Japan Trip, Matsushima Part 3

Hi, Friends, I’ve been working on the images and a storyboard for the picture book project funded by Australian Gov. I visited Entsū-in known for a beautiful garden, Godaidō on an island,  zen temple Zuiganji (瑞巌寺), etc, to collect the visual images and data in Matsushima. Temples have been a community centre in a local area like church in Western countries. It was crucial for Basho and Sora to visit there, connected them and ran their haiku workshops to establish a new literature, haikai in Edo era. 

Entsū-in in Matsushima has a beautiful architecture and a "karesansui" garden that shows waterstreams by rocks. 

Godaidō: Temple on an Island just next to the pier in Matsushima. An author Libby Hathorn and I visited there at the beginning of a summer. Haiku poet Basho (1644–94) loved Matsushima’s moon and the beautiful scenery in his travel poem diary. Like him, I've rediscovered the beauty of Japan in the trip.

Zuiganji (瑞巌寺) is one of the most famous Zen temples in Tohoku area. Basho and Sora visited temples and shrines. Btw the 2011 tsunami had damaged many trees I realised on the way to the main hall entrance, below. Zuiganji was having a rock or pop music (?) freebie open concert in the evening! Certainly, a temple still plays the role of a community centre like church in Australia. 

A kitchen in Zuiganji, in the past. The kitchen and the hall are Japanese national treasures. In my memory, a museum is near to this kitchen. Libby and I learned about a Japanese history.

Matsushima is so beautiful that has a sea, mountains, historical architectures and a museum. People are so kind to us, visitors. 

Those images and experiences have become great inspiration for me and I'm creating illustrations. I hope my inspirations will bloom out in this project.

Friends, happy painting!  

Japan Trip, Matsushima Part 3