第12回「カンナ秋のアートフェスティバル」が初の「鬼石芸術祭」となる
これは人々を結びつけ、鬼石の創造的なコミュニティを地域住民や訪問者に紹介する祭典です。芸術には異なる文化、世代、生活様式の間で架け橋を築く力があります。規模は小さいながらも、鬼石町は豊かな芸術的伝統を有し、様々な創造的職業から多くの才能ある人材を惹きつけ、彼らの活動の拠点として確立しています。近年、群馬県にあるこの町を訪れた200人以上の国際的なアーティストの中には、定住を選択した者もいます。
This is a festival to bring people together and introduce the creative community of Onishi to local residents and visitors to the area.
Art has the power to build bridges between different cultures, generations, and lifestyles. Despite its small size, Onishi has a strong artistic heritage and attracts many talented individuals from various creative professions, establishing it as a centre for their work.
Of the more than two hundred international artists who have visited the town in Gunma Prefecture in recent years, some have even chosen to settle there.
2026年、この祭りは12回目を迎え、より多様なグループ、職業、ジャンルを包含します。かつて「かんな秋のアート祭り」として知られた「鬼石芸術祭」は、その文化的領域内で人と場所を結びつけ、新たな関係性と空間を創出します。町の歴史と石を投げる鬼の伝説からインスピレーションを得て、日常生活を豊かにする芸術的コンテンツを創造します。フェスティバルは年間を通じて開催され、主なイベントは9月と10月に集中します。
In 2026, the festival will be in its 12th year and will embrace a wider range of groups, professions and genres. Formerly known as the Kanna Art Festival, the Onishi Art Festival will connect people and places within its cultural sphere, forging new relationships and spaces. Drawing inspiration from the town's heritage and the legend of a stone-throwing demon, we will create artistic content that enriches everyday life. The festival will take place throughout most of the year, with the main events occurring in September and October.
5月以降
学校ワークショップ
フェスティバルのテーマは、地元の学校で様々なアーティストが指導する町の鬼伝説に関する一連のワークショップを通じて、地域社会に紹介されます。
From May onwards
School workshops
The festival's theme will be introduced to the community through a series of workshops about the town's oni legend, led by various artists at local schools.
夜会
毎月開催されるイベントでは、廃墟や非日常的な空間で、地元アーティストの作品展示と海外の飲食が楽しめます。
Soiree – Yakai
The work of local artists will be showcased alongside foreign food and drinks at monthly events held in unusual and abandoned places.
秋：
夜市
9月の2つの金曜日に、現代アーティストが鬼石の公共空間を流動的なイベントベースの会場へと変貌させます。日本の都市の伝統に則り、伝統芸能のパフォーマンス、音楽（語り物）、怪談、工芸品店、屋台が並ぶ賑やかな夜市が娯楽を提供し、交流の場を創出します。
Fall:
Night art market - Yoichi
At two Fridays in September contemporary artist will transform public spaces of Onishi into fluid, event-based sites. In line with Japanese urban tradition, a bustling night-market, offering performances, music, story-telling, craft and food stalls, will provide entertainment and create a space for communication.
百鬼夜行
夜に現れる妖怪たちが、この街に伝わる鬼の伝説を蘇らせる。浪曲（なにわぶし）や怪談に導かれ、妖怪たちが街を練り歩く。最終目的地であるシロオニアートセンターでは、衣装が展示の一部となる前に酒を酌み交わし踊りを競う。
Yokai Parade – Hyakki
The Night of the Demons will bring the town's legend of its namesake, the Oni, back to life. Accompanied by traditional Japanese narrative singing (Rōkyoku 浪曲, Naniwa-bushi, 浪花節) and ghost stories (Kaidan 怪談), a bunch of demons will parade through the streets. At the final destination, the Shiro Oni Art Center, we will drink and dance before the costumes become a part of the exhibition.
The exhibition: Beyond the Pale • 未踏の領域
The title 'Beyond the Pale' refers to a historical idiom used to describe certain territories as unsafe and beyond the reach of authority. A region of different morality, behaviour, or judgment, as those 'beyond the pale' were outside of rules and proper norms. However, this upcoming exhibition is not about morality, it is about the unknown and how we judge those things.
Because Onishi is different. A place named after a stone-throwing demon evokes images of strength and resilience. The term oni 鬼was once used to describe those who were alien or unfamiliar to the dominant culture. Further research in the towns legend and history reveal several interwoven layers of cultural displacement and ecological change.
かんな：群馬県藤岡市鬼石周辺地域・埼玉県児玉郡神川町神泉周辺地域
山々に囲まれ、碧緑の清流・神流川を挟んだ鬼石と神泉。ここは不思議と芸術家が集う魅惑の地でもあります。縄文時代から人々が住み、鬼が住まい、人は馬を飼い慣らし、遠くから人々の往来があり、古くから現在にいたる数々の移住があり、隠れキリシタンの言い伝えもあり・・・
この魅惑のかくれ里で生まれた、「かんな秋のアート祭り」を今年も開催いたします。川を挟んで隣り合うこの地には「鬼石」「神泉」と、「鬼」と「神」とがその名に含まれます。この地でよく見られる景色─山々から雲が生まれるその姿に、まさに鬼と神とのあらわれを見るようです。
この地の芸術家たちが織り成し、懐かしくも美しい風土に立ちあらわれる「鬼・神・風・土」をたしかめに、神流川流れる鬼・神の里へ、どうぞお出かけください。
Kanna: Area around Onishi, Fujioka City, Gunma Prefecture;
Area around Kamiizumi, Kamikawa Town, Kodama District, Saitama Prefecture
Surrounded by mountains, Onishi and Kamiizumi that draws between the clear green stream of the Kanna River.
This is also a fascinating place where artists gather mysteriously.
People have lived here since the Jomon period, onis (demons) dwell here, people have tamed horses, people have traveled here from far away, there have been numerous migrations from ancient times to the present, and there are also legends of hidden Christians...
The Kanna Autumn Art Festival, born in this enchanting hidden village, will be held again this year. The names of the neighboring towns across the river, Onishi and Kamiizumi, contain the words “oni” (demon) and “kami” (god). The scenery often seen in this area, with clouds rising from the mountains, seems to be the manifestation of demons and gods.
Come and experience the “Oni, Kami, Wind, and Land” woven by the artists of this region, which appear in the nostalgic and beautiful landscape. Please visit the village of Oni and Kami, where the Kanna River flows.