Best Art Museums Spot List

An art museum surrounded by dense forests, deep in the mountains

Lalique Museum, Hakone exhibits about 230 pieces of French artist, René Lalique (1860-1945) who created precious jewelry in Art Nouveau style, and beautiful objects in glass during Art Deco period.

A place to appreciate masterful works of glass

This is an admission-free art gallery opened in the Ginza district by Pola Group, which is expanding its cosmetics business, to make this facility the information-dissemination center for art and culture.

Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum is in Ueno Park. Special exhibitions of domestic and foreign famous paintings, variety of planned exhibitions, and exhibitions of works by the general public are held there.

Appreciate masterpieces of French Impressionism

Directly connected to Mitsukoshimae Station, the Mitsui Memorial Museum features masterpieces of Japanese and Eastern art acquired by members of the Mitsui family over 350 years. There is no permanent exhibition.

This is Japan's only national art museum, where you can view various Western artworks, including the Matsukata collection, which mainly consists of French artworks.

A unique art museum displaying future works and commanding a magnificent view of Lake Ashino-ko in Hakone.

The museum’s shop is a must-see, too

Teaware masterpieces collected by a businessman

Experience arts from Akita

A museum specializing in nihonga (Japanese paintings) with a collection of about 1,800 works consisting mainly of modern and contemporary Japanese paintings. It holds various special exhibitions as well.

A museum were you can enjoy the modern works painted by the illustrators such as Takabatake Kasho who swept through the art publication world.

It is a toy museum designed to attract people of all ages, from babies to the elderly. Visitors can see, touch, play, and learn while having fun.

The National Film Center is the only national institution devoted to cinematography. It keeps movie films as well as many valuable materials related to movies. They are shown on the screens or displayed in the exhibition hall.

It has over 5,000 pieces of Japanese and Oriental antique art. The building in the shinden-zukuri aristocratic architectural style (developed between the late 7th to early 11th century) and the Japanese garden are worthy of a viewing.

A unique hexagon-shaped art museum that houses some 2,000 ceramics, Japanese lacquerwares, and tea kettles.

A butler-guided tour

The entire space is a work of art! An art museum designed by painter Insho Domoto