With the arrival of fall, comes the start of the harvest season. In Niigata prefecture, in Northern Japan, this means rice is ready to be picked—and the rice straw, known as wara, is set to be discarded. Some farmers feed it to animals, while others use it as fertilizer. But after a particular surplus of wara in the mid-aughts, they came up with a creative alternative. Since 2008, the Wara Art Festival has rallied students to create massive sculptures with this material, turning the area into a seasonal tourist attraction.
This year, the theme was “Awakening the sleeping beasts of Echigo,” a former province of Japan that disappeared in 1871 and is part of modern-day Niigata. The five wara sculptures built this year depict fantastical creatures that draw from local folklore, such as a fish representative of Niigata, a Golden turtle, a water dragon, a fox with nine tails, and a feline that pays tribute to Nagao Kagetora, a magnate known as “The Tiger of Echigo.”
Though the festival originally summoned gifted students from Musashino Art University, the 2025 edition has additionally invited creatives from the Tohoku University of Art and Design and the Nagaoka University of Design. The ask is not only to bring more people in with their creations, but also to foster a sense of unity and pride among the locals. With the attention the festival receives year after year, they’ve surely been up to the task.
This year’s five straw sculptures will be on view at Uwasekigata Park until October 31. You can either visit during the day to take in the intricacies of the artworks, or wait for them to be lit up at dusk for an otherworldly experience. The festival also includes the Nishikan Market, where you can find local agricultural products, food, drink, and crafts.
To stay up to date, make sure to follow the Wara Art Festival on Instagram.
Every year, the Wara Art Festival invites Japanese art students to create massive sculptures with wara (or rice straw), turning the area into a seasonal tourist attraction.
This year, the theme was “Awakening the sleeping beasts of Echigo,” a former province of Japan that disappeared in 1871 and is part of modern-day Niigata.
The five wara sculptures built this year depict fantastical creatures from local folklore.
They include a fish representative of Niigata, a Golden turtle, a water dragon, a fox with nine tails, and a feline that pays tribute to Nagao Kagetora, a magnate known as “The Tiger of Echigo.”
While the festival originally summoned gifted students from Musashino Art University, this year they also invited creatives from the Tohoku University of Art and Design and the Nagaoka University of Design.
The five straw sculptures will be on view at Uwasekigata Park until October 31.
Wara Art Festival: Website | Instagram
Sources: Student Artists Awaken Mythical Beasts of the Echigo Region Using Straw
All images via Wara Art Festival.
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