Mino Washi Lanterns Illuminate Historic Streets Through November 30

New paper artworks light up Mino's autumn evenings

Around 300 new artworks made with Mino washi are illuminating the Udatsu Wall Historical District in Mino City, Gifu Prefecture, during the first phase of the 2025 Mino Washi Akari Art Exhibition. The event runs from October 12 to November 30, with free admission and evening viewing from 17:00 to 21:00. Its next special date is October 18, when traffic will stop and protective cases will come off the artworks for Pedestrian Paradise Day.

The exhibition turns a preserved merchant quarter into an outdoor gallery after dark. Handmade paper lanterns stand against wooden facades and the district's distinctive udatsu fire walls, bringing contemporary creations into streets shaped by Edo period commerce. Artists from across Japan contribute to a display that celebrates local craft while inviting visitors to look closely at the buildings around it.

Two phases give the exhibition different characters. New works remain on display through October 24. From October 25 to November 30, around 140 award winning works from earlier years take their place, allowing visitors to revisit established favorites as autumn colors deepen in the surrounding hills.

Mino washi gives the light its particular texture. Its fine plant fibers and surfaces formed by hand become visible when illuminated, softening the glow in a way that glass cannot. Shadows fall across timber storefronts, while reflections ripple in places along the Itadori River. The appeal lies in small details as much as the full streetscape: a fold in the paper, a layered surface or a pattern of light against an old wooden shutter.

Slow walking suits this setting. The artworks and historic buildings can be viewed together, making the exhibition both a celebration of paper making and a living museum after dark.

Two phases and one evening without traffic

Part one, running from October 12 to 24, presents roughly 300 new Mino washi creations throughout the historic district. Clear acrylic cases protect the pieces from wind and light drizzle, helping keep the display accessible when autumn weather changes.

October 18 offers a different view. During Pedestrian Paradise Day, from 17:00 to 21:00, the district becomes free of cars and the protective cases are removed for a single evening. Visitors can move across the lanes to examine the artworks without traffic noise or glare. Families and photographers also gain an unobstructed view of the paper structures.

Traditional performances will share the streets with the lanterns. The program includes Mino Nagashi Niwaka, a comic skit passed down locally, and a concert by Ryoko Yokota, an artist born in Mino. These performances bring another part of the city's cultural life into the evening exhibition.

The main dates are:

• October 12: The 2025 exhibition opens, beginning its display of around 300 new works.
• October 18, 17:00 to 21:00: Pedestrian Paradise Day brings streets without traffic, artworks without their protective cases and special performances.
• October 24: The first phase ends.
• October 25: The second phase begins, featuring about 140 award winning works from previous years.
• November 30: The exhibition closes.

The second phase places celebrated pieces in a quieter autumn setting. Their use of shadow, layered paper and supporting structures offers visitors a chance to study how the works are made. Experienced visitors often return during this period to examine construction details that may be missed on a first walk.

Professionals, students and local families all submit work to the exhibition. That mix brings playful designs alongside highly refined pieces, keeping the display open to different approaches rather than a single artistic style.

Why handmade paper changes the light

Mino washi has roughly 1,300 years of history in the region. Its traditional production begins with fibers from the kozo plant, which artisans prepare and mix with water and neri, a substance made from plants that helps the fibers form into a sheet. The mixture is then worked on a bamboo screen.

The resulting paper is thin but strong. It is also translucent, meaning that light can pass through it without giving the clear view offered by transparent glass. Fine fibers scatter and soften the light, creating the gentle glow that defines Mino's akari art.

Honminoshi, the area's purest form of this craft, is produced entirely by hand. Artisans steam and strip kozo branches, clean and beat the fibers, then form sheets using a frame called a suketa. Pressing and drying complete a process that produces paper with both durability and the ability to transmit light.

Traditional handmade washi from selected communities, including Mino's honminoshi, received recognition as intangible cultural heritage in 2014. The recognition concerns the craft and skills behind the paper. It drew attention to a method that depends on natural fibers, water and patient manual work in an age when much paper is made by machines.

The exhibition makes those qualities visible. Artists cut, fold, weave and sculpt Mino washi into shapes illuminated from within. Some designs are spare and geometric; others suggest flowers, waves or creatures. Layered sheets can make the light appear to breathe as brightness and shadow change across a surface.

The paper's strength allows delicate framing, while its translucency softens LEDs into a glow resembling candlelight. Each artwork therefore shows two kinds of skill together: the paper maker's control of the sheet and the artist's use of that sheet to shape light.

Historic fire walls frame the exhibition

The Udatsu Wall Historical District provides more than a backdrop. Its preserved buildings connect the exhibition to the merchant town that developed during the Edo period. Wide building frontages, latticework and plastered surfaces catch the lantern light, breaking it into gradual changes of brightness.

Udatsu are raised fire walls between neighboring buildings. Merchants used them as practical barriers and as signs of household prosperity. Successful families could afford to build or decorate them, making their appearance a statement of pride as well as a feature of the streets.

The expression udatsu ga agaranai, meaning that a person cannot rise in life, draws on that connection between the walls and success. Understanding the phrase helps explain why these architectural details carry cultural meaning beyond their practical purpose.

The district is nationally designated as an area for groups of historic buildings. In the evening, the lanterns bring attention to small eaves, wooden shutters and weathered textures that may be less noticeable in daylight. The old streets and new artworks become parts of the same scene.

Weather changes how that scene looks. On rainy evenings, droplets bead on the acrylic cases and add sparkle around the lights. On clear nights, stars frame the display. The protected works allow visitors to enjoy light drizzle, while the October 18 event offers the special opportunity to see them without the cases.

Autumn color beyond the lantern streets

Oyada Momiji Valley offers a nearby companion to the nighttime exhibition. Roughly 3,000 maple trees color its ravine, making it a destination for visitors who want to pair paper art with autumn foliage. When conditions allow, evening illumination brings out a crimson canopy above dark rock and water.

Closer to town, Sukeemonsa's Maple Trees provide another place to see seasonal color. The landmark is said to trace its origins to plantings from Kyoto. Both locations complement the exhibition's attention to subtle changes of color and shadow.

Late October brings deeper reds and golds to the hills around Mino, coinciding with the change to the exhibition's collection of past award winners. Many visitors combine leaf viewing with the illuminated streets. River reflections of lanterns and maples add to the more contemplative mood of this later phase.

Nearby Seki offers another craft connection. The city is a major center of sword and knife making, and its Seki Cutlery Festival typically coincides with the early part of Mino's exhibition. Visitors who arrange their schedules carefully can spend daytime hours learning about forging traditions and modern blades before heading to Mino for the evening lights.

The combination brings together different forms of local skill: metalworking in Seki, paper making in Mino and the use of handmade material in contemporary art. Historic streets and outdoor walking give the craft visits a setting beyond workshops and displays.

Getting to the district and planning the evening

Travelers coming from Gifu Station can take the JR Takayama Line to Mino Ota Station, then transfer to the Nagaragawa Railway for Minoshi Station. The Udatsu Wall Historical District, in Izumi cho, is about a 13 minute walk from Minoshi Station.

Evening viewing runs from 17:00 to 21:00, and admission is free. The same hours apply to the October 18 period without traffic. Visitors should consult the official event page on Visit Gifu for the most current dates and special programming.

Arriving before dusk allows time to find a starting point near the center of the district and watch the artworks change as darkness settles. A slow loop through the streets, followed by a second pass along favorite stretches, can reveal details that were harder to notice earlier.

October evenings in central Japan can feel crisp. Layers and comfortable shoes are useful for walking along the cobbled streets. Light rain can add sparkle to the cases, but an umbrella and a small towel for camera equipment help make an evening outdoors more comfortable.

Photographers should keep narrow lanes clear, especially when using tripods. Stepping aside after taking a picture leaves room for other visitors to look at the same work. The October 18 removal of protective cases provides a particularly direct view, while other evenings show the pieces within their weather protection.

Local shops and food stalls often operate during the event, and many accept cash only. Time for a pause by the river, a return to a favorite artwork and an unhurried walk through the district fits the character of the exhibition.

Paper art continues indoors throughout the year

The Mino Washi Akari Art Museum displays past award winners throughout the year in a gallery that recreates the festival atmosphere indoors. It gives visitors another place to study the art, including the way sheets are joined, frames hold delicate structures and paper produces different colors and shadows.

The museum shop carries lanterns and other washi goods made by local studios. Its building is itself a registered cultural property from the Showa era, extending the connection between paper art and historic architecture beyond the outdoor exhibition.

A daytime museum visit and an evening walk offer different views of the same craft. Indoors, attention can settle on construction and materials. Outdoors, the works share the scene with merchant buildings, weather and changing autumn light.

An overnight visit offers a different pace

Mino has accommodation ranging from modern hotels near the Nagara River to traditional inns within reach of the historic district. Fairfield by Marriott Gifu Mino offers access to regional sights, while Mino Ryokufusou is a traditional Japanese inn known for seasonal cuisine.

Staying overnight allows visitors to see the streets later in the evening, when crowds thin and the atmosphere becomes calmer. A return the next morning offers time for cafes, galleries and river views, as well as a chance to see the district's architecture in daylight.

The change from daytime streets to illuminated paper art is central to the experience. An overnight stay gives visitors time for both, without fitting every stop into the hours before the exhibition lights go out.

A public stage for a continuing craft

The Mino Washi Akari Art Exhibition keeps a centuries old craft visible through work that people can encounter in public. The scale of the event creates demand for fine paper, supports the studios producing it and draws younger creators into the tradition.

Students and families help keep experimentation active alongside professional work. Their participation gives the exhibition a role in passing techniques to new hands, while the range of designs shows how a traditional material can take forms beyond the familiar paper sheet.

The event also brings respectful foot traffic to a district with national heritage status. Visitors come for the lanterns and spend time among the preserved buildings, supporting interest in their care while allowing the streets to retain life beyond a display of the past.

Mino's akari art has appeared internationally, including at the Taiwan Lantern Festival. That visibility sits alongside the wider recognition of handmade washi and the skills required to produce it. In Mino itself, the connection remains tangible: handmade paper, artworks built around light and a historic town that gives them a public setting.

The two exhibition phases offer distinct reasons to visit before November 30. The first presents new ideas and the special October 18 evening without traffic or protective cases. The second brings established award winners into the deeper colors of late autumn. Together, they show how inherited skills can remain part of contemporary public life.

At a Glance

• The 2025 Mino Washi Akari Art Exhibition runs from October 12 to November 30, with free evening viewing from 17:00 to 21:00.
• Part one runs through October 24 and features around 300 new works by artists from across Japan.
• October 18 is Pedestrian Paradise Day, with traffic stopped and protective cases removed from 17:00 to 21:00.
• Special performances include Mino Nagashi Niwaka and a concert by Mino born artist Ryoko Yokota.
• Part two runs from October 25 to November 30 and displays about 140 award winning works from previous years.
• The venue is the Udatsu Wall Historical District in Izumi cho, Mino City, Gifu Prefecture, about a 13 minute walk from Minoshi Station.
• Rail access from Gifu uses the JR Takayama Line to Mino Ota and the Nagaragawa Railway to Minoshi.
• Nearby autumn destinations include Oyada Momiji Valley, with roughly 3,000 maple trees, and Sukeemonsa's Maple Trees.
• The Seki Cutlery Festival typically aligns with the exhibition's early period.
• The Mino Washi Akari Art Museum displays past winners and sells locally made washi goods throughout the year.