🗺️ Shinkatsuji Zen and Garden Art Museum神勝寺 禅と庭のミュージアム

The art museum located within the Zen temple "Shinkō-ji" in Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture. This special temple of the Rinzai sect, Ken'nin-ji school, serves not only as a place of worship but also as a space where people can experience what "Zen" truly means through various activities such as Zen meditation and tea ceremonies. Covering an area of approximately 70,000 tsubo, the vast grounds feature a 17th-century building relocated from Shiga Prefecture, a tea room restored and rebuilt by Sen no Rikyū, and a temple office designed by architectural historian and architect Terunobu Fujimori, inspired by Japanese red pine. The gardens connecting the various buildings are also worth a visit. The Hakuin Gallery houses about 200 pieces of Zen paintings and ink works by Zen Master Hakuin, making it one of the largest collections of Hakuin's works in Japan. The permanent exhibition hall "Sōgen-dō" regularly changes its exhibits, allowing visitors to appreciate different works throughout the year. The art exhibition hall "Kōtei," which stands in contrast to Zen art, is also worth a visit. Designed by "SANDWICH" and Kōhei Nawa, this boat-shaped art exhibition hall is wrapped in cypress wood. Inside, visitors can enjoy installation art created by the reflection of light on water patterns. Here, you can not only enjoy Fukuyama's locally certified "Shinkō-ji Udon," tea set meals, and matcha, but also appreciate the garden scenery, participate in Zen meditation, copy sutras, and enjoy ink works and modern art, making for a fulfilling experience through various activities.

A Zen temple located in the mountains of Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture. Various activities such as Zen meditation and tea ceremony can be experienced here. Within the expansive 70,000 tsubo grounds, there are a tea room, temple office, gardens, as well as an art exhibition hall and architecture. In the art exhibition hall "Kōtei," visitors can experience art installations.