Azumino Chihiro Art Museum

The Azumino Chihiro Art Museum is a museum where you can enjoy the collection works of "Chihiro Iwasaki," who has captivated people with her soft depictions of animals and plants and children's works painted with watercolors. The museum is a place where you can encounter life. Everyone will be moved by the landscape of Azumino, where magnificent nature spreads out, and Chihiro's paintings, which are rooted in the heart of this land. Inside the museum, works by picture book artists from around the world are also on display. Why not appreciate the differences between the picture books you were familiar with as a child and those from various countries while looking at the works?

The Azumino Chihiro Art Museum, which boasts being the first museum children will visit in their lives, features exhibits and facilities that can be enjoyed from a child's perspective. All of the displayed works are installed at a height of 135cm from the floor, making it possible for children to enjoy viewing them at eye level. In the "Children's Room," a kids' space, you can take off your shoes and read picture books or play, making it a fun time for parents and children to spend together all day long!

The building, designed by the renowned Japanese architect Hiroshi Naito, features a design that harmonizes beautifully with the mountains in the background that create the beautiful landscape of Azumino. The facility uses a lot of wood, allowing you to feel the rich nature of Azumino even when indoors. In addition, there are chairs placed in the courtyard where soft light shines in, making it the perfect place to spend a relaxing time.

Azumino Chihiro Park, with an area of 53,500 square meters surrounding the art museum, is one of the highlights of the Azumino Chihiro Museum of Art. Just walking around the park, you can feel the changing of the seasons, from cherry blossoms in the spring, lush greenery in the summer, autumn leaves in the fall, to a snowy landscape in the winter. You can't miss the colorful flowers that Chihiro used as motifs in many of her works, which will surely heal you with the richness of nature.

At the "Totto-chan Square" created in Azumino Chihiro Park, you can experience the world of "Totto-chan by the Window," a character beloved for the illustrations of Chihiro Iwasaki (written by the director of the Chihiro Art Museum, Tetsuko Kuroyanagi). In the square, the "Classroom on the Train," which actually appeared in the story and where Tetsuko Kuroyanagi spent her elementary school days, is also reproduced. It's a space where visitors can enjoy themselves in their own way, whether by peeking into the unique classroom scenery or reminiscing about their own school life.