SHOKOKU-JI near KYOTO GYOEN where the former imperial palace stands

It's free to stroll through KYOTO GYOEN park and even look into the former imperial palace grounds. The imperial palace is now open to the public without advance application and it's free of charge. Near the GYOEN stands SHOKOKU-JI, a very big ZEN temple. You can try a garden there, an easy walking distance from the GYOEN. The temple has a museum too. Check it out.

SHOKOKU-JI GARDEN

TOJI-EN within a walking distance from RYOAN-JI or vice versa

When you wish to be away from the crowd in Kyoto, there's this simple way you can take.

In addition to the very famous temples and shrines, Kyoto has numerous more. You should just simply try one of those.

TOJI-IN is easy to go. My recommendation is you visit MYOSHINJI-JI, TOJI-IN, and RYOAN-JI on foot.

Check your Kyoto map. They are close to each other. The first two can be appreciated in a quiet comfortable settings. You need a bit of patience with the last because it's world-famous thanks to the Royal visit from the UK - visit by Queen Elithabeth the second in 1975.

Photos from TOJI-IN.

KAWAMURA MEMORIAL DIC MUSEUM OF ART

Surprisingly, this museum on the outskirts of tokyo has this invaluable collection of Rothko's MURALS supposed to have adorned the walls of the Four Seasons restaurant.

See this to know more about the Rothko room.

http://kawamura-museum.dic.co.jp/en/collection/mark_rothko.html

Because of the Rothko room, I tried the museum but there are many other worthy of seeing here. If you are an art lover and would like to be away from hustle and bustle of Tokyu for a day, this is a place for you.

In addition to the Rothko room, enchanting was the Twonbly room because of the settings of the room itself with two large windows incorporating the sky and trees under different sunshine outside and Twonbly's artworks - only two, which was also good - being there in THIS room. 

It was an extra gift for me to be able to see TOHAKU's monochrome painting 'Crows and Herons." His  'Pine Forest' is by far my favorite but this one is close.

 Museum signboard at the bus stop in front of JR Sakura station

 Stella

 Garden with easy nature trails

 Just before the museum closed at 5:00 pm

New wing of Corbusier's art museum, ueno, tokyo

The new wing of the national museum of western art, ueno, Tokyo, was designed by Maekawa, a Japanese architect who worked under Le Corbusier. The original wing designed by Le Corbusier is on the list of the world cultural heritage. 

Corbusier came to Japan in 1955 and stayed there for eight days. He looked at the site where the museum to exhibit the MATSUKATA COLLECTION was going to be built.

The collection consisted of western artworks collected by mr. Matsukata, an important business person of Japan in those days. Part of the collection kept in France was confiscated by the French government as enemy asset after the Second World War was over but as a result of diplomatic effort, was to be returned or PRESENTED to Japan with some conditions. 

One important condition was to build a museum suitable to exhibit the returned paintings and sculptures. Le Corbusier was approached as an architect of the new museum. He came to Japan, looked at the planned construction site, and later sent in the blueprints. In practice his three students including Maekawa was in charge of realizing the museum proposed by Corbusier. 

The Tokyo Bunka Kaikan, designed by Maekawa and opened in 1961, stands in front of the museum. It was built for opera and ballet performance but also commemorated the 500th anniversary of the city after the first castle was built in present-day Tokyo by OTA Dokan. Such complex for cultural activities was part of the plan proposed by Corbusier but given up due to financial straits. Later it came into being in a different way. The mentor and the student now see each other through their buildings.

 The green walls of the new wing

 

Bunka Kaikan whose large glass windows reflect autumn color in ueno park

Miraishin-no-oka

This marble garden is behind a colorful temple built in the twelfth century for the founder's mother. It's different from conventional temples, full of filial devotion but different type of atmosphere. Furthermore, it's surprising to find this garden in the back of the temple. You do not have to go to Italy or Greece. You would feel like you were there. The temple and the garden lie in one of the islands along the shimanami scenic sea route, IKUCHI-JIMA. The marble garden is something.

INBE, SHIZUTANI, & NARIWA

I saw nobody from abroad. Be one of the first to be there. INBE is home for BIZEN pottery. Lots of kilns and stores of BIZEN as well as remains of old ceramic firing places. SHIZUTANI SCHOOL was built for common people's education by lord IKEDA Mitsumasa in the Edo period in the 17th century. The roofs of the school were the BIZEN. The NARUWA MUSEUM was designed by ANDO Tadao. This time it hosts the special exhibit of KUSAMA Yayoi.

 

Amatsu Jinja Shinto shrine has BIZEN guardian animals at the TORII gate. The approach is also made of BIZEN.

And roofs, too.

BIZEN showcase and a living beckoning cat. The cat must be a store's PR member.

A climbing kiln for firing BIZEN.

IKEDA Mitsumasa, the founder of SHIZUTANI SCHOOL, had his relics  enshrined here.

The mound for Mitsumasa and stone walls unique to this compound.

Museum designed by ANDO on the former castle grounds.

Teshima something new from the 2016 Setouchi International Art Festival

The access to teshima is still inconvenient but it should be an integral part of your journey to this island where the circle of life is presented through art and architecture in the beautiful natural settings. 

Many of the installations for the triennnale will be gone but LEMON HOTEL stays. This is a renovated Japanese house converted into a hotel where you experience fun art. In this installation, you and your partner follow the instructions from your headset and eventually you might be doing HOHO LEMON. It requests you to pick up one of the lemons in the room, and hold it between the cheeks or HOHO of you and your partner, and take a picture.

I wonder if this activity of following the instructions stay because a staffer has to stand by and it needs some expense. But the hotel is very much booked up for the coming months. I might want to stay. 

This new installation for the 2016 triennale gives you a sense of being cradle by blessings from nature. 

This is made of NORI, sheets of dried seaweed. It's tasty. Many colors of the MORI was due to the nutrition each get when growing in the sea. Overtime, the NORI here has been discolored and it gives you a warm feeling, rather. 

The site on teshima where the illegal dumping and burning of industrial waste happened can be seen in a distance. This was taken from a chartered boat before landing on teshima. The waste treatment is planned to be finished next year, now going on in the facility in naoshima.