(Image credit: hermitvoita)
Nagoro is a village on Shikoku Island in japan that has about two dozen human residents, and 300 residents made of fabric stuffed with straw and newspaper. These are called kakashi, which means scarecrow, but these life-size dolls are works of art. They each have a name and a backstory. And they were all hand-crafted by Tsukimi Ayano.
(Image credit: Roberto Maxwell)
Ayano made her first scarecrow in 2002 to protect her garden from birds, and she crafted it to look like her father. Everyone around was so impressed with Ayano's skills that she made more of them. That was when Nagoro had hundreds of people, but over the years, most either died or left. Ayano kept making dolls in their image and memory, and placed them in their natural environment doing everyday activities over time. It helped with the loneliness of the shrinking village, but then it brought visitors to see them. Now Nagoro welcomes tourists who come from all over to see Ayano's kakashi. Read about the "village of the dolls" and see more pictures at My Modern Met.