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Mino Washi Akari Art Gallery

Shibuya246 · · 8 photos

One of the grand prize winners, layers of crumpled paper glowing like rock.Photo dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/60sISO250Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:15
One of the grand prize winners, layers of crumpled paper glowing like rock.

Mino in Gifu Prefecture has been making washi, traditional Japanese paper, for centuries. Hon-minoshi paper from Mino is one of the three washi traditions on UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list.

A good first stop is the Mino Washi Akari Art Gallery, a small museum in the old streets of the Udatsu district. It shows prize-winning works from the Mino Washi Akari Art Exhibition, a competition for lamps and light sculptures made from washi that the town holds every autumn.

A poodle sculpture made of curly white paper, lit from inside a glass casePhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/60sISO400Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:11
A poodle made from washi, lit from the inside.
A lamp of crumpled white paper shaped into a ballPhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/120sISO125Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:16
Crumpled paper shaped into a ball of light.
A round lamp covered in small overlapping paper petalsPhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/60sISO320Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:16
Hundreds of small pieces of paper make up this one.
A row of glowing paper lamps along a dark roomPhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/60sISO100Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:17
The works are lined up in a dark room so the light stands out.
A round lamp of folded white paper with a grand prize signPhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/120sISO50Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:18
Another grand prize, folded like a flower.
A tall lamp of paper rolled into tubes and spikes, lit green and whitePhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/120sISO125Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:18
Paper cut and rolled into tubes and spikes.
A ring-shaped lamp of folded paper on a wooden stand with a grand prize signPhoto dataCameraApple iPhone 16 PlusLensiPhone 16 Plus back dual wide camera 5.96mm f/1.6Focal length6mmAperturef/1.6Shutter1/120sISO125Taken20 Sep 2026, 10:19
Folded paper on a wooden stand, another prize winner.

It is a small place and doesn't take long, but in the dark room with every piece glowing it is really beautiful. You can take photos, but not touch the works. Entry is ¥200, or you can get a combined ticket that also covers the old Imai house and the main Mino Washi Museum, which was the next stop.

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