Nezu Museum
Kengo Kuma's bamboo-screened museum hiding a secret garden.
The Nezu Museum houses one of Tokyo's finest private collections of pre-modern Japanese and Asian art — calligraphy, ceramics, lacquerware, and the celebrated Irises screens by Ogata Korin. But the building by Kengo Kuma, completed in 2009, is equally worth the visit: a low-slung structure screened by bamboo and fronted by a corridor of stone that narrows as you approach. Behind the museum lies a garden that most visitors don't expect — a steep, wooded hillside with stone paths, tea houses, and a pond of koi and lotus. In spring, the irises bloom alongside the Korin screens inside; in autumn, the maples above the garden paths turn crimson. The Nezu sits on Omotesando's southern end, just minutes from the fashion boutiques, but feels like another world entirely. Kengo Kuma's use of natural materials and filtered light echoes Scandinavian architectural values — Peter Zumthor would approve.
Good to know
- Kengo Kuma-designed bamboo and stone building
- Ogata Korin's Irises screens (displayed seasonally)
- Hidden hillside garden with tea houses
- Collection of Japanese and Asian pre-modern art
- Southern end of Omotesando, near Aoyama
Location
- 6-5-1 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0062
- Nearest station: Tokyo Station / Shinjuku Station
- From Tokyo: 0 min (du är redan i Tokyo)
- Best time to visit: Morning or early evening