Recommended Art Exhibitions in May 2025

NPO Aoyama Design Forum presents the recommended exhibitions of art galleries and museums in May 2025. In addition to the schedule of events, we will provide you with detailed information such as the works on display. Please check the website of each museum for current opening hours before visiting.

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メインビジュアル

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo “MOT Plus: Soundwalk Collective & Patti Smith – Correspondences”

This installation by Soundwalk Collective and Patti Smith weaves together sound, poetry, and video to confront contemporary social issues through an immersive audiovisual experience.

  • Period: April 26 – June 29, 2025
  • Venue: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, B2F Special Exhibition Gallery
  • Hours: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM (Last entry 30 minutes before closing)
  • URL: https://tinyurl.com/2s4fx36b

The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo “Hilma af Klint: The Beyond”

adf-hilma-af-klint-the-beyondThis exhibition marks the first large-scale retrospective in Asia of Hilma af Klint (1862–1944), a trailblazer in abstract art. The Swedish artist has recently gained global recognition for her groundbreaking abstract paintings, which predate those of her contemporaries such as Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian. For decades, her vast body of work—more than 1,000 pieces—remained virtually unknown. It wasn’t until the 1980s that her work began appearing in exhibitions, and by the early 21st century, af Klint had emerged onto the international stage. Her 2018 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum in New York drew more than 600,000 visitors, making it the most visited exhibition in the museum’s history (as of 2019).

  • Period: March 4 – June 15, 2025
  • Venue: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (1F Special Exhibition Gallery)
  • Hours: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Fridays and Saturdays until 8:00 PM)
  • URL: https://www.momat.go.jp/exhibitions/561

The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo “MOMAT Collection”

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清宮質文《深夜の蝋燭》1974年

Around 200 selected works from the museum’s collection of 13,000 pieces are displayed in this long-running collection exhibition, showcasing the history of Japanese modern art from the late 19th century to the present.

  • Period: February 11 – June 15, 2025
  • Venue: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (2F–4F Collection Gallery)
  • Hours: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Fridays and Saturdays until 8:00 PM)
  • URL: https://www.momat.go.jp/en/exhibitions/r6-3

The National Museum of Art, Osaka “No Boundaries”

adf-national-museum-of-art-osaka-no-boundariesThis special exhibition explores the idea of “boundaries” in contemporary life—physical, psychological, social, and cultural—through works that challenge conventional frameworks and redefine identity, culture, space, and genre..

  • Period: February 22 – June 1, 2025
  • Venue: The National Museum of Art, Osaka, B3 Exhibition Room
  • Hours: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Fridays and Saturdays until 8:00 PM)
  • URL: https://tinyurl.com/yfxt3ye8

21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa “Layered Time: Depicting the World”

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淺井裕介 《星、飛ビ散ル/太陽の一番近くへ》 2024 撮影：田口まき

This exhibition explores the layered nature of time in our world by addressing themes such as environmental crises, war, inequality, migration, and history. Featuring paintings, drawings, prints, and animations, the artworks reveal multiple temporal perspectives on the human experience.

  • Period: April 29 – September 28, 2025
  • Venue: 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa (Galleries 7–12, 14)
  • Hours: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
  • URL: https://tinyurl.com/3fmfhftr

POLA Museum of Art “Van Gogh – Impact: The Passion of Creation”

adf-web-magazine-pola-museum-van-gogh-1The POLA Museum of Art presents its first-ever exhibition focusing on Vincent van Gogh. Through his iconic brushwork, vibrant colors, and dramatic life story, the exhibition explores the enduring impact of Van Gogh on Japanese art, culture, and society since the late Meiji era. It also questions what "Van Gogh" means to artists and viewers today.

Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art “Aubusson Tapestry of Spirited Away”

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《カオナシと対⾯する千尋》 © 2001 Hayao Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli, NDDTM ほか

In collaboration with the 20th anniversary of Expo 2005 Aichi and the upcoming Osaka-Kansai Expo, this exhibition features French Aubusson tapestries inspired by Studio Ghibli’s “Spirited Away.” Witness the fusion of 15th-century traditional weaving techniques and modern animation.

  • Period: April 11 – June 8, 2025 / July 4 – August 17, 2025
  • Venue: Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art (10F, Aichi Arts Center)
  • Hours: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM (Fridays until 8:00 PM)
  • URL: http://www-art.aac.pref.aichi.jp/

Toyota Municipal Museum of Art “Setsuro Takahashi: I Meet People”

adf-toyota-municipal-museum-of-art-setsuro-takahashi-exhibitionTo commemorate the reopening of the Setsuro Takahashi Wing after a major renovation, this exhibition focuses on lacquer artist Setsuro Takahashi (1914–2007) and his interactions with various people who influenced his art. Approximately 50 lacquer works, along with letters and materials, are featured to trace the roots of his artistic practice.

MISA SHIN GALLERY “Interplay” – Saki Maeda Solo Exhibition

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© Saki Maeda

Saki Maeda presents “Interplay,” a solo exhibition at MISA SHIN GALLERY. Known for her multi-layered oil paintings applied with a palette knife, Maeda explores spatial balance through bold color combinations—blue with gold, silver, black, and white—and geometric forms like triangles and diagonals. The exhibition also features new drawings emphasizing improvisation and lightness.

  • Period: May 10 – June 7, 2025
  • Venue: MISA SHIN GALLERY, Tokyo
  • Hours: 12:00 PM – 7:00 PM (Tuesday–Saturday)
  • URL: https://tinyurl.com/2v5u49fw

tHE GALLERY OMOTESANDO “Cyberpunk Exhibition” by Shigeru Izumiya

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© Shigeru Izumiya

This solo exhibition by artist, musician, and actor Shigeru Izumiya presents bold, intuitive works that express unease with modern society and a perspective on the future. His unique visual world combines analog and digital elements in vivid and provocative imagery.

SAI “I Want You to Be Here” – Yuji Amano Photo Exhibition

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© Yuji Amano

SAI “I Want You to Be Here” – Yuji Amano Photo Exhibition Photographer Yuji Amano presents his solo exhibition “I Want You to Be Here” at SAI. The show features abstract and poetic images: glimmers of light in darkness, the ocean from unknown travels, clasped hands, interior scenes, blood, knives, and medication—fragments of the world Amano inhabits. Over 17 years, Amano has developed a personal style of traveling Japan and sharing photo books one-on-one with viewers. His deeply personal visual language invites reflection and emotional resonance.

GINZA TSUTAYA BOOKS “NO BORDER LINE” – Shintaro Inoue Solo Exhibition

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© Shintaro Inoue

Calligraphy-trained contemporary artist Shintaro Inoue showcases his solo exhibition “NO BORDER LINE” at GINZA TSUTAYA BOOKS. Large-scale works over 1.5 meters wide and his “That Woman” series—portraying the same female figure in different color schemes—highlight the beauty of lines and space. The show explores individuality and diversity through subtle composition and color.

  • Period: May 17 – May 27, 2025
  • Venue: GINZA TSUTAYA BOOKS, GINZA SIX 6F
  • Hours: 11:00 AM – 8:00 PM (Until 6:00 PM on final day)
  • URL: https://store.tsite.jp/ginza/