About the artwork

The artist, born in former Kawanishi town, received inspiration for this installation from the snow walls which are a special feature of this region with heavy snowfall. In the old village workshop, she built a snow wall where visitors could enjoy New Year festivities in the middle of the summer. Proceeding through the dark hallway, one arrives at a kamakura (snow shed) surrounded in light and decorated with cut-out paper art. Inside, surrounded in the warm light of the room, a brazier and chair allows one to experience life in the winter. The illuminated paper screen windows help the visitor imagine what snow walls are like. Local residents participated in a workshop to help make the paper cut-outs used in this work.