Adachi Museum of Art

The Adachi Museum of Art, located in Yasugi City, Shimane Prefecture, was founded in 1970 by local entrepreneur Adachi Zenko. Its collection focuses on modern and contemporary Japanese paintings, with the most representative being the works of Yokoyama Taikan. With about 120 pieces, it is considered one of the largest collections of his works in Japan. In addition, the museum also displays masterpieces by modern masters such as Takeuchi Seihō, Hashimoto Kansetsu, Kawai Gyokudō, and Uemura Shōen, as well as calligraphy and ceramics by Kitaōji Rosanjin, wood sculptures by Hirakushi Denchū, children’s paintings by Hayashi Yoshio and Suzuki Toshio, among others, making the collection highly diverse.

Beyond its artworks, the Adachi Museum is also renowned for its Japanese garden, which spans approximately 43,000 square meters. Designed by celebrated landscape designer Nakane Kinsaku, with moss garden planning by Kojima Saichi, the gardens include various areas such as a dry landscape garden (karesansui), a white sand and pine garden, a moss garden, and a pond garden. The design adopts the “borrowed scenery” (shakkei) technique, incorporating distant Mt. Katsuyama and surrounding nature into the visual composition, creating views like a living painting. Founder Adachi Zenko once remarked: “The garden itself is also a painting.” Accordingly, the gardens are meticulously maintained, still cared for daily by dedicated gardeners and museum staff.

The aesthetic value of the museum’s gardens has earned high international acclaim. Since 2003, the American journal Journal of Japanese Gardening has consistently ranked it number one in Japan’s garden rankings. It has also been awarded the highest three-star rating by both the Michelin Green Guide Japan and France’s Guide Bleu Japon.