What is INAKA (countryside)?

失われつつある「生きる実感」が、まだ残っている場所。

- A place where the sense of being alive, which is being lost, still remains -

INAKA (countryside) is not simply a word that refers to a place with abundant nature or a sparsely populated area.
There is time to feel the changes of the seasons with your body, a lifestyle that has been built up in harmony with the land, and a culture that is nurtured through face-to-face relationships.

Unlike cities where convenience and efficiency take priority, INAKA offers space to stop, observe, think, and create. This space is what deeply stimulates people's sensibilities and imagination.

Kitahiroshima Town in Hiroshima Prefecture and its surrounding areas are surrounded by nature in the Chugoku Mountains, and are a place where traditional farming, Kagura and flower rice planting are still alive and well in people's lives.

The changing seasons and close proximity to other people provide the "time to feel" and "room to think" necessary for creativity. That is why Kitahiroshima has begun an artist-in-residence initiative that is not just a tourist or leisure activity, nor is it a short-term stay; it is an opportunity for artists to immerse themselves in the local area. By allowing artists to live in the town, their expression is linked to the landscape and lifestyle, bringing new perspectives to the region.

Artist residency

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INAKA Muse

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This site aims to promote creative activities centered on the arts, against the backdrop of the rich natural environment of the mountainous region centered around Kitahiroshima Town in Hiroshima Prefecture, and the culture, history, and everyday knowledge that have been nurtured there, thereby promoting locally rooted arts and culture and facilitating international exchange, thereby contributing to the revitalization and sustainable development of the region.

Additionally, we aim to support the development of diverse careers and practical applications by cultivating the next generation of rural talent, fostering an international atmosphere in the region, and creating an environment in which artists and other creative talent can be active both domestically and internationally while remaining rooted in the local community, thereby bringing pride and new value to the region.