This popular art museum showcases the work of Chihiro Iwasaki (1918–74), who became world-renowned while specialising in children's-book illustrations from the late 1950s until her death in 1974. Built in Azumino because Chihiro's parents came from Nagano, the museum is surrounded by a gorgeous park and is best accessed from Shinano-Matsukawa Station on the JR Ōito line. Its sister museum is the Chihiro Art Museum Tokyo, built on the site where the illustrator lived and worked in the capital.
Chihiro Art Museum Azumino
Top choice in Matsumoto & the Northern Japan Alps
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