Pat's Blog

Walking around the Sunport area in Takamatsu this morning it was pretty cold and keeping warm was the thing most on my mind. Still, the preparations for the Seto Inland Sea Art Festival, or as it’s now called, ‘The Setouchi Triennale 2013’ are progressing and despite the cold, I could feel the latent expectation of both the Spring and the big event itself.



The beautiful concourse that runs from the ferry terminals to the Japan Rail Takamatsu Station is bedecked with banners advertising the event.



One lives in hope that the prefectural & city governments will have the common sense to invite the shipping companies plying the route from Yokohama, Kobe & Hiroshima overseas tourists be asked to berth in Takamatsu. This seems eminently sensible, should have been thought of years ago. Given that the new port has been open for over ten years, with still with no serious attempt to lure the lucrative ship cruise industry, save the one & same Japanese vessel ‘Pacific Princess’ that comes a few times each year. This is extraordinarily shortsighted and must be rectified by the government. Either that or we must give up complaining about falling business revenues.



The port are is undergoing some changes, parking areas are being built and the new floating ferry dock catering for the ferries going out to the islands is ready.



Of course we’re all excited about this and think the art festival will do both a lot for the economy and the image of Takamatsu as a destination for both international and domestic visitors, in and of itself. Something it certainly deserves to be.



Cathy and I will be covering the festival on this site so we hope you’ll both visit us and our related sites on Takamatsu.

              http://wikitravel.org/en/Takamatsu

http://www.city.takamatsu.kagawa.jp/english/

I’ll be back in a couple of weeks to tell you about a great exhibition I reviewed today entitled; “The World of Small”.

See you then and please stay posted.

  

This month’s Art Takamatsu blog is about three titles; ‘Let’s Talk with Masters, Feel the Taste, Let’s absorb Sanuki (old name for Kagawa)
If you’re coming to Takamatsu next month then this is a wonderful opportunity to experience some talks buy a bonsai master, a lacquer- ware maker, A ceramic artist, a stone artist from the world renown Aji area near Takamatsu.
This promises to be insightful and I’m posting the link as it has all the good photos and video clips about the event., so please be sure to click on the link below, please!
Venue: The historic Tamamo Park right across from the JR Takamatsu Central station.
2013
 20th. March(Wed.) 〜 23th(Sat.)     　5 groups are limited per day
 25th  March(Mon.) 〜 29th(Fri.)       accepting people in groups of 2
Times:  open 17:30 〜        start  18:30 〜 20:30
Fee: ￥10,000 per person (including the park entrance fee]

applications are only by booking in advance

reservations & link: http://www.takumino-shizuku.jp/index_e.html

Contact:       Takumino Shizuku     Tel.  087-826-2160

You can have a wonderful time at 'The Hiunkaku' in Tamamo Park (the site of the Takamatsu Castle) and experience refined Japanese cuisine with local products, domestic staff & with the tableware that were made by local potters and lacquer-ware makers, and also you can enjoy the world famous Aji stone and the 'bonsai' tradition that that has 200years history in this prefecture and city.

Bonsai   Yoichi  Nakanishi, the owner of the Nakanishi Chinshoen
               (The Nakanishi Chinshoen has 100years history and main
               garden in Kinashi Bonsai area.)

Potter:     Tomomi Hiraoka

Hiraoka is the only pupil of Nobuo Ito who became a member of Japan Arts and Crafts Association and the first one from
Kagawa.

Lacquer-ware maker:  Daisuke Nakata
His studio has been producing sales from small goods like dishes to big furniture such as chairs.   

Aji Stone:  Hiroyuki Yamada, the president of Yamada Tadashi stone
 shop.
Yamada is a first-class technician of stone cutting, & stone arrangement
                
Chef: Tsuneo Yamamoto, the president of the traditional Japanese
restaurant 'Nicho' in Takamatsu.
Nicho was founded in 1945 has a long history.

So if you’re already in Japan or intending to visit, this is a marvelous opportunity and that Takamatsu is very close and easily accessible from almost anywhere in Japan.

              http://wikitravel.org/en/Takamatsu
http://www.city.takamatsu.kagawa.jp/english/

I’ll be back in a couple of weeks with more art news from Takamatsu. See you then and let’s remember spring is just around the corner ..