Exhibition Schedule
Current Exhibition
Pictures of Famous Places in Japan
- April 18 (Sat) - June 21 (Sun), 2026
Closed for Rotation of Exhibits: May 18 (Mon) – 21 (Thu)
＊The museum is closed on Mondays except May 4, 2026
Japan is blessed with nature and rich in seasonal transitions. Since ancient times, its landscapes have been celebrated in waka poetry and recorded in tales, lingering in people's hearts until they became places they longed to visit. Over time, people's longing for these places grew, and they gradually became famous places, depicted in the forms of paintings. New places of fame also emerged in each era, ceaselessly drawing people to them. And cities where people gathered were depicted, becoming a new set of famous places of attention. We present works depicting these “famous places” from the Idemitsu Collection. Please emjoy a journey through these notable places depicted in art in the museum.
Exhibition Schedule
2026.4～2027.3
April 18 (Sat) - June 21 (Sun)
Closed for Rotation of Exhibits : May 18 (Mon) – 21 (Thu)
Pictures of Famous Places in Japan
Japan is blessed with nature and rich in seasonal transitions. Since ancient times, its landscapes have been celebrated in waka poetry and recorded in tales, lingering in people's hearts until they became places they longed to visit. Over time, people's longing for these places grew, and they gradually became famous places, depicted in the forms of paintings. New places of fame also emerged in each era, ceaselessly drawing people to them. And cities where people gathered were depicted, becoming a new set of famous places of attention. We present works depicting these “famous places” from the Idemitsu Collection. Please emjoy a journey through these notable places depicted in art in the museum.
September 12 (Sat) - November 3 (Tue)
Closed for Rotation of Exhibits October 5 (Mon) – 8 (Thu)
10th Anniversary of the Opening of the New Museum Building
Masters of Ink Painting: From Sesshū to Tessai
Ink painting, originating in China and introduced to Japan, is literally a form of painting based on ink. Ink is said to represent five colors, and people found pleasure in sensing the essential color and light inherent in things beyond the blackness of the ink. In Japan, ink painting was perfected by Sesshū and reached its zenith through Hasegawa Tōhaku. Beloved by samurai military commanders, paintings by numerous artists rooted in the Kanō school adorned the surroundings of rulers, while literati pursued it for their own pleasure. Please enjoy these masterpieces of ink painting from the Idemitsu Collection.
November 14 (Sat) - December 13 (Sun)
Expressions of Gods: From Illustrated Handscrolls to Sengai and Hōan
Since ancient times, the Japanese have sensed something beyond human understanding within nature, revering it as kami (meaning gods) and treating it with awe. These invisible deities gradually came to be depicted, and their miraculous powers were proclaimed through handscroll paintings. Later in the Edo period when pilgrimage journeys became popular, Sengai, the monk-artist, depicted landscapes of shrines and images of gods. And in the modern era, tales of the gods became themes in historical paintings, depicted by artists like Kosugi Hōan. This exhibition introduces the diverse representations of “gods” that have been depicted continuously throughout Japanese art history, evolving with each era.
January 16 (Sat) - March 28 (Sun), 2027
Celadon — The Ceramics that Charmed the World
Celadon has diverse hues ranging from light green to sky blue. This exhibition explores the allure of East Asian celadon, focusing on the evolution of Chinese celadon—a main stream in the ceramic history—alongside examples from Japan and the Korean Peninsula. From ash-glazed ceramics (or primitive celadon), originating in China—to celadon from the Yuezhou kiln (also called Old Yue ware), Yaozhou kiln, and Longquan kiln, together with Japanese Nabeshima ware, works of Aoki Mokubei, and Korean celadon, which are the highlights of the Idemitsu Collection, revealing the diverse charms of celadon and its long history.