Welcome to Koshu Dream House, a Japanese Art and Culture Center based in Mitou-cho, Yamaguchi Prefecture, a small town embraced by the gentle mountains.
Dream House was founded in 1992 by Koshu (Akemi Lucas) as a school for calligraphy and english language. It was not only a school for learning, but also a home filled with the smiling faces of over 250 students and their families.
In 2001, Koshu moved to the UK to introduce Japanese Art to people internationally, closing Dream House and parting ways with her students. After 23 years, Dream House has reopened its doors, serving as a hub to learn about the rich cultural heritage of Japan and connect people from all over the world through the beauty of Japanese art and culture.
Welcome
From the autumn of 2024, Dream House started to host 8-day residential courses focusing on traditional Japanese calligraphy and sumi painting.
Open to both beginners and advanced artists, we invite you to delve into these ancient and mindful art forms while immersed in the calm of rural Japan.
RESIDENTIAL COURSES
SCHEDULE 2025 (spring &Summer)
Maximum capacity for each course: 10 students
Length of normal stay is 8 days and 7 nights
- Course 1: Sunday 30th Mar - Sunday 6th Apr 2025
- Course 2: Sunday 13th Apr - Sunday 20th Apr 2025
- Course 3: Sunday 11th May - Sunday 18th May 2025
- *Course 4: Short intensive course 3 days and 2 nights Friday 23rd May to Sunday 25th May 2025 （Cancelled)
- Course 5: Sunday 12th Oct-Sunday 19th Oct 2025
- Course 6: Sunday 26th Oct-Sunday 2nd Nov 2025
Group bookings: 3-day (or longer) residential courses can be arranged for groups of more than 7 people.(max is 10 people)
8-day course
An intensive and unique 8-day course led by Koshu and her team, open to beginners and advanced painters alike. The classes will be individually tailored to your level of practice and will cover everything from foundational skills to the more advanced techniques. By the end of the week, you will be able to create your own artwork, own seal and prepare the final artwork with urauchi paper.
***Special Offer ***
10 % off for the Spring course 3 2025! ￥359,000 (offer ends on the 30th April)
10 % off for the Autumn courses 5 & 6 2025! ￥359,000
(offer ends on the 30th June)
2025 price: ￥399,000 per person(380000 yen plus 5% transaction fee) From normal price ￥490,000
8 Day Course Programme Inclusions:
- Full board accommodation (shared room) for 7 nights, including three daily meals, snacks and refreshments (one private room is available + 69800 yen)
- 13 lessons : Twice-daily classes including Calligraphy, Sumi-painting, Tenkoku (seal carving) and Urauchi (putting backing paper) lessons (2 - 3 hours per class)
- One lecture on the brief history of Calligraphy and Sumi Painting
- Three sightseeing excursions (e.g., Akiyoshidai and cave, Yamaguchi city and Sesshu gardens, Mohri museum and garden)
- Two morning zazen at the local temple
- Two-way transfers from Shin-Yamaguchi Station or Ube airport
- Certificate issued at the end of the course
- Farewell party
- Optional activities at additional cost: Suzuri (Inkstone) workshop, Pottery workshop, Japanese cooking workshop, Japanese Taiko drum workshop, visit to the local Onsen (hot-spring), Tea ceremony experience, etc.
* Check in: by 4:00pm on Sunday / Check out: after 2:30pm on following Sunday
3-Day Course
2025 price:￥195000 per person(Normal price ￥240000）
(185200 yen plus 5 % transaction fee)
3 Day CourseProgramme Inclusions:
- Full board accommodation (shared room) for 2 nights, including three daily meals, snacks and refreshments (one private room is available + 20000 yen)
- 6 lessons : Calligraphy, Sumi-painting, and Urauchi (putting backing paper) lessons (2 - 3 hours per class)
- 1 optional activity at additional cost: Japanese cooking workshop, Japanese Taiko drum workshop, Tea ceremony experience, etc.
( * Transfers from Shin-Yamaguchi Station or Ube airport is at additional cost )
*Check in: 1:00pm on Friday / Check out: after 5:30 pm on Sunday
Downstairs
Facilities: Shop, reception, workshop space, relaxing area, kitchen, shower rooms and toilet.
Upstairs
- 地 (Earth) a shared bedroom with western style beds (3 person capacity)
- 水 (Water) a shared bedroom with western style beds (2 person capacity)
- 火 (Fire) a private bedroom with western style beds (+£350)
- 風 (Wind) a shared tatami room with futon (2 person capacity)
- 空 (Sky) a shared tatami room with futon (3 person capacity)
- 月 (Moon) a communal lounge area
- Toilet
Amenities: Wifi, air conditioning, washing machine, towels, shampoo & conditioner, hair driers.
Dinning "Momiji"
Places to visit
Yamaguchi, often called the 'Kyoto of the West' was featured in the New York Times '52 Places to Go in 2024'.
Hofu Tenmangu: A shinto shrine in Hofu, Yamaguchi. It is the very first Tenmangu in Japan and one of the main shrines dedicated to Tenjin, the deified form of Sugawara no Michizane (a shogun from the Heian Period known for his poetry, revered in Shintoism as the god of learning).
When visiting the Chashitsu (Tea room) in Hofu Tenmangu, you can enjoy the beautiful view of Japanese garden while enjoying some Japanese tea.
Mohri museum and garden in Fofu city. This museum holds and displays valuable items passed down from generation to generation in the Mohri family. An exhibition of national treasures is held in November each year.
The Sesshu Garden in Yamaguchi city: Sesshu was a zen buddhist monk and Japan's most influential master of Sumi painting. You can visit the beautiful Sesshu garden to learn more about his life and paintings.
The Unkokuan in Yamaguchi City: You can also visit the art studio of Sesshu, stepping into the Sumi-e world in Japan.
Saikotei in Yamaguchi-city: Saito Kobei, who was a cook for Lord Mori, openind a restaurant on a corner of the Yasaka shrine in around 1877. It was visited by Kido Takayoshi, Sato Eisaku and other politicians, making it a place of historical significance. You can see many calligraphy artworks here.
The Akiyoshi dai Quasi-National Park in Mine city, the largest karst plateau in Japan.
The Akiyoshi do cave (Shuhou-dou): This spacious cave is up to 100 meters wide and has 8.79 kilometres of passages, making it one of the longest in Japan and in Asia.
The Ganjo temple in Mito to experience You can visit this Buddhism temple for Zazen meditation.
Reviews
Emily T from the UK: I had such a wonderful time at Dream House. The course itself was full on, and my skills improved so much over the course of a week. Everyone was welcoming, and I have made friends that I still chat with months after returning home. The extra activities was really fun too, and I did so many things that I doubt I would have done otherwise. If you are considering the course, 100% go for it. You won't regret it!
Margarita Staneva from Bulgaria: Would give 6 out of 5 stars, if possible! The course is great, you can also feel relaxed and related to the beautiful nature out there! Everything was perfect! Starting from the accommodation, through the lessons and the optional activities, to the extremely nice food! Akemi-san and her team made everyone feel safe and happy at her school. We were lucky to be able to see so many beautiful exhibitions, gardens, temples, do zazen meditations, have a pottery class and taiko drumming experience! Everyone was welcoming, polite and nice! A huge thank you!
Farid Hamka from Indonesia: Imagine waking up in the Japanese countryside, with beautiful home-cooked meals that are fresh and tasty, learning so much about the art of ink (suibokuga and shodo) with detailed guidance from the sensei, but also allowing ample room to exercise out own personal creativity. This is simply what the Dream House is about. I had the privilege of joining the 7 day residential course in the autumn of 2024. The experience of living in a shared house in the countryside was much more pleasant than I had imagined. Everyone connected over the tea breaks, sharing jokes, merriment, but also opening up to one another. It was a warm and cordial atmosphere. Would definitely recommend anyone who is interested in art and Japan to join, even if you do not have that much experience in any of the art. It was a week that made me feel like poetry and gratitude are running inside my veins.
Diane Aoki from Hawaii : Just returned from my time at Koshu Dream House learning sumi-e and calligraphy. I can’t say enough good about my experience there. Akemi is a wonderful teacher, I felt like the worst student at times, but she guided me through the processes and in the end, I did come to finish my project and am proud of it, and of myself. But there was so much more to this time than the class itself. First of all, the food was amazing! It was healthy, tasty, and beautifully presented. We all looked forward to meal time. Also, there were optional activities which really added to experience. I took pottery, taiko drumming and cooking. So glad I took all of those. Moreover, the sightseeing excursions were incredible. And visiting a nearby zen Buddhist temple and learning and doing zazen meditation was beautiful. Also, I am a morning walker and the surrounding area was great for walking around. There is a river park, walkways though the rice fields, and a hillside path behind the temple. It was amazing that we did so much in the 8 days and 7 nights. I plan to return!
Tunku Alina Alice from Malaysia: I attended Koshu's first one-week residential art program in the Fall '24 in the serenity of the countryside in Mito. It was a full program of immersive lessons on history, shodo and sumi-e techniques, seal making, backing paper application, pottery and cultural visits to a temple for zazen lessons, to Sesshu's studio at Unkuokan and his gardens at Joei-ji temple and later to view his Four Seasons work at Mohri museum. We also had sightseeing visits to Akiyoshida caves and the plains and optional activities such as Taiko drumming and onsen visit. Koshu and her team so excelled in taking care of us, the thoughtful meals prepared by Sati and her team were cooked on premise and it was a very happy and fulfilling experience for me. I found it to be a safe space to be myself and be thoroughly loved by Koshu and her amazing team. I will be returning to this wonderful teacher and her Dream House in the future.
Oana Stan from Scotland : Dream House is a dream. If you want to be immersed in an authentic Zen experience with painting, calligraphy, meditation, superb hosts and an amazing master to guide you, this is it. Do not hesitate, book your residential, it will transform your life.
Agnieszka from Poland : Sumi-e, to me, is like a journey into peace of mind. It began with the Domestika course by Koshu, Akemi Lucas, and led me to her Dream House in Japan. I participated in the ink-stone and ink-stick making workshops that she organised, and took individual lessons with her. Unforgettable experience! Charming Mito is close to the natural wonders of the Akiyoshidai plateau with breathtaking limestone caves. Akemi is an amazing teacher – very kind, extremely motivating, and delicate at the same time. I admire the gracefulness of her painting style, which I think is as close to perfection as can be.
Yulia and Sebastian from France: Dream House is a perfect place for art lovers. A little house far from noise and traffic, in the middle of beautiful Japanese countryside. I'll always remember painting with the sound of running brook in the background. The accommodations are very comfortable and have everything you need. As for the contents of the course, Koshu is a very skillful artist and a talented teacher. Even if you're a beginner, you'll enjoy the process, like my husband did! We'd love to come back again one day and explore beautiful Yamaguchi more.
We look forward to welcoming you to Dream House
Enquire here: koshudreamhouse@gmail.com
5342-3 Oda, Mito-cho, Mine-city, Yamaguchi prefecture, 754-0211, JAPAN
Photos of Residential courses can be seen on Instagram & Facebook
Credits:
Koshu Japanese Art