This is not a photograph.
The Hoki Museum houses the finest collection of Realist art in Japan—maybe in the world—and not only do they display the stunningly huge and lifelike works in their collection, they commission new works from artists around the globe and are the first to exhibit them. It’s an especially great place to visit on a hot or rainy day.
You need to see this painting of a Japanese girl lying in a stream. It’s rendered so skillfully that the light feels more real than daylight and the water feels wetter than the real thing. (My apologies that I have to show it to you on a postcard—taking pictures in the museum is prohibited, which is all the more reason for you to go marvel for yourself at these huge paintings that fool the eye into thinking they’re photos until you’re quite close!)
The Hoki Museum was built to house the greatest collection of Realist art in Japan. There are 480 works in its collection, and it’s just a short train ride from Tokyo.
Japanese Realist painting embraces a surprisingly wide variety of subjects, not just still life…
and portraits…
but also animals…
industrial scenes…
landscapes…
“candid” portraits…
nature…
and natural history still lifes
The postcards above don’t really do the works justice, but perhaps they can help you imagine just how detailed and fabulous they really are. The most remarkable paintings on display are the ones in Gallery Three. Every three years, the Hoki Museum commissions a group of artists to each paint one Realist masterwork on any subject of their choice, which are then displayed together for three years while the next group of artists works on their paintings.
The museum itself is purpose-built to display the paintings at their finest, with enough space between them and in front of them to appreciate each to its fullest.
The outside is just as distinctive, with a sculpture that casts interesting shadows leading toward the front door. This is one of the most unusual and thought-provoking museums I’ve seen anywhere in the world, and it spawned some very interesting discussions.
•
Hoki Museum of Realist Painting
Open: Wednesday-Sunday, closed Tuesdays
Hours: 10:00 – 17:30
Admission: Adults ¥1830
•
If you enjoyed this, subscribe!
Get all the latest Japan travel tips and tricks for free ヽ(*＾ω＾*)ﾉ
And here are the other places I take my friends when they come to town
•
Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Jonelle Patrick writes about Japan 