Tessai Museum, Art museum in Takarazuka, Japan.
The Tessai Museum is a private art museum inside the grounds of Kiyoshikojin Seicho-ji in Takarazuka, Hyogo Prefecture, opened in April 1975. Its main building, Seikoden, has been closed since autumn 2018 for cataloguing, so exhibitions now take place in the annex, the Shiryokan. The collection was assembled by the 37th abbot, Sakamoto Kokyo, and centres on the Nanga painter Tomioka Tessai.
The artist lived from 1847 to 1926 and developed his painting techniques during the Meiji period, a time of major cultural change in Japan. The museum was later founded to preserve his artistic legacy for future generations.
The collection features works with Buddhist themes and depictions of nature that reflect traditional Japanese painting methods from the late 1800s. Visitors can observe how these elements appear throughout the artist's different bodies of work.
The museum stands inside the grounds of Kiyoshikojin Seicho-ji, about 18 minutes on foot from Hankyu Kiyoshikojin Station on the Takarazuka line. Exhibitions moved from the main hall, Seikoden, to the annex Shiryokan after Seikoden closed in autumn 2018 for cataloguing work. Special exhibitions are held four or five times a year.
The museum's Honkan hall, Seikōden, closed after its autumn 2018 exhibition for cataloguing, so shows moved to the attached Shiryōkan annex, where entry is free. The main hall's forecourt is flanked by name stones marking the birthplaces of Tessai and his wife Haru.
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