SHIROIYA HOTEL, the art destination in Maebashi, Gunma (Honmachi, Maebashi), has completed this year's Art Illumination artwork, "Putting Down Roots in the Air," created by painter and picture-book artist mirocomachiko.
Many whimsical, imaginary seeds are sprouting and taking root across the green hill at SHIROIYA HOTEL. Day and night, they send passersby the energy of new growth and a smile. Inside the small hut atop the hill, mirocomachiko's world of nurturing seeds and spinning stories continues to unfold, so visitors are invited to explore the hotel grounds as well. Viewing is free.
"Putting Down Roots in the Air"
©Shinya Kigure
To mark the completion of the piece, the hotel has also opened a limited-time guest room, the mirocomachiko Room, featuring a pop-up display of mirocomachiko's work. As a "museum you can stay in," it offers guests a chance to experience the art more intimately during their stay.
The works on display in the room, including an original piece, 空気に根をおろす花, created for the cookie tin made to mark the "Putting Down Roots in the Air" installation, can be purchased through the hotel's partner gallery.
For more on 前橋国際芸術祭 2026, see: https://maebashi-biennale.com/
Shiroiya Hotel Art Illumination 2026 — mirocomachiko at SHIROIYA "Putting Down Roots in the Air"
- Exhibition period: September 19, 2026 (Saturday) through January 12, 2027 (Tuesday)
- Lighting hours: Daily from 5:00 PM to 11:00 PM (the artwork can also be viewed during the day)
- Location: SHIROIYA HOTEL, 2-2-15 Honmachi, Maebashi, Gunma (027-231-4618)
- Admission: Free
Putting down roots for a while, in a place apart from everyday life. Surrendering to that place, drawing nourishment even from its smallest light. Plants on southern islands send roots down from both ground and air to withstand strong winds and support themselves. Like those plants, I become a seed that flies while gathering light, drifting through the air, and stretching roots fed by nutrients drawn from the air itself. What kind of shoot will it send out? What kind of flower will it bloom? From within SHIROIYA HOTEL, a seed grows and sends its roots outward.
mirocomachiko
Shiroiya Hotel Art Illumination 2026 Commemoration — Limited-Time mirocomachiko Room
The room displays the work of painter and picture-book artist mirocomachiko, known for her free-flowing depictions of living creatures and for solo exhibitions held in Japan and abroad. Alongside her outdoor Art Illumination piece, guests can enjoy her indoor works at their leisure, with the room all to themselves.
The artworks displayed in the room can be purchased in the same way as at a gallery.
- Room type: Deluxe Twin Room (limited to one room, for one to two guests)
- Booking period: Through January 11, 2027 (Monday, a national holiday)
- Reservations and inquiries: SHIROIYA HOTEL, 2-2-15 Honmachi, Maebashi, Gunma. Phone: 027-231-4618, Email: info@shiroiya.com
Reservation link for the limited-time mirocomachiko Room:
https://www.shiroiya.com/?tripla_booking_widget_open=search&room_type_code=29&type=rooms
A two-meal plan is also available when booking the room. Guests can also enjoy dinner at the hotel's main dining restaurant, which is listed in the Gault et Millau restaurant guide.
the RESTAURANT ©Shinya Kigure / ©Shinya Kigure / ©Shinya Kigure / ©Yusuke Kagayama
Works Planned for Display in the mirocomachiko Room
空気に根をおろす花 (2026)
An original piece created for the cookie tin
森の雨粒 (2021)
波めぐり4 (2022)
Delivery of purchased artworks is expected from mid-January 2027 onward.
Artworks are handled by 株式会社コール / noie.cc.
About mirocomachiko
Painter. Known for her free-flowing depictions of living creatures, mirocomachiko has held solo exhibitions in Japan and abroad. Her picture book 『オオカミがとぶひ』 (イースト・プレス) won the Grand Prize at the 18th Japan Picture Book Award. At the Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava (BIB), her book 『オレときいろ』 (WAVE出版) received the Golden Apple award, and 『けもののにおいがしてきたぞ』 (岩崎書店) received a Gold Medal. She has received numerous other awards and published many books, including winning the 41st Iwaya Sazanami Literary Award. She has also created cover art for books and CD jackets, as well as posters. Since 2020, her exhibition 「いきものたちはわたしのかがみ」has toured art museums nationwide. Working closely with the movements of nature, she creates pieces dense with the presence of unseen things and the shimmer of life.
©Shinya Kigure
Limited-Time "mirocomachiko Cookie Tin"
For the art festival, mirocomachiko created a special painting, 空気に根をおろす花, which is used on the lid of a limited-time cookie tin. As a tribute to mirocomachiko, who lives on Amami Oshima, the pastry chefs of the Patisserie have carefully baked five kinds of cookies, including a polvoron made generously with Amami brown sugar.
©Shinya Kigure
- Sale period: September 19, 2026 (Saturday) through January 12, 2027 (Tuesday)
- Price: ¥5,800
- Contents: An assortment of 5 kinds of cookies — miso walnut, matcha sable, brown sugar polvoron, sable coco, and sable cacao
- Size: 125 x 175 x 45mm
- Online orders: https://shiroiya.thebase.in/items/153952624
- Sold at: SHIROIYA The Patisserie (on the SHIROIYA HOTEL grounds, along Babagawa-dori)
- Hours: 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
- Closed: Mondays (open if Monday is a public holiday, with the closure moved to the following Tuesday)
The cookie tin can also be purchased at the SHIROIYA HOTEL front desk. It keeps for about one month; store it below 20°C, away from high heat, humidity, and direct sunlight. A gift bag is included.
SHIROIYA HOTEL (2-2-15 Honmachi, Maebashi, Gunma)
ART DESTINATION — A museum-like hotel full of inspiration for the senses
©Shinya Kigure
A long-established inn in Maebashi, Gunma, with 300 years of history, was reborn in December 2020 as SHIROIYA HOTEL under the hand of architect Sou Fujimoto, as part of an effort to revitalize downtown Maebashi. The renovation of the once-derelict building created an atrium with exposed concrete, where a dreamlike light installation by Leandro Erlich now stands. Guest rooms each display different artworks, and guests can enjoy a wide range of contemporary art and design amid abundant greenery throughout the property. The grounds also include a restaurant, a cafe lounge, a patisserie, a bakery, a tea room, and three types of private saunas. The hotel's main dining restaurant, "SHIROIYA The Restaurant," has been listed in the Gault et Millau restaurant guide for five consecutive years. With plenty of activities both inside and outside the hotel, it offers a stay full of inspiration.
