This museum conserves and exhibits arts collected by the Sumitomo family, with its main building located in Shishiga-tani, Kyoto. The collection is composed of various and diverse items, such as modern Japanese and Western paintings, modern pottery and chinaware, tea utensils, and Noh masks and costumes collected from the middle of the Meiji era to Taisho era. Despite being in the middle of Roppongi, it is surrounded by greenery and is a quiet environment, which lets you forget about time and appreciate the arts to your heart's content.
This museum was established in March 2003 with 3 designers, Issei Miyake (fashion designer), Taku Sato (graphic designer), and Naoto Fukazawa (product designer) as its directors and Noriko Kawakami, a journalist and editor, as its associate director. Not only does it offer exhibitions, but it also offers various programs such as talks and workshops with a concept of ”becoming a venue where day-to-day perspectives and views can be proposed.” The building with a symbolic roof created with an image of ”one sheet of fabric” was designed by Tadao Ando, an architect.