Wara Art Festival is a gathering in which society come together to build sculptures on rice straw. this festival is held every year and this year’s instalment was their 10th anniversary. this year sculpture building teams constructed sculptures twice as large as previous years.
But why rice straw? After the rice harvest is over, plenty of wara (straw) is leftover. Traditionally, it is used to feed livestock or is ploughed back into the ground to enrich the soil. But ten years ago, the people of Niigata came up with the idea to partner with art students to build massive sculptures and the idea caught on fast!
These days, the festival serves as a time to celebrate the rice harvest, promote tourism, and highlight the towns unique culture.
Japanese massive straw sculptures are made from Harvest leftovers
Source:So bad so good