Learn about the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake

What comes to mind when you think of the city of Kobe? Many people probably think of the sophisticated modern city with western influences that it is today. When you look at this beautiful city, it’s hard to imagine what it looked like 18 years ago when a huge earthquake devastated Kobe and the surrounding areas at dawn on January 17, 1995 and more than 6,000 people lost their lives.

I would like to introduce the best places to learn about that event.

 

The Disaster Reduction and Human Renovation Institution (The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Memorial), located in Chuo ward in Kobe, provides real insight into the tragedy and how the city managed to recover from the effects of the earthquake to come back as one of the most beautiful cities in Japan. It also has plenty of resources on disaster management and an earthquake simulation theater, both of which have contributed a lot to national and international disaster risk reduction.

 

Disaster Reduction and Human Renovation Institution

 

Recreation of the earthquake’s aftermath

 

Hyogo souvenir collection: Banshu-ori Textiles

New serious “Hyogo souvenir collection” starts from this issue.

When you travel somewhere, picking up souvenir is always fun part of a journey. We would like to introduce some of the best local products in Hyogo in this series. Today, I’ll introduce the Hyogo’s top-end textiles Banshu-ori.

Yokoo Tadanori Museum of Contemporary Art opened on Nov 3rd.

 

About Tadanori Yokoo

Tadanori Yokoo, born in Nishiwaki city in Hyogo, became an artist after working as a graphic designer for the Kobe Shimbun newspaper. He is an oil painter, book designer and writer. He won the Grand Prize at the 6th Paris Youth Biennal in 1969. Following this success, he has held exhibitions in New York, Hamburg, Amsterdam and Paris, and is recognized as one of Japan’s most successful artists.

 

Yokoo Tadanori Museum of Contemporary Art

The museum houses Yokoo’s world-renowned classic collections in addition to pieces by other artists who have worked alongside him. A whole range of special exhibitions related to Tadanori Yokoo will be held here from now on.