Japan Art Guide: Best Galleries, Exhibits & Collector Circles in Tokyo

Connected Through The World Of Art

Art connects people globally through creative expression and curiosity about the artistic process, what art represents and the ideas it sparks in our minds or how it presents itself to us.

The symbolism and creativity art holds tend to attract worldwide collectors. Japanese art is a popular collectors item and there are plenty of places in Japan for people to purchase and create their own home gallery.

Whether it’s browsing and admiring artwork or for personal purchases, here is a list of popular and hidden galleries alongside hotspots for collectors.

Tokyo: A Home For The Contemporary

Some of the most popular contemporary private and independent galleries include SCAI the Bathhouse located in Tokyo’s Taito Ward, Yanaka. This gallery is housed in a 200‑year‑old former public bath and is a hub for Japanese and contemporary art currents with art from icons to emerging artists.

Mediums include paintings and mixed media, avant-garde and abstract works by artists such as Natsuyuki Nakanishi. Sculptures and installations include site-specific sculptural works by Lee Ufan and Atsushi Saga. Additionally, SCAI offers a paper-cut gallery by Tomoko Shioyasu excelling in perforated works and conceptual art that display light-shadow effects such as sculptural surfaces.

They also host exhibits that display large-scale immersive installations. Art enthusiasts can experience the work of fluid, abstract video and sound installations such as Kohei Nawa and Bosco Sodi’s environmental pieces.

Take Ninagawa, in Azabu-Juban, Minato Ward, is another popular gallery, founded by Atsuko Ninagawa in 2008. This location focuses on emerging and historical Japanese artists who center their work on postwar experimental traditions.

Some of their most currently featured artists include Shinro Ohtake, Aki Sasamoto, Misaki Kawai, Ryoko Aoki, Danh Vo and Kazuko Miyamoto.

These project-based exhibitions are formed through encouraging concept development within a series and joint projects on both a national and international scale.

Gallery UG was created to support emerging artists and has two locations: Tennoz Isle, Tokyo, part of Terrada Art Complex II and Umeda, Osaka, located in the Daimaru Umeda Department Store. They showcase a wide variety of art, such as contemporary mixed with media. They align themselves with Terrada Art Complex’s experimental and multidisciplinary ethos. Gallery UG showcases their artists through exhibitions at international art fairs and partner galleries which helps introduce them to global audiences.

Outside of Central Tokyo’s Art District: Contemporary Art with a Local Feel

Founded by Misako and Jefery Rosen Misako & Rosen ignores the conformity of central Tokyo’s art district and was established in a residential neighborhood in Kita-Otsuka, Toshima Ward at Tree‑ness House. Showcasing contemporary art, their gallery is immersed in local culture.

The gallery displays artists such as Shimon Minamikawa, Trevor Shimizu, Richard Aldrich, Yui Yaegashi, Erika Verzutti, Naotaka Hiro and Josh Brand and actively participates in global fairs such as Frieze London, NADA Miami, Art Basel Hong Kong and more.

The gallery offers mediums such as paintings, sculptures, photography and video art, conceptual installations and mixed media. From intellectually driven yet humorous, to modest representations, there is a wide variety of themes hidden in the work.

Traditional Textiles, Sculptures, Woodwork and Ceramics

Ippodo Gallery specialises in Japanese traditional crafts and fine art such as ceramics, lacquerware, paintings, sculpture, dyed textiles, bamboo, wood crafts, metalwork and dolls.

Ippodo hosts monthly exhibitions from artists such as Terumasa Ikeda, Daisuke Nakano, Tohru Matsuzaki, Ken Matsubara and Masaaki Miyasako. They prioritize innovation behind the artist’s work mixed with a traditional style, embracing culture while testing artistic limits.

Private Museums and Collector Foundations

Marubeni Gallery is located in Chiyoda, Tokyo and holds around 400 artworks, including Edo-period textiles such as Noh costumes and Kosode to textile design sketches from the Meihin-kai project. Japanese paintings by Nihonga artists and mid-century Western art including pieces collected in the 1960s to 1970s can also be found here.

Some of their past exhibitions included “Botticelli: La Bella Simonetta,” a quilt-art made from antique fabrics and a showcase of Yuzen-dye garments that represent a cultural mashup between East and West.

Located in a serene Japanese garden, in Minami-Aoyama, Tokyo, Nezu Museum was founded in 1940 by Nezu Kaichirō Jr. in order to display his father’s collection of pre-modern East Asian art. His father was both an industrialist and art enthusiast, known for collecting his collection throughout Tokyo.

There are around 7,400 pieces, and seven national treasures with nearly 100 cultural properties and artifacts such as paintings, sculptures, calligraphy, lacquerware, ceramics, textiles, armor and other archaeological objects. Pieces are displayed from cultural icons such as Ogata Kōrin’s “Irises” and one of Japan’s largest assortments of sword fittings from the Meiji era.

Matsuoko Museum of Art located in Shirokanedai, Minato Ward, Tokyo, was established in 1975 by Seijiro Matsuoka, a businessman who transformed a private collection of art into a museum.

The museum is filled with Impressionist paintings by Renoir and Modigliani, modern French art such as sculptures by Bourdelle and Henry Moore, Gandhara Buddhist sculptures and ceramics and acquisitions such as a rare Ming dynasty porcelain bottle.

Collectors Circles

Art Week Tokyo (AWT) is an annual showcase that brings around 50 galleries together including institutions across Tokyo with both commercial galleries and private museum collaborations.

Known as a high-profile gathering point for serious collectors, curators and art professionals from Japan and across the world, this event is aimed to attract new collectors and bridge galleries. VIP attendees will receive guided access on shuttle bus tours with private viewings and curated sales exhibitions.If you are interested in checking out other popular art installations, check out this article on our GoConnect platform.