Rice Fields Are Transformed Into Large Scale Artworks In This Japanese Village

In the Japanese village of Inakadate, intricate designs are created on rice paddy fields by intermixing several different kinds of rice plants of varying color. The result is astounding large scale artworks that last all through the growing season until the time of harvest. This is known as Tanbo, or rice-paddy art. Over a thousand volunteers, mostly local ones, come together each year to help with the planting process.

These remarkable artworks are representations of traditional Japanese icons and figures, and legends, anime characters as well as some other classical art pieces like Mona Lisa, and historical figures like Napoleon and Marilyn Monroe can be recognized. To admire these rice fields art, a 22 m-high mock castle tower was erected at the village office and serves as a viewing platform for the hundreds of thousands of visitors coming from all across Japan. In 2006, the village had welcomed more than 200 000 visitors.

2006 Rice field art design “Fujin-Raijin”
Fujin (the god of wind) and Raijin (the god of thunder) paintings were made with the catch phrase ‘Let’s blow the economic depression away!’.These are originally from the famous painter Ogata Kōrin

*2010 Rice field art design “Benkei and Ushiwaka-maru”*
*One of the most famous scenes in Japanese history: the fight between Benkei and Ushiwaka-maru*

2011 Rice field art design “The tale of the bamboo cutter”
On the left: Kaguya Hime, the Moon Princess, returning to her people at the end of “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter”. On the right: The Bamboo Cutter and his wife at the glowing section of bamboo, where the princess arrived to the Earth as a baby

2012 Rice field art design “Hibo Kannon” (“Kannon the Merciful Mother”)
Credit: 掬茶 / Wikimedia commons

2012 Rice field art design “Acala”
Credit: 掬茶 / Wikimedia commons

*Rice field art design representing Seven gods*

To the left is a traditional Japanese representation of a high-class courtesan or Oiran, with an intricately embroidered dress. To the right is a perfect representation of this iconic scene from Marilyn Monroe

Rice field art has spread all across the country and currently, there are more than 100 rice field art locations throughout Japan. However, it is said that the art in Inakadate village, where this art form originated, is more refined in its image quality and considered as the most beautiful in Japan.

It can be hard to believe that these art works are only made by rice plants due to their vivid and colorful nature. One of the highlights of this art is that the rice plants are never cut or colored, but these are indeed their natural color that adds to the definition and feature of the pictures.

*Rice field art depicting Naoe Kanetsugu, a commander from the Sengoku period (left) and Napoleon Bonaparte, the French military and political leader (right)*
*Credit:* Glenn Waters

*A depiction of Napoleon Bonaparte*
*Credit: Captain76 / Wikipedia*

*2017 Rice field art design representing the legend of Yamato no Orochi (eight-forked serpent) facing Shinto god of sea and storms, Susanno, in a fight*
*Credit: samuraidave / imgur*

Rice field art depicting a scene from ‘Gone with the wind’ movie
Courtesy of Inakadate village

Kodaimai rice, which has purple and yellow leaves, is planted among green-leaved tsugaru roman rice to create the patterns. The main rice used for the background is an everyday variety called asayuki, plus three heirloom varieties and six genetically modified strains. Although the heirloom and GMO strains are edible, they may not suit modern tastes. However, it is suggested that if made into ohagi, it has a sticky consistency similar to mochi and is actually nice.

*Rice field art depicting Momotaro (Peach Boy) from Japanese folklore*

2007 Rice field art design representing “*The Great Wave off Kanagawa”*, and “*South Wind, Clear Sky”,* from Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, by Hokusai
Credit: thenikku

It all began in 1993, at a time when the village of Inakadate was suffering from a shrinking population, a crushing debt and declining revenues from agriculture. The village was only a rice farming area with nothing special to see and didn’t attract any tourists. Findings from an archaeological exploration in 1981 revealed that rice had been grown in the area for more than 2000 years, making Inakadate one of the oldest rice-growing regions in northern Japan. As a way to revitalize their village, the inhabitants of Inakadate came up with this novel idea to promote tourism in their locality: large-scale rice paddy art.

Rice field art depicting scenes for the Japanese drama ‘Sanadamaru’. The television series follows the Sanada Maru, a fortification defended by Sanada Nobushige during the Siege of Osaka in 1615.
Credit: Viki Pandit

*Rice field art representing an anime character, Naruto*

*Rice field art design portraying Audrey Hepburn with Gregory Peck*

*Inakadate Village didn’t miss to include the ‘Star Wars’ films among their designs*
*Credit: Courtesy of Inakadate village*

At that time, elementary-school students were planting heirloom purple and yellow rice, and green everyday rice, in a striped pattern. On seeing this, the person in charge at town hall wondered if rice could be planted in a way to represent words and pictures. And so, Tanbo, or rice-paddy art, was born.

Back then, it was an ordinary design – a simple triangular shape to represent Mount Iwaki, planted by a few hundred villagers. It gained a modest success and attracted only a few spectators. Over the years, the designs have developed into more elaborate and imaginative ones, and now, hundreds of thousands of tourists visit every year to admire these incredible masterpieces.

*2016 Rice field art design representing ‘Godzilla’*
*Credit: The Asahi Shimbun / Getty images*

*2018 Rice field art design depicting several Osamu Tezuka’s anime characters, among which, Astro Boy*

2008 Rice field art design representing “Ebisu, Daikokuten”
Credit: ChrisSteph & Lewis Boegeman

Every April, the village council gathers to discuss and plan the theme of the design for the next year. After the theme has been agreed on, the village officials first create a basic digital mock-up, which is then refined by local art teachers into intricate concept drawings, while taking into consideration gradation and perspective.

A computer image-processing software is used to determine where and how to plant such a complex design. The original image can be a photograph or a detailed graphic and may use hundreds or thousands of colors, but all of this is reduced to around seven colors of farm field rice. Markers are then placed, mapping out each drawing before the planting begins with the participation of over a thousand dedicated volunteers. This whole process can take up to three months. By looking at the history of the art, consequent improvement about the designs can be seen with each passing year, as the villagers learn from their past mistakes and refine their craft.

This is what rice field art looks like (design of 2019) when still in the process of growing: