Nagano Prefectural Art Museum

Nagano Prefectural Art Museum is a prefectural museum inside Shiroyama Park, immediately east of Zenkoji Temple. It grew out of the Shinano Art Museum and reopened in 2021 as the Nagano Prefectural Art Museum in a newly rebuilt main building. The building was designed around the concept of a "landscape museum" and blends into the scenery around Shiroyama Park. From the rooftop you can see the roof of the Zenkoji main hall, a National Treasure.

Its predecessor was the Nagano Prefectural Shinano Art Museum, which opened on October 1, 1966 as the Shinano Art Museum, a foundation-run museum, and was transferred to the prefecture on June 1, 1969. On September 22, 1987 the Japanese-style painter Higashiyama Kaii donated works to the prefecture, and the Higashiyama Kaii Wing opened on April 26, 1990. Because of aging facilities, the Higashiyama Kaii Wing closed on May 31, 2017 and the Shinano Art Museum on October 1 of the same year. The Higashiyama Kaii Wing reopened on October 5, 2019, and the main building, after being rebuilt, on April 10, 2021.

The new main building was designed by the architect Hiroshi Miyazaki and Plants Associates. It received the 2021 JIA Japan Architecture Award and the 63rd BCS Award in 2022 (the JIA is the Japan Institute of Architects, and the BCS Award is given by the Building Contractors Society). Many areas inside are free to enjoy, and the museum presents itself as an open museum that anyone can drop into. It also has a restaurant and cafe.

The Higashiyama Kaii Wing houses the works of Higashiyama Kaii and holds just over 980 works, while the main building's collection is said to exceed 4,600 works. Exhibits in the Higashiyama Kaii Wing are changed about once every two to three months.

According to the official website, there is no parking for general visitors, so you should use public transport or a nearby paid parking lot. From bus stop 1 at the Zenkoji Exit of JR Nagano Station, Alpico Kotsu buses take about 15 minutes, and on routes 11, 16 and 17 you get off at "Zenkoji-kita" and walk 3 minutes. From Zenkoji-shita Station on the Nagano Electric Railway it is a 15-minute walk. The Shiroyama Park parking lot offers a discount on parking fees if you show your admission ticket. The official website also introduces walking routes from JR Nagano Station and Zenkoji-shita Station via Zenkoji. It is easy to visit the museum after paying your respects at Zenkoji.