Ukiyo-e Ota Memorial Museum of Art

The Ukiyo-e Ota Memorial Museum of Art is a private museum in Jingumae, Shibuya, Tokyo, dedicated to ukiyo-e woodblock prints and paintings. It is close to Harajuku and Omotesando, and its calm, Japanese-style exhibition setting lets you look closely at the works after the busy streets. It opened in January 1980, based on the collection of Ota Seizo V, a chairman of Toho Life Insurance. The museum owns more than 12,000 works, including about 500 hand-painted ukiyo-e and about 10,000 woodblock prints. It has no permanent exhibition and holds themed special exhibitions that change regularly, so each visit brings different works. Open 10:30 to 17:30 (last entry 17:00). Closed on Mondays (the next day if a holiday), between exhibitions and at New Year. Cash only. There is no parking. Allow about an hour. It is a 5-minute walk from Harajuku Station.