be viewed even when the festival is not in session.
๐ How does transportation work out?
There are six main areas where the festival is held: Tokamachi, Kawanishi, Nakazato, Matsushiro, Matsunoyama, and Tsunami, with Tokamachi being the most important area. It takes about one and a half hours from Tokyo to Echigo Yuzawa by Shinkansen, and about half an hour to Tokamachi by train.
The Shinkansen is more expensive, so you can buy a JR East Nagano Niigata Area Rail Pass, which is valid for 5 days, JR Pass East Japan Rail Pass (Tohoku Area) ยฅ1,218.
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Unlike Setouchi, Echigo Tsumari is very inaccessible and the exhibits are scattered over vast fields with no public transportation between them, so the best way to get around is only by self-driving or chartering a bus. If you drive yourself, you can see all the major pieces in about 2-3 days, and you have more freedom of time and itinerary.
For those who can't drive in Japan, the official tours may be the best choice. During the Art Festival, there are 5 official tours, so you can visit all the highlights of the exhibits in the shortest possible time.
The disadvantage is that the time may not be free, people like me who like to take their time to enjoy and feel the experience will feel too rushed, and it is a full Japanese tour.
To summarize, the prices include lunch and tour guide and full transportation, you need to buy a separate official ticket (passport, will talk about later), the specific itinerary you can go to the official website www.echigo-tsumari.jp/
If you can't drive and want to travel freely, you can also rely on a combination of public transportation, electric bicycles and taxis. Mark the exhibits you want to go to the most on the map, arrange your itinerary, take the train to the main station in your area, and rent a bicycle in front of the station (make sure it's an assisted bicycle, otherwise you will be exhausted if you go uphill).
The disadvantage of this is that you can't go to the more remote places and it's more time-consuming. It takes about 15 minutes to half an hour for each exhibit, but for big exhibits like the Nong Stage and the Monet Art Museum, you need to allow at least 2-3 hours.
๐ Some Practical Tips
Tickets: You can buy a separate ticket for each work, probably between 500-1500 yen, so if you go for more than one day, buy the official work appreciation passport, and you can freely visit all the exhibits during the art festival, and some large exhibits can be entered twice.
Early bird tickets were available online for 3,500 yen before 7/12, and are now back to their normal price of 4,500 yen, which can be purchased at the following locations, or booked together with the official tour mentioned earlier. There are also formula books and atlases available for purchase on site.
Before traveling remember to download the official app, which has all the works introduction, pictures and map location guide, you can collect your favorite works in advance, very convenient!
๐ Accommodation can be chosen like this
The most convenient is to stay near Tokamachi or Echigo Yuzawa station. There are very few accommodations in Tokamachi, so most people choose Echigo Yuzawa, and you can just take the train to and from Tokamachi every day, and the official tours leave from these two stations, and there are more places to eat in the vicinity of Echigo Yuzawa.
It is worth mentioning that there are some exhibits where you can make reservations!
The most popular one is James Turrell's Kohinoor, which is booked out as soon as it opens for reservations a few months in advance. Other accommodations are still available on the official website, like the Dream House and the House of Skinning. These buildings are open for public tours during the day, and at night residents have exclusive access to them, making them a marvelous experience that can't be beat.
๐ค List of Must-See Exhibits
01.Tokamachi
๐ Echigo Tsumari Yuriyama Museum of Contemporary Art MonET (Work No. T025)
Opened in 2003 and rebuilt in 2012, the Echigo-Tsumari-san Museum of Art is one of the best places to visit in Tokamachi and one of the main stages of the Art Festival. As soon as you enter, you are attracted to the square pond in the plaza. The pure and clean shape of the building and the reflection in the water create a perfect work of art, and it is very interesting to see how the view of the atrium can be quite different depending on the weather.
The overall style of the art museum is natural, simple and quiet. There are a lot of permanent exhibits and a lot of new limited-time exhibits during the Art Festival, most of which are in-depth and super photogenic! There is also a cafe and public hot spring on the premises, so it's perfectly possible to wander around for an afternoon.
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Address: 6-1-71-2 Honmachi, Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture
Transportation: 10-minute walk from Tokamachi Station
Opening hours: 10:00-17:00; 9:30-18:00 on weekdays during the Earth Art Festival (final admission 17:30), 9:30-20:00 on weekends and holidays
Admission: 1500 yen
๐ Tajima Seisan Picture Book Museum (้ข&็ฐๅณถๅพไธ ็ตตๆฌใจๆจใฎๅฎใฎ็พ่ก้คจ) (Work No.: T173)
Shizo Tajima is a famous Japanese picture book author, and this gallery was reopened in 2009 from the old abandoned Sanada Elementary School. The "้ข" in the name is the name of the local village, and wood and fruits are the materials he used.
Seizo Tajima used materials from nature to make the school into a fairy tale world like a picture book, with characters and stories scattered in the corridors, staircases, and classrooms, recreating the school's last days, which is very interesting, and is one of my personal favorites.
Address: 2310-1, Sanadako, Tokamachi, Niigata Prefecture
Access: 17 minutes by car from Tokamachi Station (8.5 kilometers)
Opening hours: 10:00-17:00 (until 16:00 in October and November)
Admission: 800 yen
๐Kiss & Goodbye (Op. No. T325)
You must remember the works of Taiwanese picture book author [Guimet] that you read as a child. In 2015, Guimet used Niigata and the JR Iiyama Line as inspiration for his work Forgetting to Give a Kiss, a coming-of-age story about Little Tree, who has lost his parents, and his pudding dog, who embarks on a train journey together.
The permanent artwork "Kiss & Goodbye" was created at Toichi Station and Echigo Mizusawa Station on the Iiyama Line. The artwork resembles a train, and inside the train, there are paintings by Mr. Kimi and scenes from the picture books are reproduced. Thank you, Mr. Kimi, for keeping the hearts of children alive!
"If you are lucky enough to ride on an unoccupied tram, you will meet a miracle."
Address: In front of Toichi Station on the JR Iiyama Line
Opening hours: 10:00-17:00 (until 16:00 in October and November)
Admission: 400 yen
02. Western Sichuan region
๐ Koukou-no-kan (Op. No. K005)
I still remember the surprise when I first saw James Turrell's work at the "Chichu Art Museum" in Naoshima, he is perhaps one of the artists who can use "light" in the world.
During the first art festival in 2000, James built such a house of light in the mountains, and his work was influenced by Junichiro Tanizaki's "Praise of the Shadows", which skillfully blended traditional Japanese houses with his iconic light.
You can feel the presence of art in every corner of the building, and lying on the tatami mats, you can see the square sky shining through the sliding roof, and the color of the light changes like a painting. The light of the hot spring baths is also interesting. You can make a reservation for accommodation here, but it is very popular, and you need to open the official website four months in advance.
Address: 2924-28 Ueno-Ka, Tokamachi, Niigata Prefecture
Access: Tokamachi Station is a 20-minute drive (9.1 km) and is not accessible by public transport
Opening hours: [7/13-10/31] 11:00-15:30 (last admission 15:00)
Admission: JPY600
03. Nakazato area
๐ Tunnel of light (No.: N079)
The 750-meter-long tunnel is designed by members of MAD Architects, led by Chinese architect Ma Yansong, to make use of the natural landscape of the Cheongjin Gorge, one of the three major canyons in the Japan.
The observation deck at the end of the long tunnel offers a natural view of the Kiyotsu Gorge, which changes in the four seasons, and the water surface reflects the figures of people and the canyon, like a dome frame, and you can take a blockbuster photo at will. The work perfectly embodies the idea of combining art and nature. It is worth noting that during the art festival, additional reservations are required for Kiyotsu Gorge, and they are not required for official tours.
Address: 2119-2 Koide, Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture
Access: 25 minutes by car (17 km) from Echigo-Yuzawa Station; Alternatively, take the Yuzawa-Mori Miyanohara Line to the entrance and walk for 30 minutes
Hours: 8:30-17:00 (Admission allowed until 16:30)
Admission: 1,000 yen for adults, 500 yen for art festival passes
๐ For many lost windows (ใใใใใฎๅคฑใใใ็ชใฎใใใซ) (work number: N028)
Akiko Utsumi's 2006 art installation, a simple white window frame stands in the middle of a remote mountain, and the beautiful mountain scenery behind the white curtains fluttering in the wind disappears from time to time, making people not only fascinated, but also reminiscent of the childhood moment when they looked out of the bedroom window in a daze.
Standing in front of the work and feeling the shape of the wind, my heart has never been calmer, and this is probably the emotion that the art festival wants to convey, and man and nature are one.
Address: Niigata Prefecture Tokamachi City Kikyo ๅใญ 1463 ็ชๅฐ 1 ๆกstemๅใใใใๅ
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Access: Tokamachi Station is a 30-minute drive (14 km) and is not accessible by public transport
Opening hours: All day
Admission: Free
04. Matsushiro area
๐ Agricultural stage & local museum
From Matsushiro Station, you can see the entrance to the agricultural stage, and there are many works by artists gathered in the large rice paddies and terraces, but in addition to the exhibits in the main building, there are many more that can be found by walking through the fields, among which the most famous ones are Tanada, Kusama's Hanasaki Tsumari, and oversized bicycles that can be ridden...... Walking up the mountain, you can encounter many surprises, and you can feel the youthful vitality of the earth being injected here.
Don't miss the [Satoyama Cafeteria] in the agricultural stage, there is a buffet every day at noon, and you can stop by for lunch, which is cheap and delicious. The local museum next to it systematically and comprehensively displays the life and history of the locals, so if you are interested, you can take a look.
Address: 3743-1 Matsushiro, Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture
Access: Walk from Matsushiro Station
Opening hours: [7/13~9/30] 9:30-18:00 (last admission 17:30); [10/3~11/10] 9:30-17:00 (last admission 16:30)
Admission: JPY1200
๐ Matsushiro Castle
After visiting the agricultural stage, you can take the shuttle bus or walk to Matsushiro Castle, and there are exhibits at almost every stop on the way. Matsushiro Castle is a three-story building that is now contracted by three artists: Ester stoker's visual work "Vision ใใฎ View", Toyofuku's Golden House "Jurakudi", and Kurakake Junichi "When Peeling Time" created with students from the Faculty of Art of Japan University after "Peeling House".
Address: Matsushiro Castle, Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture
Access: Half an hour on foot from Matsushiro Station
Opening hours: 10:00-17:00 (until 16:00 from October to November)
Admission Fee: Tickets are shared with the Agricultural Stage
05. Matsunoyama area
๐ The Last Classroom (Artwork No.: Y052)
France artist Christian Botansky collaborated with John ยท Carmen, using the long-abandoned Dongchuan Elementary School, which was transformed into a long-abandoned Dongchuan Elementary School, and was shocked every time you entered the first floor, with dim lighting, electric fans in the classroom, and powerful heartbeats...... Silence, heaviness and a hint of warmth, as if you can hear the last cry of this abandoned school, highly recommended!
Address: 192 Higashikawa, Matsunoyama, Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture
Access: [Matsushiro Station] 17 minutes by car (13 km)
Opening hours: 10:00-17:00 (until 16:00 from October to March)
Admission: JPY800
06. Jinnan area
๐ ไธ้ทใฏใญไธใๅบง (Work number: M052)
It is still a building renovated from an abandoned school building, and it is a complex facility that integrates theaters, art exhibitions, restaurants, living spaces, etc., and the exhibitions in the exhibition hall are very interesting, and you can also make reservations for accommodation~
Address: 7-3 Kamiyonomiya, Tsunan Town, Niigata Prefecture
Transportation: 11 minutes by car from Jinnan Station (8.8 km)
Opening hours: 10:00-17:00 (until 16:00 from October to November)
Admission: JPY600
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The concept of "harmony between man and nature" conveyed by the Echigo-Tsumari Land Art Festival is not seen anywhere else, but you can truly feel the power of this phrase when you walk into this field, and there is a touching balance between art, people, and nature, so don't miss out on the opportunity if you have the chance, after all, the next one will be three years away!
- Author:japan guides
- URL:https://japan-guides.com/article/culture-34
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