Towada · Kanchogai-doriNo.1077★★Open in map →

Towada Art Center

cultureOff the trail — and worth it

A contemporary art museum built as a scatter of separate white boxes linked by glass corridors. The street outside carries the collection too, so part of the museum is open air and open to anyone.

FromHachinohe Station
~60 minBus from Hachinohe, ~60 min
Get off atKanchogai-dori (Towada Kanko Dentetsu Bus)
On foot
Towada Art Center

Directions ↗

The sweet spot

Towada sits off the standard Tohoku loop, so the galleries rarely feel pressed even in summer. The layout helps too — visitors move one room at a time along the glass links instead of pooling in a lobby. And the outdoor half never shuts, so an early arrival and a late one both come away with something.

Where it is

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What to look for — in walking order

Art SquareTomokazu Kitjaima / CC BY-SA 3.0

Kanchogai-doriWide avenue, also called Komakaido, with works set along its verges
Flower HorseChoi Jeong-hwa's rearing horse covered in moulded blooms, at the entrance
Permanent collection roomsWhite boxes holding one work each, joined by glass corridors
Michael Lin's wallBlack line drawing wrapping the shop and cafe block
Art SquareLawn opposite with Kusama, inges idee and Erwin Wurm pieces

How to actually get there

At Hachinohe Station take the east exit and find Towada Kanko Dentetsu bus stop 5.
Board a bus bound for Motomachi-Higashi and ride about 60 minutes to Kanchogai-dori.
Walk southwest along the avenue for about five minutes, passing outdoor works on the way.
See the galleries, then cross the road to Art Square before heading back.

Hachinohe Station → Kanchogai-dori: Towada Kanko Dentetsu bus from stop 5 at the east exit, bound for Motomachi-Higashi. About 60 minutes, then five minutes on foot.
Back to Hachinohe Station: The same route in reverse, or the JR bus from the stop in front of the museum. Neither runs often, so read the timetable at the stop when you arrive.

Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

Most museums put the art inside one envelope. Towada does the opposite. Each work was given its own room, and the rooms were then scattered across the site and joined with glass passages. From the pavement you can see through several of them at once, so the place reads as a small town rather than a single hall. The idea carries past the fence: Arts Towada treats the whole avenue as the exhibition, with sculpture on verges, corners and the square opposite. You pay for the interior. What makes the visit is the two halves working on each other.

How to enjoy it

The outdoor half has no gate and no closing hour, so walk the avenue before the galleries open and the sculpture reads clearly in low morning light. Mondays are the usual closing day, moving to the next day when a public holiday falls on one. Buses back towards Hachinohe are not frequent, so settle your return before you go inside.

Background & history

Towada's government district gave the city a wide, straight avenue lined with public buildings and open plots. Arts Towada is the plan that turned it into one long exhibition: a museum at the centre, artworks along the street, and a programme to keep both moving. Nishizawa Ryue designed the building, which opened in 2008 with each work given a room of its own. A square of outdoor sculpture across the road was added later, completing the pair.

Before you go

Cash: The permanent display and special exhibitions are ticketed separately and rates are revised from time to time — check the official site for current amounts. The works on the avenue and in Art Square are free.
Good to know: Mondays are the usual closing day, moving to the following day when a public holiday falls on a Monday, plus the new-year period; confirm dates on the official site. The outdoor pieces stay open in any weather, but this is deep-snow country in winter.
Another way: From Hachinohe Station's west exit, the JR Oirase-go bus for Lake Towada stops in front of the museum in about 40 minutes. Buses from Shichinohe-Towada Station on the Shinkansen reach the same stop.
After you get off: Kanchogai-dori stop is northeast of the museum on the same avenue. Walk southwest for about five minutes; the outdoor works start before the building does.