Kumamoto City is rich in culture and boasts a number of traditional matsuri (festivals) throughout the year, like the Great Festival of Fujisaki Hachimangu Shrine in September and the Seishoko Matsuri in July. In recent years, a number of new events have sprung up throughout the city that showcase Kumamoto unique modern culture as well.
This post offers introductions to three of these modern events—Street Art-plex, Christmas Market Kumamoto, and the Shirakawa Night Market. Let’s take a look at what makes these events special and where to find out when the next one is scheduled.
Street Art-plex
Street Art-plex is an ongoing event series held in downtown Kumamoto City all throughout the year. Street Art-plex has been active in Kumamoto for around 20 years, with the goal of the project being to increase the exposure of Kumamoto residents to art. In contrast to jazz festivals and classical music concerts, Street Art-plex encourages artistic diversity at its events by hosting all kinds of performers, including jugglers, jazz musicians, theater performers, calligraphers, and more.
Around once a year, Street Art-plex holds a large event with simultaneous performances at up to 8 different stages throughout downtown Kumamoto. Having a bunch of smaller stages instead of one big stage offers downtown pedestrians the chance to discover new performances around every corner, thereby exposing many people to all kinds of art and boosting Kumamoto’s art culture.
Street Art-plex also holds numerous smaller events throughout the year. The Great Composer Memorial Series features musicians performing the work of influential composers and musicians who have passed away. On The Corner is another event series of pop-up concerts featuring single artist performances at free venues open to the public.
Street Art-plex
Where: in and around the Kamitori and Shimotori Arcades
Christmas Market Kumamoto
Started in 2018, Christmas Market Kumamoto is an authentic European-style Christmas market held in downtown Kumamoto. The market is held in mid-December and lasts for around two weeks. Since its inaugural year, Hanabata Hiroba Square (the open promenade in front of the Sakuramachi Bus Terminal) has been the Christmas Market’s main venue, and each year the market has featured a great lineup of shops offering tasty food and warm drinks plus craft booths and live performances.
The producers of the Christmas Market put an enormous amount of effort into creating a truly magical atmosphere within the venue, filling the space with Christmas trees, lights, and countless other decorations. The group that does Takeakari, an exhibition of beautifully crafted bamboo light sculptures, is also involved with the Christmas Market and their bamboo creations add a unique Japanese twist to the rich Christmas spirit.
Christmas Market Kumamoto クリスマスマーケット熊本
Where: downtown Kumamoto (location subject to change each year)
When: mid-December
Website: https://xmas-kumamoto.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xmas_kumamoto/
Shirakawa Night Market
The Shirakawa Night Market (白川夜市 Shirakawa Yoichi) is a market held along the Shirakawa River every 4th Saturday from March to November. It is held at the Midori no Kukan, a long, narrow park space along the river next to Taikobashi Bridge (the bridge along Densha Dori that the tram passes over). Decades ago, there were night markets all around Kumamoto City but, for one reason or another, they gradually disappeared. The Shirakawa Night Market is an attempt to bring back the lively local markets that so many Kumamoto residents remember from their youth.
Each night market features around 25 to 40 booths selling a wide variety of food, drinks, fashion accessories, and more, with plenty of places to sit, relax, and enjoy the riverside atmosphere. Most vendors have shops in nearby neighborhoods, which helps contribute to the strong sense of community and familiarity that has developed around the Night Market.
Shirakawa Night Market
When: 4th Saturday of every month from March to November
Where: Midori no Kukan (East bank of Shirakawa River next to Taikobashi Bridge. 5
min walk from Shimotori/Kamitori Arcades)
Website: https://shirakawabanks.site/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shirakawabanks/
