❺ Bears, Bears, Bears 🐻 A Journey to Discover Hokkaido Wood Carvings - Akan Edition

Hello.
We are With Earth Hokkaido, a company that grows organic holy basil in Hokkaido and sells products such as herbal tea and bird treats.

Continuing from the previous part ❹, this is the Akan edition of our journey to discover bear wood carvings.

Since guests can visit the baths of other hotels in the Tsuruga Group, we took a shuttle bus toAkan Yuku no Sato Tsuruga.

It was so incredible that I wondered just how many wood carvings there were in this hotel alone...

🐻 The hotel is like a sculpture museum

First, as soon as you enter the lobby entrance, you are greeted by beautiful wood carvings.

It was noted that these were works by Masamitsu Takiguchi.

It was an elegant and wonderful piece where you could feel the dynamic movement of a breeze blowing through the static arrangement of horses and people.

This hotel has many wood carvings displayed as works of art, and
as you go further inside, even more works were exhibited as a gallery.

🐻 Works by Masamitsu Takiguchi

There were no bear wood carvings, but many beautiful and elegant works of people and owls were on display.

🐻 Wood carvings that look alive

As I went further inside... there were large wood carvings displayed on the first floor of the Wings building, but the atmosphere here felt different.

All of them were works by the sculptor Chikuzen Fujito.

A totem pole that Mr. Fujito created for Tsuruga Wings.
The title is 'Gods Living in Kamuy Mintara'.

I found myself increasingly drawn into the energy emitted by the sculptures.

In any case, every piece had a vividness, power, and presence as if they were alive.

And what shocked me even more was that the carved bears were not placed on a base, but rather the bear and the base were carved out of a single piece of wood.

Carved out of huge logs and timber...

The sense of dynamism as they are about to pounce, the flow of the river, and the movement of the salmon. The expression that pursued reality without cutting corners, even down to the details like the fur, was just amazing.

To think they were carved out of such large timber...

The figures are also incredibly vivid.

Owl Festival

I was overwhelmed by the sense of realism that made them seem as if they might start moving at any moment, and by an energy that made me flinch. They were truly works of art.

Even after this trip, the people I meet in various places through wood-carved bears continue to talk about Mr. Fujito.

It is said that when Mr. Fujito creates his works, he sits and faces the wood for over an hour, having a dialogue with it, and then begins to carve slowly without drawing almost any preliminary sketches.
Furthermore, his carving speed is said to be quite fast.
The figures are also said to be made to look exactly like the real people they represent.

I found an interview article with Mr. Fujito, so I will post the link here.

And one more piece of information about Mr. Fujito.
You can see Mr. Fujito's works at an exhibition being held at the Sapporo Art Museum from July 11 to September 27, 2026!

In addition to the dynamic bears, I was able to see wood carvings other than bears for the first time, such as shrimp and crabs.
The precision of every single joint of the crustaceans... and the expression of the shells that look real despite being made of wood—the superb craftsmanship is a must-see.

🐻 Akan, where I learned about the artistry of wood carving

I was able to experience the depth and power of wood carving in its home of Akan, which goes beyond just cute wood-carved bears.

Unfortunately, both Mr. Takiguchi and Mr. Fujito have already passed away, so I cannot meet them in person, but I am very happy to have encountered such wonderful works.

Moreover, it was so grateful to be able to see such museum-grade works in a corner of a hotel, up close and for free.
It is a highly recommended place that you should definitely visit when you come to Akan!

That is all for now.
My encounters with Hokkaido's wood-carved bears will continue 🐻
Thank you for reading until the end!

Please also check out our pesticide-free holy basil from Hokkaido 🌱