Upcoming Exhibitions

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  Tumultuous Times
  ―Painters in the Bakumatsu and Meiji

  October 11 to December 3, 2023

  During the Bakumatsu years of turmoil, as Japan transitioned from the Edo to the Meiji period, painters dared to tackle new styles while carrying on Japanese painting traditions. The harsh Tempō Reforms of 1841 to 1843, the arrival of the American Black Ships in 1853, natural catastrophes, and the movement to overthrow the shogunate: in this chaotic context, a great variety of works were created. Those paintings included works with dramatically compelling forms, painting styles that incorporated Western painting techniques, and styles that combined tradition and new creativity. This exhibition explores the compelling work of a wealth of talented artists who displayed their abilities amid the turmoil of the last decades of the Tokugawa shogunate and the rise of the new Meiji government.

  

  Western Ships, Yasuda Raisyu, Hanging scroll, Edo period, 19th century, The Japan Folk Crafts Museum
  Reception Room Scene in the Foreigners Trading House, Yokohama, Gountei Sadahide, Vertical ōban triptych, dated 1861, Suntory Museum of Art

• Art of Oda Urakusai, Samurai Tea Master

  January 31 to March 24, 2024

• Masterpieces from the Suntory Museum of Art Collection (TBD)

  April 17 to June 16, 2024

  The Suntory Museum of Art has continued over many years to carry out its mission under its fundamental principle, “Art in Life.” The outcomes of those efforts are symbolized by the wide variety of special exhibitions we have held thus far. In the process, we have built a unique collection through acquiring works of art rooted in Japanese lifestyles. In this exhibition, we display our collection anew, including all the works that have been designated a National Treasure or Important Cultural Property. This mass display of masterpieces boldly states, “The Suntory Museum of Art―This is it!”

  

  Box with Fusenryō Design in Mother-of-pearl Inlay and Maki-e (National Treasure), Kamakura period, 13th century, Suntory Museum of Art