All Reviews of Ohara Museum of Art

If you enjoy art, I highly recommend stopping by the Ohara Museum of Art when visiting the Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter. The museum has quite a few outstanding modern and contemporary paintings. In the Main Gallery alone, you can see works by Monet, Van Gogh, and Picasso. Although there’s only one work by each artist, it still feels very worthwhile to see original works by these world-famous painters in Japan.

The Annex happened to be closed during this visit, but the Asian Art Gallery was a pleasant surprise. I didn’t expect it to have ceramic works from different periods, including the Sui and Tang dynasties, which was very different from the Western art museum I had imagined. I think you should allow at least 1 hour for the whole visit. If you like taking your time to appreciate the works, I recommend setting aside even more time. The museum’s visitor survey was also quite interesting. This time, I saw many visitors from France, South Korea, and Mexico.

I originally planned my visit to the Ohara Museum of Art just to see Monet’s Water Lilies. But once I stepped inside, I realized that what makes this museum truly captivating isn’t just its famous collection, but the different feelings each work evokes in person. From Torajiro Kojima’s oil paintings capturing the beauty of kimono, to the quiet, almost absent atmosphere of Little Table at Dusk, the bright and lively colors of Canal in Auvers, and a large painting of death that felt deeply unsettling yet impossible to forget, the Ohara Museum of Art left a much stronger impression than I expected.

The museum building has a classical feel, almost like a Greek temple. Surprisingly, it blends beautifully with Kurashiki’s white-walled streetscape. After visiting, you can also sit down and relax with coffee at the nearby café thoughtfully opened by the founder. For anyone who loves Western art, this museum is absolutely worth a visit.

The Kurashiki Bikan area is a wonderful place, perfect for a relaxing day. The Ohara Museum of Art has an amazing collection, including Yayoi Kusama's dots and Monet's garden. There are four exhibition halls, so it's worth getting a combo ticket to see them all at once.