Bato Hiroshige Museum of Art

In the quiet Naka River country east of Nasu, the small town of Bato holds a building that architecture pilgrims cross the country to see: the Nakagawa-machi Bato Hiroshige Museum of Art, an early masterpiece by Kengo Kuma.

Why It’s Interesting

Kuma wrapped the long, low building head to toe in slender louvers of local Yamizo cedar, so the whole structure seems to dissolve into a soft screen of light and shadow — an attempt, he said, to translate the slanting rain of Hiroshige’s famous woodblock prints into architecture. Inside hangs exactly that: Hiroshige’s ukiyo-e, hand-painted works, and Utagawa-school prints. The art and the building rhyme so well that the museum became as celebrated as its collection, winning a stack of architecture awards.

Best Time to Visit

Year-round — indoor and contemplative. The cedar facade is beautiful in any light, especially low afternoon sun.

Getting There

It’s remote; easiest by car along the Naka River valley, with bus connections from Nasushiobara for the determined.