Manami IwasakiAs part of Towada's grand plan to reinvent itself as a 'city of art', the Towada Art Center was created in 2008 with the aim of letting the contemporary art on display interact with and complement the natural surroundings. Individual pieces and installations are connected by glass passageways, giving you the feeling of roaming the museum and the town simultaneously. As a result, murals and exhibits seem like they have been freed into the outdoors – or perhaps it's the town that's been put on display inside the gallery. Look out for featured exhibitions by artists such as Yoshitomo Nara, a local contemporary artist, and for special tours hosted by the museum such as the bus trip to Oirase Stream where you can walk around with an artist, or the guided tour around town.