Worth Traveling For! 60 Must-See Exhibitions and Art Events Starting Across Japan in September 2024

Venue: Sapporo Art Museum
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) – September 29, 2024 (Sun)
・Featuring approximately 140 items from the Naito Collection held by the National Museum of Western Art, including Bibles, Books of Hours, and hymnals.

Venue: National Ainu Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 17, 2024 (Sun)
・Exploring the diversity of imaginary creatures such as mermaids, dragons, and kappa through ritual objects, costumes, paintings, sculptures, and books, to uncover the source of human imagination and creative power.

Venue: Akita City Senshu Museum of Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 10, 2024 (Sun)
・Revealing what kind of artist Salvador Dalí was through oil paintings, drawings, prints, and sculptures, as well as works by other surrealist artists like Miró and Magritte.

Venue: Hirosaki Museum of Contemporary Art
Dates: September 27, 2024 (Fri) – March 9, 2025 (Sun)
・A joint exhibition featuring works from the Taguchi Art Collection and the Hirosaki Museum of Contemporary Art's own collection.

Venue: Chigasaki City Museum of Art
Dates: September 3, 2024 (Tue) – November 10, 2024 (Sun)
・Introducing the Yanagihara style of enjoying overseas travel, including Hawaii, through works themed around "sea voyages."

Venue: The Japan Folk Crafts Museum
Dates: September 5, 2024 (Thu) – November 20, 2024 (Wed)
・Introducing the diverse works of dyer Keisuke Serizawa, who was blessed with a natural talent for creating free-spirited color palettes and patterns.

Venue: Chiba City Museum of Art
Dates: September 6, 2024 (Fri) – November 4, 2024 (Mon)
・The first large-scale solo exhibition at a museum for the artist duo Nerhol.

Venue: Ginza Maison Hermès
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) – January 13, 2025 (Mon)
・An exhibition that continues the narrative of the "Rei Naito: Come into the Light, Come into the Life" exhibition currently being held at the Tokyo National Museum.

Venue: Utsunomiya Museum of Art
Dates: September 8, 2024 (Sun) – December 15, 2024 (Sun)
・A comprehensive introduction to the development of costume jewelry through over 400 examples.

Venue: BAG-Brillia Art Gallery
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) – October 27, 2024 (Sun)
・A work that crystallizes the philosophy and aesthetics Yoichi Ochiai has cultivated over many years, transcending the dualities of time and space, sacred and profane, and reality and unreality through the fusion of Edo-period religious space and contemporary digital expression.

Venue: Idemitsu Museum of Arts
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) – October 20, 2024 (Sun)
・A collection exhibition for the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, which will close for renovations in December.

Venue: The Tenshin Memorial Museum of Art, Ibaraki
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) - October 20, 2024 (Sun)
- An exhibition focusing on the faces of people depicted in artworks.

Venue: Seikado Bunko Art Museum
Dates: September 10, 2024 (Tue) - November 4, 2024 (Mon)
- The first tea utensil exhibition at Seikado in eight years. Featuring prestigious tea caddies and famous bowls formerly owned by the Shogun and daimyo families.

Venue: Yokohama Takashimaya
Dates: September 11, 2024 (Wed) - September 29, 2024 (Sun)
- An exhibition by Tatsuya Tanaka, a miniature photographer and 'mitate' artist attracting attention from around the world.

Venue: Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) - November 10, 2024 (Sun)
- An annual building exhibition held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum. This year, the focus is on 'lighting'.

Venue: Nakagawa-machi Bato Hiroshige Museum of Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) - October 14, 2024 (Mon)
- An exhibition exploring how people in the Edo period enjoyed food through ukiyo-e prints related to dining.

Venue: DIC Kawamura Memorial Museum of Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) - January 26, 2025 (Sun)
- The first retrospective exhibition in a Japanese museum for Katsuhito Nishikawa, who is based in Germany.
- The DIC Kawamura Memorial Museum of Art is expected to close after this exhibition.

Venue: Hara Museum ARC
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – January 13, 2025 (Mon)
・An exhibition of the collection themed around each visitor drawing art into the "inner" depths of their own heart as they face the works.

Venue: Mitsui Memorial Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 12, 2024 (Tue)
・Introducing paintings and crafts to be viewed while engaging the human five senses.

Venue: Yokohama Civic Art Gallery
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – October 7, 2024 (Mon)
・Exhibiting artists: Rintaro Fuse, Anna Ochiai Scripcariu.

Venue: Shibuya City Shoto Museum of Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 10, 2024 (Sun)
・An exhibition focusing on the transition of the representation of the "sky" as depicted by painters.

Venue: Yokosuka Museum of Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 4, 2024 (Mon)
・Introducing the trajectory of Ei-Q, who lived through the pre-war and post-war eras.

Venue: Izura Yukoku Inta-ato Onsen (2132 Otsu-cho, Kitaibaraki City, Ibaraki Prefecture)
Dates: September 30, 2024 (Mon) – Permanent※The opening date has been changed from the original schedule.
・A work that turns the remains of terraced rice fields hidden in a deep forest into an art space integrated with the forest.

Venue: Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum
Dates: September 19 (Thu) – December 1 (Sun), 2024
・A major retrospective introducing the full scope of Tanaka Isson's work, from his childhood as a child prodigy to his final years spent painting on Amami Oshima, the place where he passed away.

Venue: Arts Maebashi
Dates: September 21 (Sat) – December 24 (Tue), 2024
・An exhibition featuring 12 groups of artists that explores the fluid cultural and social conditions of the Southeast Asian region, termed "Liquidscape."

Venue: Fuchu Art Museum
Dates: September 21 (Sat) – December 1 (Sun), 2024
・An exhibition that unravels the power of Mucha's form—his greatest appeal—by incorporating prints, oil paintings, and precious preliminary sketches.

Venue: Setagaya Art Museum
Dates: September 21 (Sat) – November 17 (Sun), 2024
・The first retrospective in about 30 years to examine Tamiji Kitagawa's expression from multiple perspectives.

Venue: Kanagawa Arts Theatre
Dates: September 23 (Mon) – October 20 (Sun), 2024
・Featuring a new installation by artist Yoshitaka Nanjo that can only be seen here.

Venue: Mori Art Museum
Dates: September 25 (Wed), 2024 – January 19 (Sun), 2025
・The largest solo exhibition of Louise Bourgeois in Japan in 27 years.

Venue: Rinkai Fukutoshin Area
Dates: September 27 (Fri) – October 6 (Sun), 2024
• Features experiential VR art using advanced technology and participatory XR art that can be enjoyed in a stamp rally format while exploring the parks and the entire town of the Rinkai Fukutoshin area.
• Participating artists: Noboru Tsubaki, Saki Matsumura, Takehiro Iikawa, Meiro Koizumi, Akinori Goto, and others.

Venue: Roppongi Hills Arena
Dates: September 27 (Fri) – September 29 (Sun), 2024
• An art event themed around "a festival of cities, art, and the future," set in the streets of Roppongi.

Venue: 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT
Dates: September 27 (Fri), 2024 – February 16 (Sun), 2025
• An exhibition exploring global circulation, directed by Taku Satoh and Shinichi Takemura.

Venue: The Museum of Modern Art, Tatebayashi
Dates: September 28 (Sat) – December 15 (Sun), 2024
• Comprised of approximately 150 works ranging from his early period, starting with his first print work "There Was a Little Magpie," to his later years.

Venue: Oyama City Kurumaya Museum of Art
Dates: September 28 (Sat) – December 8 (Sun), 2024
• An exhibition of works by three generations of painters—Teppei, Masami, and Masahira Sootome—who each pursued their own art while based in Oyama City.

Venue: Yamatane Museum of Art
Dates: September 29 (Sun) – December 8 (Sun), 2024
• An exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the death of Japanese painter Heihachiro Fukuda, who pursued innovative colors and forms.

Venue: The National Crafts Museum
Dates: September 6, 2024 (Fri) – December 1, 2024 (Sun)
・Exhibiting works by six artists presenting contemporary expressions
・Participating artists: Junko Oki, Rui Sasaki, Kengo Takahashi, Mamoru Nakagawa, Mayu Nakata

Venue: Shinano-Omachi Information Station
Dates: September 13, 2024 (Fri) – November 4, 2024 (Mon)
・An art festival held once every three years in Omachi City (Shinano-Omachi), located in the northwestern part of Nagano Prefecture

Venue: Kusakabe Folk Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 4, 2024 (Mon, Holiday)
・The fourth art project collaboration between the Kusakabe Folk Museum and media artist Yoichi Ochiai. It presents a unique worldview that fuses Japan's traditional concept of syncretism between Shinto and Buddhism with digital technology.

Venue: Rokuzan Art Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – December 8, 2024 (Sun)
・The first museum exhibition for sculptor Yasushi Mori, whose primary field of expression is wood carving

Venue: Kariya City Art Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 9, 2024 (Sat)
・The largest exhibition to date, covering the entire body of work by Aquirax Uno from his early days to his latest pieces

Venue: 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
Dates: September 21, 2024 (Sat) – December 8, 2024 (Sun)
・In Kanazawa, where food, history, and climate are integrated, brewers and artists join forces to create works themed around "fermentation," which is usually invisible to the eye.
・Participating artists: Soichiro Mihara, Ryoko Sekiguchi, VIDEOTAPEMUSIC, Kaoru Endo, secca, Ferment Media Research (Dominic Chen, Song Yong-a, Kazuhiro Jo, Yuto Mitani)

Venue: Kanazu Art Forest
Dates: September 28 (Sat) – December 15 (Sun), 2024
- The first solo exhibition in 10 years at a Japanese museum for artist Takahiro Iwasaki.

Venue: Sannoh Art Museum
Dates: September 1 (Sun), 2024 – January 31 (Fri), 2025
- Featuring works from the collection, including new additions by the Sannoh Art Museum's key artists: Tsuguharu Foujita, Yuzo Saeki, and Takanori Ogisu.

Venue: VS. A/B/C/V Space
Dates: September 6 (Fri) – October 14 (Mon/Holiday), 2024
- A new solo exhibition by Daito Manabe marking the opening of the new space, VS. It will feature new installations that utilize the unique architectural space.

Venue: Kawakyu Museum
Dates: September 6 (Fri) – October 14 (Mon), 2024
- A re-edited version of the exhibition "Zomi: Transboundary Waters - Contemporary Art from the Mekong Region," originally held at the Semba Art Site Project in Osaka in 2021, adapted with a Kainan flavor.

Venue: Hosomi Museum
Dates: September 7 (Sat) – November 24 (Sun), 2024
- In addition to prints and illustrated books, this exhibition focuses on "hand-painted shunga," which are one-of-a-kind works, featuring pieces that have rarely been exhibited in museums.

Venue: The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto
Dates: September 13 (Fri) – November 24 (Sun), 2024
- Centered on the KCI costume collection, this exhibition explores various forms of "LOVE" found in fashion, alongside art works that illuminate the fundamental desires and instincts of humans and living beings.

Venue: Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts
Dates: 2024.09.14 – 2024.12.01
・A large-scale solo exhibition held in Chiharu Shiota's hometown of Osaka for the first time in 16 years.

Venue: Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts
Dates: 2024.09.14 – 2024.12.08
・A gathering of collections from museums in Paris, Tokyo, and Osaka, three cities that have each cultivated their own unique cultures.

Venue: Yokoo Tadanori Museum of Contemporary Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – December 15, 2024 (Sun)
・An exhibition reflecting on the loved ones and beloved cats that Tadanori Yokoo has bid farewell to over the years.

Venue: Nara Prefectural Museum of Art
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) – November 10, 2024 (Sun)
・Introducing the work of picture book author Edward Gorey through approximately 250 pieces and documents.

Venue: Kinan Region, Wakayama Prefecture (Tanabe City, Shirahama Town)
Dates: September 20, 2024 (Fri) – September 29, 2024 (Sun)
・An art event featuring numerous domestic and international artists, explored through the lens of "myxomycete (slime mold) nature."

Venue: Grand Cube Osaka
Dates: September 21, 2024 (Sat) – September 23, 2024 (Mon)
・An international exhibition themed "World Art Osaka - Connected by Video," featuring artists representing various countries recommended by ambassadors and consuls to Japan.

Venue: ROKKO Forest Sound Museum, Rokko Alpine Botanical Garden
Dates: Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays from September 21 (Sat) to November 24 (Sun), 2024
・Artist Kyota Takahashi will decorate the venue with two works, "Fruit of Light" and "Kira Kira Kirari: Find the Night Paints!", while Miyuki Takenaka will exhibit works using 35mm film and light at the Rokko Alpine Botanical Garden.

Venue: Yumeji Art Museum Main Building
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) - December 8, 2024 (Sun)
・An exhibition commemorating the 140th anniversary of Yumeji Takehisa's birth, tracing his life from a new perspective based on the latest research.

Venue: The Museum of Art, Ehime
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) - November 17, 2024 (Sun)
・Featuring approximately 90 works, including those by Banksy, ranging from pieces by the pioneers of the graffiti era to those by street artists active in Europe and Japan.

Venue: Shimane Art Museum
Dates: September 14, 2024 (Sat) - December 2, 2024 (Mon)
・Exhibiting original drawings and related materials of mechanical designs by mechanical designer Toshitsugu Yamane.

Venue: Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art
Dates: September 21, 2024 (Sat) - January 5, 2025 (Sun)
・The first solo exhibition in Japan for Tintin Wulia, a Chinese-Balinese artist who belongs to an ethnic minority.

Venue: 12 municipalities in Okayama Prefecture
Dates: September 28, 2024 (Sat) – November 24, 2024 (Sun)
・A new art project held across 12 municipalities in Okayama Prefecture

Venue: Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Moji
Dates: September 6, 2024 (Fri) – November 4, 2024 (Mon)
・Featuring works centered on the series of oil paintings "Passion" and the copperplate print collection "Miserere," which represent the Idemitsu collection

Venue: Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) – November 10, 2024 (Sun)
・An exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the museum, systematically looking back on the history of its collection over half a century

Venue: Fukuoka Asian Art Museum
Dates: September 7, 2024 (Sat) – October 13, 2024 (Sun)
・Presenting 64 carefully selected popular works from the Hoki Museum's collection

Venue: Fukuoka International Congress Center
Dates: September 20, 2024 (Fri) – September 22, 2024 (Sun)
・An art fair held in Fukuoka, a city that continues to develop while fostering diversity as a hub for the flow of people and goods with Asian countries

Venue: Beppu International Tourist Port
Dates: September 21, 2024 (Sat) – September 24, 2024 (Tue)
・An art fair bringing together up-and-coming artists in Beppu City, Oita Prefecture