What kind of place is the Adachi Museum of Art
The Adachi Museum of Art opened in 1970 in Yasugi City, Shimane Prefecture. It was founded by businessman Zenko Adachi out of love for his home region, and it holds more than 120 masterpieces of modern Japanese painting, including works by Yokoyama Taikan.
The museum’s greatest highlight is its Japanese garden, which spreads across some 50,000 tsubo (about 165,000 square meters). Several gardens — a dry landscape garden, a white-gravel-and-pine garden, and more — change their faces with the four seasons, and the garden has been chosen as No.1 in Japan for 22 years running in the garden rankings of the American Japanese-garden specialist magazine “The Journal of Japanese Gardening.”
You can reach it in about 20 minutes by free shuttle bus from JR Yasugi Station, and you can take a leisurely half day to enjoy both the art and the garden. Paired with the ruins of Gassantoda Castle, it has long been loved as a classic part of any Yasugi sightseeing route.
Highlights
- A 50,000-tsubo Japanese garden — A succession of gardens including a dry landscape garden and a white-gravel-and-pine garden, which you can also admire as “living paintings” through the windows inside the building
- No.1 in Japan for 22 years running in the garden rankings — A record chosen by an American Japanese-garden specialist magazine, and proof of the beauty of a garden tended through every season
- The Yokoyama Taikan collection — More than 120 works in the collection, including pieces by Yokoyama Taikan, one of the painters who defined modern Japanese painting
- Special exhibitions — The displays are rotated regularly, so even a return visit in a different season holds new discoveries
- The garden through the seasons — From fresh spring greenery to deep summer green, autumn foliage, and winter snowscapes, the garden’s expression changes greatly with each season
Time needed, fees, and access
Taking your time through the garden and the permanent exhibition, allow about 2 to 3 hours as a rough guide. If there is a special exhibition on, it’s good to set aside even more time.
Access
- About 20 minutes by free shuttle bus from JR Yasugi Station (check the official site for the bus timetable)
- About 30 minutes by car from the Yonago area
Address: 320 Furukawa-cho, Yasugi City, Shimane Prefecture
For the latest information on admission fees, opening hours, the shuttle bus timetable, and more, please check the official website.
Who this is for
- Those who want to take their time and savor the beauty of a Japanese garden
- Those interested in modern Japanese painting and in Yokoyama Taikan
- Those looking for a destination for a day-trip drive from the Yonago and Hōki area
Places to stop by nearby
The ruins of Gassantoda Castle in Yasugi City are the remains of an impregnable mountain castle that the Amago clan held as their stronghold for some 170 years during the Warring States period. It has been chosen as one of Japan’s Top 100 Castles, and pairing it with the Adachi Museum of Art has become a classic part of any Yasugi sightseeing route.
For all the spots in the Yasugi and Yonago area, please see the map. For the historical background, take a look at the history stories as well.
