The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo “MOMAT Collection”

The MOMAT Collection is the museum’s signature exhibition introducing masterpieces selected from its collection of approximately 14,000 works. This season features Eikoh Hosoe’s Ordeal by Roses, presented in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Yukio Mishima’s birth, and a special focus on Koji Enokura marking the 30th anniversary of his passing. Also on view is Yoshitomo Nara’s Harmless Kitty (1994), exhibited for the first time in about two years.

Period: November 5, 2025 – February 8, 2026
Venue: Collection Gallery (4F–2F), The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo
Hours: 10:00 – 17:00 (Open until 20:00 on Fridays and Saturdays; last admission 30 min before closing)
Admission: Adults 500 (400), University Students 250 (200)
 Free for high school students and younger, visitors under 18, and those aged 65 and over
 Discount after 5:00 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays: Adults 300, University Students 150
Closed: Mondays (except Nov 24, Jan 12), Nov 25, Dec 28 – Jan 1, Jan 13
Other: Concurrently held with the special exhibition “Anti-Action: Women Artists Respond and Challenge” on the 1st floor
URL: https://www.momat.go.jp/en/exhibitions/r7-2

Image: Yoshitomo Nara, Harmless Kitty, 1994 © Yoshitomo Nara

Tokyo Art Museum “Natsuki Takayama Solo Exhibition: Formless Landscapes”

This solo exhibition by Natsuki Takayama, known for her distinctive technique of carving through layers of acrylic paint with sculpting tools, presents a space where viewers can experience art not only visually but also physically. Featuring paintings, sculptures, and installations, the exhibition invites visitors to encounter a new mode of expression that resonates with the architecture designed by Tadao Ando.

Period: October 4 (Sat) – December 14 (Sun), 2025
Venue: Tokyo Art Museum (1-25-1 Sengawacho, Chofu, Tokyo)
Hours: 11:00 – 18:30 (Last admission at 18:00)
Admission: Adults 500, High school & university students 400, Elementary & junior high school students 300
Closed: Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays (Open on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays only)
URL: http://www.tokyoartmuseum.com/

The Museum of Modern Art, Saitama “Kozo Nojima and Yori Saito: Hands that Grasp Beauty, Eyes that Inspire It”

This exhibition focuses on the connection between Kozo Nojima, a photographer associated with Saitama, and Yori Saito, a Western-style painter. Tracing their friendship during the Taisho period, it introduces a new perspective on modern Japanese art through their works and related materials. It offers a rare opportunity to explore how these two artists, working in different fields, pursued and interpreted the essence of beauty.

Period: November 1 (Sat), 2025 – January 18 (Sun), 2026
Venue: The Museum of Modern Art, Saitama (in Kita-Urawa Park)
Hours: 10:00 – 17:30 (Last admission at 17:00)
Admission: Adults 1,400, University & high school students 1,120, Free for junior high school students and younger, and for visitors with a disability certificate and one accompanying person
Closed: Mondays (except Nov 3, Nov 24, and Jan 12), Year-end and New Year holidays (Dec 30 – Jan 3)
URL: https://pref.spec.ed.jp/momas/2025nojima_yori
Image: Yori Saito, *The Lotus Sutra*, c.1909, oil on canvas, Rokuzan Art Museum Collection

The Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura Annex “KAWAGUCHI Kimio: Thousands are Sailing”

This solo exhibition presents approximately 40 works by Kimio Kawaguchi, who has long depicted poetic landscapes using his distinctive technique that combines tempera and oil painting. It is the artist’s first solo show at a public museum in about ten years. From early masterpieces to recent works, the exhibition traces over half a century of Kawaguchi’s creative journey through landscapes filled with lyricism and allegory.

Period: November 1 (Sat), 2025 – February 1 (Sun), 2026
Venue: The Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura Annex (2-8-1 Yukinoshita, Kamakura, Kanagawa)
Hours: 9:30 – 17:00 (Last admission at 16:30)
Admission: Adults 700 (600), Under 20 / Students 550 (450), Seniors (65 and over) 350, High school students 100
 *Prices in parentheses indicate group rates for 20 or more visitors.
Closed: Mondays (except Nov 3, Nov 24, and Jan 12), Dec 29 – Jan 3
Other: Free admission on November 3 (Culture Day) / Gallery talks to be held in conjunction with the exhibition
URL: https://tinyurl.com/3xmwaajy
Image: Kimio Kawaguchi, *Granatapfel (Pomegranate)*, 1977, tempera and oil on canvas, Private Collection

Art Tower Mito Contemporary Art Gallery “Arata Isozaki: Architecture as Archipelago”

This large-scale retrospective marks the first comprehensive exhibition in Japan following the passing of architect Arata Isozaki at the end of 2022. Spanning a wide range of disciplines beyond architecture and urban design—including art and philosophy—the exhibition reconstructs Isozaki’s creative universe as an “archipelago.” Through models, drawings, sketches, and installations, it offers an in-depth look at the trajectory of one of the most influential architects of the 20th century. Presented at Art Tower Mito, a landmark building designed by Isozaki himself, the exhibition invites visitors to explore his visionary approach to space and form.

Period: November 1 (Sat), 2025 – January 25 (Sun), 2026
Venue: Art Tower Mito Contemporary Art Gallery
Hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Last admission at 17:30)
Admission: Adults 900, Groups (20 or more) 700
 Free for high school students and younger, visitors aged 70 and over, and those with a disability certificate and one accompanying person
 Annual Pass: 2,000
 “First Friday” discount: Students and visitors aged 65–69 100 (ID required)
Closed: Mondays (open Nov 3, Nov 24, Jan 12), Year-end and New Year holidays (Dec 27 – Jan 3), Temporary closures (Nov 4, Nov 25, Jan 13)
URL: https://tinyurl.com/yb6ep7ed
Image: *Tsukuba Center Building*, completed in 1983, photo taken in 1983 © Kochi Prefecture, Ishimoto Yasuhiro Photo Center, Photo: Yasuhiro Ishimoto

The National Museum of Art, Osaka “Collection 2”

The National Museum of Art, Osaka presents Collection 2, composed of the special feature “Imagination of the 21st Century” and the ongoing exhibition “Collection Highlights.” This exhibition explores shifts in sensibility and values over the past 25 years of the 21st century through contemporary artworks created both in Japan and abroad. Visitors can experience diverse artistic expressions that reflect new worldviews shaped by our rapidly changing times.

Period: November 1 (Sat), 2025 – February 15 (Sun), 2026
Venue: The National Museum of Art, Osaka, B2F Exhibition Rooms (4-2-55 Nakanoshima, Kita-ku, Osaka)
Hours: 10:00 – 17:00 (Fridays until 20:00; last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Admission: Adults 430 (220), University students 130 (70)
 Free for high school students and younger, visitors under 18, and those aged 65 and over
Closed: Mondays (open Nov 3, Nov 24, Jan 12; closed the following Tuesdays), Year-end and New Year holidays (Dec 28 – Jan 5)
Other: Free admission days available (see official website for details)
URL: https://tinyurl.com/4zxe2cxz
Image: Djordje Ozbolt, Nice to Meet You, 2009, The National Museum of Art, Osaka © Djordje Ozbolt, Courtesy of TARO NASU

Toyota Municipal Museum of Art “Anti-Action: Women Artists’ Responses and Challenges”

This exhibition reexamines postwar Japanese art from the perspective of gender studies, focusing on the unique roles played by women artists in the 1950s and 1960s. For a brief yet significant period, female artists such as Yayoi Kusama and Atsuko Tanaka gained recognition for their avant-garde expressions that pushed the boundaries of conventional art. However, as the masculine concept of “action painting” from the United States became dominant, women’s contributions were gradually marginalized in art discourse.

Based on the research of Izumi Nakajima, who has long worked to reinterpret art history through the lens of gender, this exhibition introduces 14 pioneering women artists through approximately 120 works. It traces their creative “anti-action” stances—responses and challenges that resisted exclusion and sought new forms of expression within the social and artistic context of postwar Japan.

Period: October 4 (Sat) – November 30 (Sun), 2025
Venue: Toyota Municipal Museum of Art (Exhibition Rooms 6, 7, and 8)
Hours: 10:00 – 17:30 (Last admission at 17:00)
Admission: Adults 1,500, High school & university students 1,000, Junior high school students and younger free
Closed: Mondays (open Oct 13, Nov 3, and Nov 24)
URL: https://tinyurl.com/47b3vehc
Image: Yamazaki Tsuruko, Work, 1963, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art (The Yamamura Collection) © Estate of Tsuruko Yamazaki, courtesy of LADS Gallery, Osaka and Take Ninagawa, Tokyo

21_21 DESIGN SIGHT “Learning from Design Maestros”

This exhibition, directed by design journalist **Noriko Kawakami** and curator/writer **Kaoru Tashiro**, introduces six iconic figures under the title *Design Maestros*: **Bruno Munari**, **Max Bill**, **Achille Castiglioni**, **Otl Aicher**, **Enzo Mari**, and **Dieter Rams**. Through their ideas, educational approaches, and social perspectives, the exhibition explores what these designers can teach us about the potential of design in shaping the future.

While some of these maestros extended their practice into education, nurturing the next generation of designers, all of them shared a pioneering spirit that opened up new eras through creativity and conviction. The exhibition also highlights the perspective of **Shutaro Mukai (1932–2024)**, whose friendship with Max Bill and Otl Aicher helped lay the foundations for design studies in Japan.

Period: November 21 (Fri), 2025 – March 8 (Sun), 2026
Venue: 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT Gallery 1 & 2 (Midtown Garden, Tokyo Midtown, 9-7-6 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo)
Hours: 10:00 – 19:00 (Last admission at 18:30)
Admission: General 1,600 / University students 800 / High school students 500 / Junior high school students and under free
Closed: Tuesdays, Year-end and New Year holidays (December 27 – January 3)
Organized by: 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT, The Miyake Issey Foundation
Special Sponsor: Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.

URL: https://tinyurl.com/2s3brsz6

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo “Choreographies of the Everyday”

To commemorate its 30th anniversary, the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo presents Choreographies of the Everyday, a large-scale exhibition featuring works by more than 30 artists and collectives from different generations and regions. The exhibition serves as a platform for both artists and audiences to reflect on society through contemporary art, offering participatory performances and workshops throughout the exhibition period to encourage dialogue and engagement.

Focusing on the gestures and frameworks that shape our daily lives—from domestic spaces defined by gender norms to institutional and urban settings such as museums, Okinawa, and Mumbai—the exhibition explores how subjectivity is formed and transformed. Featuring newly commissioned works based on research conducted in Tokyo, it sheds light on the cultural, political, and economic forces that intertwine with everyday existence. Through these artistic practices, the exhibition reveals the underlying systems of power, resistance, and imagination embedded in ordinary experiences.

By presenting multiple perspectives on the structures that shape our lives, Choreographies of the Everyday invites visitors to envision alternative ways of living and to consider how acts of creativity, humor, and defiance can help build a more equitable and pluralistic society.

Period: August 23 (Sat) – November 24 (Mon, substitute holiday), 2025
Venue: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (Exhibition Rooms 1F & B2F, Foyer, and other spaces)
Hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Open until 21:00 on Fridays in August and September; last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Admission: Adults 2,100 / University, vocational students & visitors aged 65+ 1,100 / Junior high & high school students 500 / Elementary school students & younger free / Twin Ticket 3,500
Closed: Mondays (open Sep 15, Oct 13, Nov 3, Nov 24), Sep 16, Oct 14, Nov 4
URL: https://tinyurl.com/5e5w895z

Fukuda Art Museum & Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts & Culture “Uemura Shōen and the Legacy of Bijin-ga” / “Ukiyo-e, the Launch Pad for Bijin-ga”

Commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Uemura Shōen (1875–1949), one of Japan’s most renowned painters of bijin-ga (paintings of beautiful women), this special two-venue exhibition explores the evolution and transformation of feminine beauty in Japanese art.

At the Fukuda Art Museum, 28 of Uemura Shōen’s masterpieces are on display, including early works such as Nagayo (Long Night) and the newly unveiled Two Teahouses. The exhibition also presents works by other artists who shaped the modern bijin-ga movement, tracing shifting ideals of beauty from the Meiji to the Showa periods.

The neighboring Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts & Culture hosts Ukiyo-e, the Launch Pad for Bijin-ga, featuring Edo-period ukiyo-e paintings and hand-painted scrolls by artists such as Gion Seitoku and Kaburaki Kiyokata. Through portrayals of courtesans, geisha, and women in daily life, the exhibition illuminates how the dynamic “floating world” of Edo culture laid the foundation for the modern bijin-ga tradition.

Period: October 11 (Sat), 2025 – January 18 (Sun), 2026
 (Part I: October 11 – December 1 / Part II: December 3 – January 18)
Venue: Fukuda Art Museum & Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts & Culture (Saga Tenryuji Susukinobabacho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto)
Hours: 10:00 – 17:00 (Last admission at 16:30)
Admission: To be confirmed (please refer to official websites)
Closed: November 11, December 2, December 16, December 30–31, January 1
URL: https://tinyurl.com/4euyu62y
Image: Ikeda Shōen, *Pilgrimage for Things / Spring Day*, 1907–1908, Collection of Fukuda Art Museum, on view throughout the exhibition period.

Mori Art Museum “Mariko Mori”

The Mori Art Museum will present a major retrospective of Mariko Mori, exploring her visionary fusion of art, science, and metaphysics. Featuring around eighty works spanning three decades, the exhibition traces Mori’s artistic evolution across interactive installations, sculptures, videos, photographs, drawings, and performances.

Throughout her career, Mori has pursued an artistic practice that transcends time and space, weaving together ancient philosophies and cutting-edge science. Her central concept of “Oneness,” rooted in Buddhist cosmology, contemplates the interconnectedness of all living beings and the universe. From her early 1990s works exploring posthuman identity to her later large-scale installations integrating light, sound, and technology, Mori’s art invites viewers on a meditative journey between the physical and the spiritual.

Organized in collaboration with the Asian Art Initiative of the Guggenheim Museum in New York, this exhibition marks Mori’s first major presentation in Japan since *Pure Land* (2002). It includes key works from international collections and newly revealed drawings and archives, offering an immersive experience that bridges humanity, nature, and the cosmos.

Period: October 31 (Sat), 2026 – March 28 (Sun), 2027
Venue: Mori Art Museum (Roppongi Hills Mori Tower 53F, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo)
Organizer: Mori Art Museum
In collaboration with: Asian Art Initiative of the Guggenheim Museum
Curated by: Alexandra Munroe (Senior Curator at Large, Global Arts, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Foundation), Kataoka Mami (Director, Mori Art Museum)
Closed days and opening hours: Please refer to the official website.
URL: https://tinyurl.com/4vp9n3mw
Image: Mariko Mori, *Wave UFO*, 1999–2002, photo by Richard Learoyd © Mariko Mori / Courtesy of Mori Art Museum

LURF GALLERY “FEEL” Isshin Tanisaki Solo Exhibition

LURF GALLERY presents FEEL, a solo exhibition by Isshin Tanisaki. Renowned for his abstract paintings that explore the origins of the world and life through the motif of the vortex, Tanisaki’s practice is rooted in landscape painting. In this exhibition, his two approaches—landscape and vortex—converge to create a new pictorial realm that moves fluidly between abstraction and figuration.

Through vortices and wavelengths, Tanisaki investigates the relationship between the external world and human consciousness, inviting viewers to reconsider how meaning and value are perceived. His works suggest that the world itself is devoid of inherent meaning—it simply exists—and that beauty and significance arise only through human awareness.

Period: November 7 (Fri) – December 7 (Sun), 2025
Venue: LURF GALLERY (28-13 Sarugaku-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Roob1 1F & 2F)
Hours: 11:00 – 19:00
Admission: Free
Closed: Mondays (tentative)
URL: https://lurfgallery.com/

KOTARO NUKAGA “Annie Morris and Idris Khan: A Petal Silently Falls”

KOTARO NUKAGA is pleased to present Annie Morris and Idris Khan: A Petal Silently Falls, a two-person exhibition by the British artist couple, on view from October 29 to December 26, 2025, across both the Roppongi and Tennoz galleries.

Born in the United Kingdom in 1978, Annie Morris is celebrated for her Stack sculptures—vibrant, tactile works composed of vividly colored spheres that symbolize resilience and hope. Idris Khan, known for his meditative compositions in blue and gray, visualizes the passage of time and the accumulation of memory through layered text, photography, and symbolic imagery.

Although each artist has established an independent international career, they share a profound creative dialogue that continually informs and inspires their practices. This exhibition marks their first presentation in Japan, offering a rare opportunity to experience the harmony and contrast that define their art. Visitors are invited to encounter how two distinct artistic voices intertwine to form a deeply resonant visual and emotional landscape.

Period: October 29 (Wed) – December 26 (Fri), 2025
Venues: KOTARO NUKAGA (Roppongi / Tennoz)
Hours: 11:30 – 18:00 (Tuesday – Saturday)
Admission: Free
Closed: Sundays, Mondays, and national holidays
URL: https://tinyurl.com/4ct993mn

Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum “Timeless Art Deco with Van Cleef & Arpels High Jewelry”

This exhibition commemorates the 100th anniversary of the 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts, which gave birth to the Art Deco style. Through the exquisite creations of Van Cleef & Arpels—founded by Alfred Van Cleef and Estelle Arpels—the exhibition traces a century of artistic excellence, poetic design, and technical mastery.

At the 1925 exposition, Van Cleef & Arpels received the Grand Prize for its magnificent Entwined Flowers, Red and White Roses bracelet—a testament to the Maison’s enduring spirit of innovation, which continues to define its creations today. Presented within the Art Deco architecture of the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum—whose design was itself influenced by that same Paris exposition—the exhibition brings together treasures from the Maison’s patrimonial and private collections, celebrating the timeless beauty and ingenuity of Art Deco craftsmanship.

Period: September 27 (Sat), 2025 – January 18 (Sun), 2026
Venue: Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum
Hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Admission: To be announced
Closed: Mondays and Year-end/New Year holidays (December 28 – January 4)
URL: https://art.nikkei.com/timeless-art-deco/en/