The Sand Museum
Nature created the “Tottori Sand Dunes,” a formative beauty created over the years. We want to create an unprecedented creative man-made beauty here and to excite and impress people who visit this site. This desire came to life as the “Sand Museum” which opened at the Tottori Sand Dunes on November 18, 2006. The museum is Japan’s only open-air museum exhibiting sculptures made of “sand.” Katsuhiko Chaen, who is now active domestically and abroad as a sand sculptor and producer, is attracting attention as one of “100 Japanese individuals the world respects,” is the executive producer of the museum. The highest level of sand sculptures in the world are exhibited every year, inviting sandsculptors from around the world. Sand sculptures eventually collapse as the material is sand. You can see for a brief time, in that place. The transience is the attraction and beauty of sand sculpture.
(Ref: http://www.sand-museum.jp/en/)
The Vast of Sand, one of Japna’s heritages
National Park Tottori Sand Dunes
Sanin Coast National Park was designated as a semi-national park in 1955, and was promoted to a national park in 1963. As for Tottori Sand Dunes, 131 hectares, offering good scenery of dunes were designated as a special protection area, where harmful acts have been strictly restricted. Moreover, in 1955, Tottori Sand Dunes were designated as a national natural treasure being evaluated as scientifically valuable, due to its undulation as a coastal dune, unique geographical features and plant communities peculiar to dunes, including wind ripples, Saren (stripe pattern on sand), sand poles, and roundleaf chastetree (vitex rotundifolia).
Japan’s Greatest Sand Ground–Tottori Sand Dunes
Is this a trick of nature? — We put our feet on the art which wind and the earth have woven. The great dunes measures 16 kms from east to west, and 2 kms from north to south. The feel of the sand on your feet relaxes you with its soft texture after being on asphalt. “The hill of sand,” carried by wind and Sendai River that flows from Chugoku Mountains, has been accumulating for 100,000 years, and thus the expansiveness fascinates 1.3 million people who visit annually. Tottori Sand Dunes, the largest dunes in Japan. There are many unique geographical features and tourist spots, and you can see their various expressions that change according to the seasons and the time of the day. It’s just like a natural theme park.
Northwestern seasonal wind ease and dune plants begin to come up from sand, and then the spring sky changes the sea and sand into brighter colors, with a the light feel of the wind passing through the Dune. When spring comes, the Dunes start to show various expressions. The morning or evening is the best time to see wind ripples. Since the sun light enters obliquely, the shadows clearly come out and the beauty is highlighted.
Tottori Sand Dunes Sand Museum (tottori city)
Tottori Sand Dunes Sand Museum, “located in Fukube-cho, Tottori city, continues its operation from the 1st exhibition held in 2006.
The museum is Japan’s only open-air museum exhibiting sculptures made of “sand”.
Katsuhiko Chaen, who is now active domestically and abroad as a sand sculptor and producer, is attracting attention as one of “100 Japanese individuals the world respects”, is the executive producer of the museum.
The highest level of sand sculptures in the world are exhibited every year, inviting sand sculptors from around the world.
The museum is Japan’s only open-air museum exhibiting sculptures made of “sand”.
Katsuhiko Chaen, who is now active domestically and abroad as a sand sculptor and producer, is attracting attention as one of “100 Japanese individuals the world respects”, is the executive producer of the museum.
The highest level of sand sculptures in the world are exhibited every year, inviting sand sculptors from around the world.
The Fukiage-hama Sand Festival (Minami-satsuma city, Kagoshima)
The first “Fukiage-hama Sand Festival” was held at Kaseda city (now Minami-satsuma city), Kagoshima Prefecture, in 1987, as the Japan’s first sand sculpture event, with the expectation of Kaseda citizens who wanted to utilize its beautiful local sand beach to revitalize the city.
After that, the festival was held every year (it ceased in 2002).
There are more than 80 exhibits made of the sand of Fukiage-hama, which is one of the three largest sand dunes in Japan.
Sand sculptors throughout the world, local people, and local elementary/junior high school students make sand sculptures jointly, in cooperation with 1000 or more volunteers.
The festival is such a big event that the whole city gets involved.The headquarters of the Japan Sand Sculpture Association is located here, making the city the pioneer of sand sculpturing of Japan.
After that, the festival was held every year (it ceased in 2002).
There are more than 80 exhibits made of the sand of Fukiage-hama, which is one of the three largest sand dunes in Japan.
Sand sculptors throughout the world, local people, and local elementary/junior high school students make sand sculptures jointly, in cooperation with 1000 or more volunteers.
The festival is such a big event that the whole city gets involved.The headquarters of the Japan Sand Sculpture Association is located here, making the city the pioneer of sand sculpturing of Japan.
This was a beautiful museum. Very detailed sand sculptures. Every year thesand sculptures are based on a central theme. This year’s theme was South Asia.