With the typical "white box" museum, everything depends on the contents of the exhibition, but with the Mingeikan (The Japan Folk Crafts Museum), the museum itself is very much part of the experience. This is clear from the moment you slide open the entrance door and take off your shoes to shuffle around in slippers provided by the museum. (Yes, they have different sizes, so don't be afraid to ask.)

The simple, homely details that emerge at every turn are in keeping with the philosophy of Soetsu Yanagi, the father of mingei, the Japanese Folk Arts movement. He had the museum built by craftsmen in 1936 to serve as the center of the movement, living at the West Hall building across the road. The museum mixes miscellaneous items from its permanent collection with special exhibitions, such as "Okinawa Bingata," a show that currently occupies part of the museum.

Bingata, which literally means "red style," refers to a kind of brightly-colored cloth — either silk or cotton — that is particularly associated with Okinawa. One of the agendas of the folk arts movement in Japan, and elsewhere, is to provide an organic, grassroots basis for national unity. By emphasizing Okinawa's links to Japan and being timed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the return of the island to Japan, this exhibition partly fulfils that role.