1904年の夏、画家青木繁は恋人と友人と共にここに写生旅行に訪れ、この漁村の小谷家に滞在し、海をテーマにした多くの作品を制作しました。洋画「海之幸」は日本初の「国宝」に指定されました。
建てられてから130年が経つ小谷家住宅は、美術界の聖地と呼ばれ、地元の住民と全国の画家たちが資金を募り、青木繁「海之幸」紀念館として保存されています。

In the summer of 1904, the painter Aoki Shigeru, along with his lover and friends, embarked on a sketching journey to this place, staying in the Kotani family residence in this fishing village and creating numerous works inspired by the sea. The Western painting “The Blessings of the Sea” was designated as Japan’s first “National Important Cultural Property.”

The 130-year-old Kotani family residence, known as a sacred place in the art world, has been preserved as the Aoki Shigeru Memorial Museum of the Sea’s Blessings through funds collected by local residents and artists from across the country.