Monthly Archives: January 2009

The Path to the Narukawa Museum

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Over the Mountains and through the Woods
This is the third in this series of Hakone museums. As so many things, it was the journey that was interesting, not so much the final destination. To get there from our hotel, we took:

  • A train that used switchbacks to go up the mountain, moving its way up in a zig-zag path. So at certain intervals, the train pulled into a dead-end, then reversed into the ascending track.
  • A cable train that went straight up the mountain. There were two trains on one track, connected together by a pulley, and they passed by in the middle to switch places. They worked as counterweights to each other.

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Hakone Glass Forest

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crystal tree

The Hakone Glass Forest is a large collection of Venetian glass, with galleries of contemporary glass artists, in a setting trying to recreate an Italian lake villa.

The central features are a curtain of glittering crystals that sandwich a bridge over an artificial pond, and a Christmas tree of crystals.

corridoioItalian musicians

The Venetian Glass Museum is impressive, spanning the full range of glass artistry form fine crystal to fimo, many from the times of the Doges. Inside the museum there are regular performances by a playful violinist and a stoic accordionist, both Italian. Check out pictures of the beautiful works here.

Later when we had coffee and croissants at the café (coffee was excellent by the way), the musicians joined two more Italians, a keyboradist, and a slick friendly lounge singer for more music. It was great. It really added some authenticity to the faux Italian atmosphere.

The galleries of contemporary artists extends the education in glass art to its contemporary interpretations. In particular I really enjoyed the cerebral abstractions of Livio Seguso, and the lush colorful organic forms of Dale Chihuly.

embryoanemones

The gift shop is pretty sizeable and there are many displays of artisans from around the world for sale. It was an art gallery all its own.

The Glass Forest is a compact place but there are enough nooks and crannies, galleries and shops to fill an afternoon. And the education in glass traditions was particularly edifying in this romantic ambiance.

decanter

For more info, here’s the official website’s information page, only in Japanese.  Photo at the top by T. Funada.

The Hakone Open-Air Museum

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reclining visitor

The Hakone Open Air Museum is a large park filled with an excellent collection of sculpture, as well as several indoor galleries. It’s my favorite museum in Japan because of its large collection of Henry Moore sculptures. And because there aren’t too many things in life better than appreciating art outdoors.

The museum is actually a collection of smaller museums and galleries, as well as the various outdoor areas dotted with installations.

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  • The Art Hall has a really nice collection of new acquisitions in a pleasing, open, naturally lit space.
  • There’s a gallery dedicated to Henry Moore to give you some background on his philosophy and career.
  • The Picture Gallery had a display of Japanese artists influenced by Rodin, with some nice pieces by Giacommetti and other early 20th Century Italian sculptors.
  • For families kids can crawl around in or explore many different sculptures. There’s the indoor castle of nets, an outdoor “playground”, a glass mosaic tower called the Symphonic Sculpture, and a hive-like burrow of see-through plastic hexagons.
  • The biggest gallery is the Picasso collection, with mostly a sizeable collection of his ceramics, which he did mostly at the end of his life. It’s a nice change of pace from the over-exposure of his paintings from his Blue and Cubist Periods. The genius of the man is so broad, he deserves to be admired through all of his chosen media. I noticed he had recurring themes of fish, satyrs and his wife, perhaps his three main concerns as an aging man: food, wine and women?
  • Also, be sure to get your feet wet in the warm outdoor footbath.

the net castlefootbath

A Brief Rant on the Terrible Coffee of Museum Cafés
The bookstore café has interesting mid-century décor, but the coffee is the usual mediocre overpriced cup of weak mud. I wonder when museums will realize that an afternoon of great art is sullied by bad coffee.

I don’t mind the over-priced part because the cafés are usually quite stylish or artistic. Just make the coffee good. It doesn’t have to be great, just make it decent. I’ll even take anonymous and un-noteworthy.

Don’t make me look down and notice an inferior beverage. Also, for crying out loud, for $4-8, get it out of the cheap paper cup, and put it into a mug or glass cup. And hey, why not throw in a freaking chocolate square or a candied almond!?

A Post-Rant Conclusion
Bad coffee aside, I love the Hakone Open-Air Museum. It’s the best bang for your buck in terms of an art experience, with varied galleries, lots of interactive opportunities, all in a dramatic outdoor space.