Maboroshi Hakurankai

For visitors who want to see the zenith in quirky Japan, this is the place. Positioned on a hillside in Ito in Izu, this art installation includes several small buildings linked by a winding path. Along the path, one can see figures and statues peeking out from behind foliage, but inside the buildings are huge collections of unusual objects and mannequins in provocative scenes and positions. The displays are for mature audiences — more mature than the ones at the Suspicious Boys and Girls Museum, also in Ito. One should set aside time for this place because it is impossible to take in at a glance. The walls are lined with vintage posters and newspapers, the (often naked) mannequins are performing scenes that tax the imagination, and a fanatical array of smaller objects and figures are often caught by the eye only after standing and staring for a few moments.

Living in Japan for more than 2 decades, one can become exhausted by the 'kawaii' (cute) culture. Well, the Maburoshi Hakurankai is like taking this ethos and digging into its dark subconscious shadows. It is as if someone took a sweet shop and said, "Let's age this scene with ten years of dust and dump some monsters, maniacal laughter, and trauma into it." 

Visiting Maboroshi Hakurankai is for the kind of person who might be/have been a punk/goth, loves surrealism and the avant-garde, has a dark sense of humor, and is NOT easily offended. Seriously, the easily offended should completely avoid the Maburoshi Hakurankai and just go to the Teddy Bear Museum, also in Izu.