Pat's Blog

“Gem” (noun) ‘Definition; something beautiful or outstandingly good. Often left undiscovered’

And that’s just what the Yotsuya Simon Doll House in Sakaide City is.



Tel: 0877 45 1111 open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and within walking distance from Sakaide JR station. Open from 10:00~16:00.
500-yen adults



This exhibit just blew me away with the intoxicating imagery. Not much abstraction but a very dramatic, part fantasy, raw and direct observation of the human form through the medium of dolls and at times amusing. Quite possibly the most powerful look at the human form I’ve ever seen anywhere and I’ve looked at quite a lot over many years. The only comparison I could come up with was the Australian artist Lutz Presser for similarities. http://www.lutzpresser.com/mp.htm



The museum is staffed by a lovely woman who took a lot of trouble explaining things to me and she obviously feels very passionate about the works and the owners, the remarkable Kamada family. Makers of high-quality soy sauce and Japanese food products for centuries. The Kamadas are well known for both their philanthropy and contributions to the arts here in Kagawa prefecture.



After a few minutes here, I realized that I was actually in a ‘dolls house.’ This is where they lived and I was the guest. I’m a little slow to catch on, as it took me a few minutes to wake up to that and from then on I saw the works in a different way.



The first doll at the entrance was the huge man in a bowler and Rene Magritte must have inspired the figure.



I won’t go on trying to explain about this wonderful gem I found but urge anyone with an interest in art to go see this amazing exhibition. It will speak for itself and a few months after my visit I’m still thinking about it.



So until next month, enjoy the cooling breezes and see you then. Thanks for taking the time to read the blog.

Pat
  

http://www.ishiakari-road.com

This year’s evening event was the first time for me and it was a new and beautiful experience. Mure is on the outskirts of Takamatsu city.



The medieval Genpei battle site is also in the area and the ‘Genpei Trail’ is also here. This path offers visitors information on who did what in this pivotal battle and critical turning point in early Japanese history.



The Mure area as I’ve written in an earlier blog, famous throughout the country (and the world) for the granite stone quarried and cut around here.



Now the citizens of Mure town and the local authorities have developed a stone lantern walk, which is through a main street in the town and it has become an attraction to showcase the skills of the local craftspeople.



Information (in Japanese only) is available at the entrance to the walk and there is no fee, so if you’ve the notion to visit in the summer, it’s well worth a visit.



This year’s even runs through 8/4~9/17






I’ll be back with more in a week or so. Until then, enjoy the pleasant respite from the summer heat and feel the cooler air. Such a relief …
Until then, keep all those cards n’ letters coming in.