Current
Exhibit at our Museum
Nature’s Splendor: Scenes of the Moon and Water
September 10,2024 ～ October 20,2024
The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan
The Museum is pleased to present Nature’s Splendor: Scenes of the Moon and Water, an exhibition exploring the beauty of the natural world through the lens of two of its most admired subjects.
Scenes of nature and the four seasons have long inspired Japanese artists, with water celebrated in art and verse for its life-sustaining qualities. Rain is revered as the “mother and father of flowers,” nourishing plants as it falls. As precipitation accumulates, it flows into rivers that swell into waterfalls before returning to the sea in a continuous, life-giving cycle.
Historically, the moon’s importance to humanity has rivaled that of the sun, serving as a marker for the seasons and the basis of lunar calendars. Texts from the Edo period (1615–1868) hailed the appearance of the moon in autumn, saying the season’s clear night skies allowed for the best views of the year.
Visitors are invited to view scenes of nature’s splendor brilliantly captured in these masterpieces preserved by the Imperial Household.
Outline
- Exhibition Dates
- Tuesday, September 10–Sunday, October 20, 2024
- Hours
- 9:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
(Last admission 4:30 p.m.)
*On September 10, the Museum opens at 1:00 p.m.
Extended hours: On Fridays and Saturdays, the Museum opens until 8:00 p.m. (last admission 7:30 p.m.) except Fridays, September 27 and October 18.
- Closed
- Mondays; September 17, 24, and October 15
Exceptionally open on Mondays: September 16, 23, and October 14
(When a national holiday falls on a Monday, the museum will be closed the following Tuesday instead.)
Subject to change. - Venue
- The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan
1-8 Chiyoda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 100-0001 (within the Imperial Palace East Gardens)
- General Admission
- Adults: 1,000
students: 500
*Free admission for high school students, visitors under 18, and visitors aged 70 years or more. Please show valid ID or other documentation.
*Visitors with disabilities (along with the one assistant) will be admitted for free without a booking.
- Number of objects in the exhibition
- 27 works (All housed in The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan.)
- Organizer
- The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan
- ホームページ
- https://pr-shozokan.nich.go.jp/2024moonandwater/index_en.html/
Major works in this Exhibition
Snow, Moon, and Flowers
Uemura Shoen
Showa era, 1937
Shelf with Eight Views of Omi Province
Edo period, 18th century
Writing Box with Scenes of Ishiyamadera Temple
Kawanobe Itcho
Meiji era, 1899
Moonlit Night Deep in the Forest
Namikawa Sosuke
Meiji era, 1899
Pair of Vases with the Sun Crow and Moon Rabbit
Banko ware
Taisho era, 1915
Morning Dew (left screen from a pair)
Hirafuku Hyakusui
Taisho era, 1915
After the Rain
Kawai Gyokudo
Taisho era, 1924
“Plum Blossoms and Moon” from Colorful Realm of Living Beings
Ito Jakuchu
Edo period, 18th century (National Treasure)
Autumn Eggplants and Foxes
Nishimura Goun
Showa era, 1932
Collection of Japanese and Chinese Poems to Sing (Atakagire Version)
Attributed to Minamoto no Toshiyori.
Heian period, 12th century
(Different sections on view over two rotations.)