Matsumoto Museum of Art and the Ukiyo-e Museum

The Matsumoto Museum of Art is holding a 3-month series of night museum days, in which one day each month until March it will keep the museum open for extended hours. Normally the museum closes at 5 p.m., but on night museum days, it will remain open until 9 p.m.

As a bonus, there are also special activities planned during the nighttime hours such as gallery talks and workshops, and for the first two event days, the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum (woodblock prints) will hold its own night museum events in conjunction with the Matsumoto Museum of Art (along with shuttle bus service between the two locations!).

These nights are especially nice if you’re visiting as a tourist, as it gives you something to do after most of the sightseeing spots close in the late afternoon.

Dates are as follows:
Note: Some activity details are still tentative, so may be subject to change
matsumoto-latesenFeb

Friday, Dec. 22, 2017 (5 p.m.–9 p.m.)

Special Activity: Gallery talk featuring the artwork in the Matsumoto Museum of Art’s permanent exhibits. In conjunction with the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum’s nighttime event, which will also feature a gallery talk about certain pieces (e.g. ukiyo-e with snowy scenery) and an ukiyo-e demonstration. (Gallery talks are 5:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.)

Shuttle bus service available (timetable). The museums plan to provide multilingual (English/Chinese) explanatory materials for these activities.

Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018 (5 p.m.–9 p.m.)

Special Activity: Just in time for Valentine’s Day! Tentatively planned is a behind-the-scenes tour (with flashlights!) featuring the preparations for upcoming special Yayoi Kusama exhibit in March. In conjunction with the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum’s nighttime event which will feature a special talk about the culture of romance found in ukiyo-e wood block prints. (Tours planned for 6 p.m & 8 p.m, RSVP required. Talk planned for 7 p.m.)

Shuttle bus service available. Tours/Talks in Japanese only.

Saturday, Mar. 3, 2018 (5 p.m.–9 p.m.)

Special Activity: (Tentative) Gallery talk to commemorate the special Yayoi Kusama exhibit to be held Mar. 3 to Jul. 22, 2018. Multilingual (English/Chinese) interpretation of talks planned through use of headphones. (Gallery talks are planned for 6:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m.)

Hot wine and other drinks to be served in the art museums garden.

More information

Learn more about what you can see at the Ukiyo-e Museum on exhibit page on their website or check out our info page here. For general info about the art museum, check out the Matsumoto Museum of Art website or see our page here.

Night Museum at the Japanese Court and Open-air Architectural Museum (Rekishi no Sato)

Enjoy special extended hours at the Japanese Court Museum which allows you to see the beauty of the traditional Japanese Meiji-style architecture of Japan’s oldest wooden court building lit up at night. Regular exhibits are also open during the extended hours (see more info about the museum here)

Dates: Saturday, Dec 9 – Sunday, Dec 10
Time: 9:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. (extended nighttime hours from 5:00 p.m.)
Location: Japanese Court and Open-air Architectural Museum (Rekishi no Sato, Google Map)
Admission: Adults ¥400, free for junior high school students and under

For more events for December, check out the December Events (2017) blog post.