Holiday at art museum

Today I went to Hamamatsu Municipal Museum of Art to see an exhibition titled “Dramatic! Western Painting World – Steps toward Barbizon.” It was about the history of 250 years of western painting, from the baroque period to the age of Barbizon school.

I like to see European realistic oil paintings. In Japan, it was often prohibited to take pictures in art museums. But this time, the museum allowed visitors to take pictures in two sections of the exhibition. They even encouraged us to upload the pictures to SNS, saying that we could get a can badge if we did so. Promotion through SNS has become so popular even among art museums.

The exhibition was divided into four sections, and there were about 80 paintings in total. The first section showed paintings of myth, Bible, and literature. I was impressed to see paintings of King Lear and Cordelia, and Desdemona, well-known characters from Shakespeare's plays. 

The second section had many portraits. This lovely girl caught my eyes.

Dear Bird by William-Adolphe Bouguereau 

The third section was on the second floor and consisted of still-life paintings. I liked paintings of fruits and flowers, however, it was impossible to take pictures in this section as in the first section.

I had especially looked forward to seeing the fourth section, which showed paintings of sceneries and rural life. I was glad to see a work of my favorite painter.

In the Garden by Jean-François Millet

Millet is famous for his paintings of peasant farmers. But in this work, he painted his children. I had never thought of his family life before, so it was very interesting.

This is another painting that I liked.

Saint-Nicolas-Lez-Arras, au bord de la riviere (on the riverside? English title unknown) by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot

There were many other impressive paintings, and I enjoyed them very much. On the second floor of the art museum, there was a sitting area by the window to have a rest.  

Through the window, you can see a park that is located immediately behind the museum. I’ll tell you about this park at the beginning of December when it will look more beautiful than now.

Hamamatsu Municipal Museum of Art
Address: 100-1 Matsushiro-cho, Naka-ku, Hamamatsu-shi, Shizuoka
Tel: 053-454-6801 
Open hours: 9:30- 17:00
Closed: Mondays (if a national holiday falls on Monday, it is closed the next day instead), New Year holidays, between exhibitions

Admission: Varies depending on the exhibition
Access: You can take any bus from Stop #1 in the bus terminal located outside the north exit of JR Hamamatsu Station to “Bijyutsukan” (7-minute ride).