The Nezu Museum in Minami-Aoyama had long been uncharted territory for me (lol).
I knew it was an essential destination for viewing Asian art in Tokyo, but Asian art just seems kind of difficult, doesn’t it? Whether it’s Buddhist statues, ceramics, or calligraphy and paintings, they all look kind of plain, and I feel like you have to study quite a bit to appreciate them… so as a lazy city dweller, it feels like a high barrier to entry.
This time, I happened to find out that a special exhibition for beginners was being held, so I figured I’d take the opportunity to snap some photos of the highly acclaimed Japanese garden before it gets too hot.
Even as a visitor with such low aspirations, my excitement suddenly soared as I walked through the entrance, which was adorned with the lush green of the early summer bamboo grove.
By the way, here’s the special exhibition I’m talking about.
As always, I didn’t make it there until the end of the exhibition.
Since photography isn’t allowed in the exhibition rooms, I can’t show you what the special exhibition featured, but the explanations were very thorough and beginner-friendly, so I learned a lot.
Let me share one piece of knowledge I just picked up.
Sometimes, someone other than the painting artist will add text—such as poetry—to empty spaces in a picture (with the intention of enhancing the work’s value); this is called a “san.” Occasionally, the artist will write the “san” himself — this is known as “ji-ga-ji-san.” This is the origin of the modern Japanese expression, which means “to praise one’s own work.”
Now, the only place inside the museum where you’re allowed to take photos is this view of the hall.
So, the rest of the photos are exclusively of my stroll through the Japanese garden. Behind the main building lies a garden that exudes a serene atmosphere you wouldn’t expect to find in the heart of the city.
Various structures—from tea houses and temples to torii gates — are scattered throughout the grounds, but since this isn’t a religious facility. It seems they were relocated from various places and incorporated purely as design elements to compose a Japanese garden, which I found interesting in its own right.
The LUMIX GF10 is a great companion for walking around town—it’s small, lightweight, and takes great photos—but its narrow dynamic range is a real drawback. On cloudy days like this, if even a small patch of white sky appears in the frame, it immediately blows out, so I have to be quite careful with my composition.
Lotus flowers and koi in the pond. A beauty unique to Japanese gardens.
Finally, a view of the tea room through the blue maple leaves. It’s quite a challenge to hide the blown-out highlights in the sky even with a shot like this (lol).
That’s all from my first visit to the Nezu Museum.
