Craft
Sahari Orin—Nanjō Kōbō Foundry: Forging the Sounds of Awakening
When visiting Kyōto, it is almost impossible to escape the ringing harmony of Japanese spirituality echoing from any number of temples and shrines. And, since the final days of Medieval Japan, the Nanjō Kōbō Foundry has taken part in the creation of traditional musical instruments intended for use in Shintō and Buddhist rites, rituals, and celebrations.
Sanuki Temari: Threads of Elegance
The green islands rising from the richly blue expanses of the Seto Inland Sea are well-known as bastions of artistic expression across the region, and this is a reputation well-deserved. After all, it is right here where travelers are able to encounter some of the most powerfully transformative and moving examples of contemporary art in Japan and arguably in the world...
Ningyō-Jōruri: A Performance Preserved
Amid one of the many quiet suburbs surrounding Tokushima City proper and nearby the deep green waters of the Miyajimaekogawa River, is the Awa Jurobe Manor; a renovated traditional style mansion complete with picturesque courtyard garden, quaint tea house, and towering pines. Of course, it serves as a nice example of traditional Japanese architecture but such structures are common in Japan which begs the question, “what makes this manor any different?