Bikan Historical Area, where many folkcraft shops are clustered within walking distance
With Yanagisawa as our guide, we visited select shops in the Bikan Historical Area.
Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft Shop
The shop at the Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft carries folkcraft from Kurashiki and Okayama, as well as folkcraft from all over Japan.
There are also reasonably priced items for everyday use, such as postcards, so I got the impression that there are many things you can pick up as a memento of your visit to the Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft.
Toutou Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft South Shop
Toutou is a shop that introduces Japanese crafts and operates accommodation facilities.
Items used as everyday tools, such as kitchenware, are displayed in the order they are used. Natural light streams in, giving the shop a refined feel.
Toutou Gallery
Toutou Gallery sells crafts by contemporary artists working in a variety of genres.
The items in the shop also have a refined feel, and I felt as though I were viewing works of art.
Kobo Ikuko
Kobo Ikuko is a gallery located next to Geibunkan Hall, a short distance from the Bikan Historical Area. It is a shop dealing in art and crafts, established by IKUKO, an apparel maker specializing mainly in women's clothing. Its wide selection of crafts ranges from works by nationally renowned artists to those by young makers working hard in Okayama.
The gallery occupies two floors, and exhibitions by craft artists are reportedly held regularly on the second floor.
Plus One Gallery +1GALLERY
Plus One Gallery is a gallery attached to the Japanese Folk Toy Museum.
Exhibitions by a wide variety of artists, featuring crafts ranging from glass and ceramics to dolls, accessories, and interior decor, are also held regularly.
Atiburanti
Atiburanti is a shop inside Hayashi Genjuro Shoten featuring products that make use of materials such as paper, cloth, and wood. It also holds regular exhibitions in its attached gallery.
While other galleries mainly exhibit glassworks and ceramics, Atiburanti is distinctive for also displaying many handcrafted items you might want to take outside the home, such as umbrellas and stationery.
Toworu Mingei
The Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft is a place to “show” folkcraft, while Toworu Mingei is a place to “share” it. This folkcraft shop has been in business since 1971. Fans come from all over Japan to see the many works personally selected and purchased by the current and former owners.
The works are all practical, and some are affordably priced. The owner explains how to use them and what the makers had in mind, giving the impression that you can take your time choosing something suited to your own life.
Even works by the same artist vary slightly from shop to shop
The Bikan Historical Area has many shops selling folkcraft, all within walking distance of one another.
Although you might think they are competitors, even works by the same artist vary slightly in selection from shop to shop.
Artists create with each shop's atmosphere in mind, thinking, “I want to place this kind of work in this shop.” As a result, staff at every shop kindly tell you, “That work is available at the shop over there.”
After our walk around the select shops, Yanagisawa said:
“It is very rare to find a town like the Bikan Historical Area, where the Ohara Museum of Art, the Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft, and distinctive shops are clustered together in such a small area. I think it is a town where it is easy to find works you want to bring into your own life, so I hope you will visit a variety of shops and enjoy comparing them.”
From the Writer
Since coming to Kurashiki, I too have increasingly found myself buying everyday items at select shops in the Bikan Historical Area.
I think this is because, compared with before I moved here, I now have more opportunities to hear directly from the makers about their intentions, and to ask people who actually use handcrafted tools, “This is how I use it,” helping me imagine how to incorporate them into my own life.
This is probably also greatly influenced by the character of the region, where people have actively interacted with and supported artists who endorsed the Mingei movement since its early days.
After taking your time to explore the craft galleries at the Ohara Museum of Art and the Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft, why not set out on a journey through the Bikan Historical Area to find handcrafted tools that suit your own life?
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