Autumn is the harvest season, and art students in northern Japan's Niigata prefecture just came up with a great way to use leftover straw, as the material, rice straw – “wara” in Japanese – is an ideal material for creating art pieces. /Photo from: spoon&tamago/twitter account: @waraartmatsuri

At the Wara Art festival, artists brought this kind of monster, usually only seen in movies, to life. Besides for attracting art lovers, these giant straw monsters also attract tourists from all over the world. /Photo from: spoon&tamago/twitter account: @waraartmatsuri

This amazing straw lion is one of the many bold artworks created for the festival. /Photo from: spoon&tamago/twitter account: @waraartmatsuri

The very first Wara Art Festival was held in 2008, making this the tenth. To celebrate the festival's first decade, participants made their sculptures extra large when compared to those from previous years. All the sculptures will be on display till the end of October. /Photo from: spoon&tamago/twitter account: @waraartmatsuri