Umi-Mori Art Museum

 

Many visitors to the World Heritage site of Miyajima are curious about the unusual piece of architecture they can see on the hillside of the mainland opposite Miyajima.

technically it is the Umi-Mori Art Museum, but in reality, it is the headquarters of some kind of "new religion".

The giant golden statues sitting atop the structure seem to be Buddhist, 

Founded in 1954, and called, I believe, Byodo Daieikai, it seems to be based on the Lotus Sutra.

I had read that the organization held quite a large and diverse collection of art, so I stopped in on my way to Miyajima.

I was quite disappointed as the only things on exhibit were the collection of perfume bottles,.... not of much interest to me,.... and some paintings by the early 20th century Nihonga painter Takeuchi Seiho,. which were ok.

I had hoped to see some of their Chinese prints and Ukiyo-e. I have heard that since I visited 11 years ago they have done some renovation work and now there are two floors of exhibition space as well as a restaurant and a balcony with great views of Miyajima, and a changing series of exhibitions.

Also finished since I visited is a promenade that features a wide variety of flowers year round,,,,

When I was there, an upper part, resembling a Chinese garden, was finished and pleasant enough.

The buildings draws a lot of indignation from foreign tourists visiting Miyajima, as it seems to interfere with their idea of what Japan should appear like.

However, to my mind, having such a building visible from Miyajima is very much a reflection of real  Japanese culture....

The previous post was on my walk here down the Ota River from Mitakidera.