Architectural Features

The spacious lobby enjoys plenty of natural light coming through the wall-to-wall atrium window, 8 m high and 32 m wide. The ceiling gently slopes down toward the window to frame the view over the ocea

This Noh theater in a traditional style has all the authentic features from a cedar-bark roof in the hip-and-gable style to an all-cedar stage platform. The painting on the stage wall is by Matsuno Hideyo, a renowned artist of Japanese painting. The roof is suspended and the stage pillars are removable, allowing the space to host a variety of events other than Noh performances.

The building exterior is in Indian sandstone for its color and texture in keeping with the natural surroundings. The stones come from the Deccan Plateau, India, as result of careful selection processes through several expeditions.

This underground passageway was installed using the open cut method and reinforced concrete box culverts. The ground was reinstated after the excavation. Escalators of 25 to 35 m long, four in each direction, take passengers across the passageway in about 10 minutes.

This underground hall on the Art Street is about 20 m in diameter, and its ceiling, about 10 m high, is constructed with 230 cast pieces of glass-fiber-reinforced concrete. The walls and floor are embellished with marble. Notably, the mosaic on the hall’s floor incorporates 10 varieties of marble from six countries around the world: Italy, Portugal, India, Iran, Cuba, and Greece.

This is a reconstruction of the final residence of the renowned artist Ogata Kōrin, faithfully executed based on archival documents (his own drawings and carpenter’s specifications, today known as the ‘Kōrin archive’ and designated as Important Cultural Properties). Built in the sukiya style, it represents an eighteenth-century town residence of wealthy classes in Japan. His upper-floor atelier has been restored, where it is believed he painted his famous masterpiece, the Red and White Plum Blossoms (National Treasure).

This rustic house once belonged to Igi Tadazumi aka San’ensai (1818–1886), a top-ranking samurai official who served the Ikeda clan of Okayama. The tea room inside features a sliding door with a painting of a woodcutter, which resembles the design on the writing box in the museum’s collection attributed to Hon’ami Kōetsu—hence its name, which signifies “woodcutter’s cottage.”

This tasteful gate marks the entrance to our Japanese Garden. It came from a family villa of the Mitsuis, an industrialist conglomerate.

This imposing gate used to belong to a lodging house where Katagiri Katsumoto, a 16th-century chief retainer of the Toyotomi clan, resided while employed as civil engineering administrator at Yakushiji temple in Nara. It was moved to Jikōin Temple in Nara, then transferred to the private villa of the twentieth-century industrialist Mitsuis in Kanagawa, before acquired by the Museum.

This teahouse in the sukiya style accommodates a modern table area next to a more traditional large room with a shoin-style display unit, creating an authentic and less formal setting for enjoying matcha tea. Under the copper-tiled roof, there are smaller rooms equipped with all the necessary utensils for a chanoyu session. The building was designed by the most prominent tea house architect Emori Nahiko (1902–1992), whose work includes the tea house of the Japanese embassy in Washington D.C

Typically found in Oita, Kyushu, pagodas in this style were created as pacification memorials during the Kamakura and Muromachi periods (12–16th centuries). This particular unit, refined and well-balanced in design, was previously owned by Matsunaga Yasuzaemon aka Jian, a twentieth-century entrepreneur and tea aficionado.

Typically found in Oita, Kyushu, pagodas in this style were created as pacification memorials during the Kamakura and Muromachi periods (12–16th centuries). This particular unit, refined and well-balanced in design, was previously owned by Matsunaga Yasuzaemon aka Jian, a twentieth-century entrepreneur and tea aficionado.

This elegant stone pagoda, though missing the top part, exhibits the articulate Sanskrit carving characteristic of the work from the Kamakura period. Buddhist stone pagodas have only an even number of strata, and this is one of rare extant thirteen-storied example in an excellent condition.

Designer: New Material Research Laboratory (Hiroshi Sugimoto + Tomoyuki Sakakida)
Released: 2017
Manufacturer:Interiors
The legs of the sofa in the main lobby are made of optical glass, which is also used in camera lenses. This is a highly transparent glass that has uniformity in refraction and dispersion of light.
Location: Main Building 2F Lobby

Designer: New Material Research Laboratory (Hiroshi Sugimoto + Tomoyuki Sakakida)
Released: 2017
Manufacturer: Interiors
With its emphasis on spatial harmony, this bench features a minimalist form that gently aligns with the flow of visitors.
Location: In front of Shop, Main Building 1F

Designer: Kaare Klint (Denmark) (1888–1954)
Designed in 1914 for the Faaborg Museum, this chair is an icon of modern Danish furniture design. Its rattan backrest and leather seat harmonize elegance with functionality.
Location: 3F Lobby

Designers: Rud Thygesen (1932–) & Johnny Sørensen (1944–)
Introduced in 1969 and named after being presented to the Danish King, this series embodies a refined fusion of Scandinavian tradition and modernist sensibility.
Location: 3F Lobby

Designer: Poul Kjærholm (Denmark) (1929–1980)
Featuring elegant steel framing, this modern masterpiece combines architectural clarity with a sensation of floating comfort.
Location: Circular Hall

Designer: Poul Kjærholm (Denmark) (1929–1980)
Designed with extreme minimalism to evoke a sublime dignity, its low 30 cm height and sculptural form create a quiet tension within space.
Location: Circular Hall

Designer: Hans Jørgensen Wegner (Denmark) (1914–2007)
Specially designed for the MOA Museum of Art by master Danish designer Wegner, this chair reflects a quiet Japanese spirit within its Nordic simplicity.
Location: Reception Room

Designer: Kaare Klint
Originally created in the 1930s for the New Carlsberg Foundation and later presented at the 1933 Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibition, this piece is celebrated for its structural refinement and elegant leather craftsmanship.
Location: 2F Foyer