Best places to enjoy art in Tokyo?

23 comments

1. Tokyo National Museum is my favorite. Used to go every time I’d go to Tokyo. It encompasses a wide variety of art types and a lot of Japanese art.

2. Any kind? There is one in roppongi mori tower, there is some in ueno park. Some famous artists like yayoi kusama have their own museum. Also teamlab is quite popular.

   Also search grutto pass, it includes freed entry or discount to over 40 art museums.

3. If you follow any specific Japanese artists on pixiv, twitter, etc. they usually will post special artist signings or limited-time exhibits or collaborations. Especially if they’re an artist who makes popular LINE stamps. If you look up the creator name on google it usually matches their twitter handle or makes it easy to find their website since most artists use the same name across all social media save for a few minor varations.

   There’s a gallery in Harajuku/Omotesando called Design Festa Gallery where independent artists can rent out gallery space free of charge to sell their goods. There’s a few more galleries in the general area too.

   Of course you have your big name galleries like Roppongi Mori Tower and all but it’s nice to tell you how you can get access to the smaller artists.

   If you go to Hakone on your trip for onsen experience or something, Hakone has a lot of art museums. Picasso art gallery is here inside the open air museum which is a famous sculpture garden. The POLA Art Museum features a lot of famous western artworks along with Japanese artwork. The Venetian Glass museum is here as well. The counterpart to the Venetian Glass museum aka the Music Forest Museum is located in Lake Kawaguchiko (Fuji 5 lakes area) and Lake Kawaguchiko has a few museums as well such as a textile museum etc.

   So if you’re doing a Tokyo focused trip I highly recommend taking 1 or 2 day trips to areas like Hakone, Fuji, Yokohama, Nikko etc. which will open up more doors to you in terms of artwork depending on the amount of time you have.

4. Yaoi Kusama if that’s your style. I really enjoyed it. It’s quite popular and sells out, so book well in advance.

5. Metropolitan government building at the observation deck. The birds eye view is the city scape is art in itself and it’s free!

6. Not typical “art”, but theres design museum called “21_21 Design Sight” is my favourite!!Always has really interesting design exhibitions and the architecture is really nice too.

7. The National Art Center, Tokyo is a pretty good place. They held great exhibitions of local artists, as well as international art. I was there in 2018 for the “Art of Portraiture in the Louvre Collections”, which was a great experience.

8. Tokyo Metropolitan art museum and the national museum of western art are both at Ueno park, you can do a whole day there and visit the zoo as well.

9. Teamlab is really cool for modern installation. Borderless or Planets

10. Then you should not miss the Hokusai Museum in Sumida. Edo-Tokyo Museum is also located just nearby. This museum serves as a very good introduction to the life and culture of Tokyo people since Edo period up to the modern day, which can really enhance your appreciation of arts and culture in Tokyo.

    Suntory Museum of Art at Tokyo Midtown in Roppongi hosts a variety of amazing exhibitions throughout the year. The museum also offers Tea Ceremony experience. Tokyo Midtown itself is quite aesthetic both inside and outside. The “21_21 Design Sight” is here too.

    For a change, if you would like to see something Western then head to Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum near Tokyo Station. The cafe-restaurant “Cafe 1894” has awesome lunch options, and sometimes they will offer inexpensive dinner courses inspired by the arts currently on display.

    If you are interested in the art of Japanese crafts, Ginza and Nihonbashi area are homes to many centenarian craft shops. Ozu washi in Nihonbashi, for example, has been making traditional Japanese papers for 500 years. The store offers a casual washi-making workshop just for 500 yen. The instructor ROCKS.

    Other places that come to mind would be Akasaka Palace (do take the guided tour for the Japanese quarter too), Teamlab Borderless, Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum, Nezu Museum, and other Japanese gardens in Tokyo.

11. I love the Mori Art Museum as you also get an amazing view of the Tokyo Skyline from its gallery windows. It’s also open at night so can be a nice place to go before/after dinner when most other tourist sites are often closed.

    – [Mori Art Museum ](https://www.mori.art.museum/en/)
    – [GaijinPot: Mori Art Museum ](https://travel.gaijinpot.com/mori-art-museum/)

    Also, if you want to go to multiple museums you can buy a Grutto Pass. It’s good for up to 2 months and offers free or discounted admission at lots of different museums in Tokyo.

    – [Grutto Pass Website ](https://www.rekibun.or.jp/en/grutto/)
    – [Metropolis: Grutto Pass 2021 ](https://metropolisjapan.com/tokyo-museum-grutto-pass-2021/)
    – [Grutto Pass: The Ultimate Cheapo Discount for Museum Enthusiasts ](https://tokyocheapo.com/entertainment/museums-tour-grutt-pass/)

    Edit To Add: The pass is sold yearly. So even though the above links reference 2021 there should be a 2022 Grutto Pass too.

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13. Hara art museum in shinagawa

14. This is more a digital art thing, but was super-cool when we were there in 2019.

    https://borderless.teamlab.art/

    It’s in Odaiba next to that really big Ferris Wheel (大観覧車).

    Have fun!

15. I would absolutely check out Tokyo’s TeamLab experience. Very cool stuff

16. Have a nice trip 🙌I also want to visit Tokyo!i hope one day it’ll happen with me

17. When are you planning on going?

18. Mori Art Museum is my favourite worth the visit!

19. Out of sincere curiosity, how are you guys planning trips to Japan with the current virus going on? I mean no offence cause I really want to travel too.

20. I’ve been checking off locations from [Japan-Guide’s Museum List](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2428.html), barely through Tokyo now but it’s been a great way to see some art that I didn’t think I’d have the chance to see (Van Gough and Gaugin Exhibit at Ueno a couple of years ago) and art that I didn’t think was a thing (the oft-mentioned TeamLabs Borderless and Planets). I keep an eye specifically for exhibits from [Yoshimasa Tsuchiya](https://www.instagram.com/yoshimasa_tsuchiya_info/?hl=en), his works are gorgeous and a real treat to see up close if wood carving and ethereal life is your thing.

    EDIT: I also forgot to mention the [GRUTTO Pass](https://www.rekibun.or.jp/en/grutto/), which is great for visiting museums and other areas of historical/cultural interest at a reduced cost. If you’re headed to Osaka, the [Osaka Amazing Pass](https://www.osp.osaka-info.jp/en/) offers similar entry benefits tied in with a transportation discount which is very handy and worth the minimal cost.

21. One of the highlights of my trip was the Ota Ukiyo-e Museum in Harajuku. It’s a small, rotating exhibit of beautiful and traditional woodblock prints. It’s really easy to pair with a day in Meiji Shrine or Harajuku in general.

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23. Mori Art Museum in Roppongi is pretty great. English-friendly too.