Obuse

Comments

• 
  davidbltnetwork.com (guest)

  Obuse is famous for a 500 year-old history of chestnut production for the Japanese Shogunate. Any commoner found partaking of just one nut could easily find himself short one hand or even his head! Obuse was an important trading point which created a lot of local wealth. One extremely successful merchant, Takai Kozan, was also very interested in education, particularly the arts. He invited the renowned ukiyoe artist Katsushika Hokusai to Obuse on several occasions and even built the him an atelier. The resulting artwork, considered some of Hokusai's best, can be viewed at the Hokusai Museum, thought to be home of one of the largest and highest-quality Hokusai collections in the world. Kozan's love of art seems to have infected the entire town over the years. Today, Obuse is a not only a hot tourist spot, but also popular gathering place for artists, designers, musicians, movie-makers...just about any creative type one can imagine. Not bad for a town of 13,000 people! If you want an experience like nothing you'll find in Tokyo, visit Obuse.

  16 years ago | reply | hide comment