About Us
"Tottori Sand Dunes" are the masterpiece of nature created over thousands of years.
In such a vast nature, "the Sand Museum" was opened on November 18, 2006. We exhibit sand sculpture using sand from the dunes, following our purpose to get to know the beauty and possibility of sand.
The executive producer of us is Katsuhiko Chaen, the Japanese sand sculptor, and we invite world-class sculptors from all over the world and create sand sculptures. Thanks to them, we can exhibit the highest level of sand sculptures in the world every year.
We change the theme and exhibition every year based on our exhibit concept, "Travel around the World in Sand." After finishing exhibition term, sand sculptures come back to sand. You can only see these for a brief time. However, this is the biggest attraction of sand sculptures. These are temporary and non-permanent art. Once you visit here, let's enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet our sand sculptures.
We opened in 2006, and our 1st exhibition, "Italy / Renaissance", is perfectly open-air exhibition. Then, the 2nd ""World Heritage / Asia Edition", the 3rd "Austria", and the 4th "Africa" were held under the huge tent.
For more comfortable and accessible environment, we build the special exhibition hall in 2011, and we re-open as the first indoor museum for sand sculpture in April, 2012. The 5th exhibition was "England. The 6th exhibition was held in Southeast Asia, the 7th in Russia, the 8th in Germany, the 9th in South America, the 10th in the U.S., the 11th in Northern Europe, the 12th in South Asia, the 13th in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and the 14th in Egypt.
And in 2024, the 15th "France" will be held.
The 1st Exhibition
"Italy / Renaissance"
2006/11/18～2007/1/3
Exhibit 7 sculptures, for example, "the Annunciation" by Leonardo da Vinci, and Michelangelo's "Pieta". Thoes were created by Kasuhiko Chaen, Leonardo Ugolini, and local sand sculpture society.
The 2nd Exhibition
"The World Heritage in Asia"
2008/4/26～2009/1/3
Exhibit 12 sculptures in the motief of Asian World Heritage; TajMahal, the Great Wall, Terracotta Army, Himeji-Castle, and more.
The 3rd Exhibition
"A World Trip with Sand, Austria - Visit the City of Music and Aristocratic Culture -"
2009/9/18～2010/1/3
Exhibit 10 sculptures using Austrian Aristocratic culture as a motief, for instance, Belvedere palace, st. Stephen's Cathedoral, and court musicians.
The 4th Exhibition
"Around the World in Sand, Africa - Visit the History of the Great African Continent -"
2010/4/29～2011/1/10
Exhibit 11 sculptures expressed history and culture of Africa, and also vast wild nature.
The 5th Exhibition
"Traveing around the World in Sand, The United Kingdom - Legacy of the Great British Empire Prosperity and Pride of the Royal Family -"
2012/4/14～2013/1/6
Exhibit 16 sculptures inside renweal museum, using history, culture and its prosperity of the Unite Kingdom as a motief, like Palace of Wstminster and Shakes Peare.
The 6th Exhibition
"Around the World in Sand, South-East Asia, Dynastic Splendor and Revival of Mysterious Counries -"
2013/4/20～2014/1/5
Exhibit 21 sculptures shown the prosperities of ancient dynasties, such as Angkor Wat.
The 7th Exhibition
"Traveling around the World, Russia - Visit the History of Great Power and the City of Art -"
2014/4/19～2015/1/4
Exhibit 23 sculptures in a motief of Russia history and culture; the Kremlin and Catherine the Great.
The 8th Exhibition
"Travel Around the World in Sand, Germany - Traces of the Middle Ages and a Visit to the Fairlyland -"
2015/4/18～2016/1/3
Exhibit 23 sculptures expressed Germany art and fairy tale such as Neuschwanstein Castle and Grimm's Fairy Tale.
The 9th Exhibition
"Travel around the World in Sand, South America, - A Visit to the Miraculous New Continent Keeping the Memory of the Prosperity -"
2016/4/16～2017/1/3
Exhibit 19 sculptures based on the ancient civilization and history of the South America, for example, Machu Picchu and Golden El Dorado.
The 10th Exhibition
"Travel around the World in Sand, The United States of America - Visit the Land of Liberty and the World Renowned Natural Splendor -"
2017/4/15～2018/1/3
Exhibit 19 sculptures such as Mt. Rashmore and Skyscraper which are the symbol of American culture and history.
The 11th Exhibition
"Travel around the World, The Nordic Countries - Into the World of Beautiful Nature and Fantasy -"
2018/4/14～2019/1/6
Exhibit 23 sclptures based on Nordic nature, mythology and fairy tale; Fjord, and fairy tale by Andersen.
The 12th Exhibition
"Travel around the World in Sand, South Asia - Religious Devotion, Diverse Cultures, and the Road to Peace -"
2019/4/13～2020/1/5
Exhibit 21 sculpture focusing on various culture and religious in South Asia, such as TajMahal, Mahatma Gandhi, and Mohenjo-Daro.
The 13th Exhibition
"Travel around the World in Sand, Czechia and Slovakia - A History of Prosperity and Decline - Traces of Sacred Mystery -"
2020/7/11～2022/1/3
Exhibit 19 sculptures in the motief of Czechia & Slovakia, such as Prague Castle, Puppet Show and Marionettes, Literature of Franz Kafka.
The 14th Exhibition
"Travel around the World in Sand, Egypt"
2022/7/30～2024/1/3
Exhibit 21 sculptures in the motief of Egypt, such as Tutankhamun, Cleopatra, Pyramids and Sphinx of Giza.