Himeji City Museum of Art is located in Himeji Park, adjacent to Himeji Castle in Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture. Opened in 1983, the museum promotes art and cultural activities in the city and welcomes visitors interested in Japanese and international art. Its historic red-brick buildings and landscaped surroundings make it an appealing destination for both art enthusiasts and travelers exploring the Himeji Castle area.
The museum’s buildings were originally constructed in 1905 as western warehouses for the Himeji Army Ordnance Depot, later associated with the Ordnance Department of the 10th Division. An extension was added in 1913. After World War II, the complex was used as Himeji City Hall before being renovated and repurposed as an art museum.
The museum’s redevelopment in 1983 received recognition in architectural color and public design awards, including selection among the Environmental Color 10 Selections and a Public Color Award. In 2003, the buildings were registered as Tangible Cultural Properties of Japan.
The red-brick structures are arranged around a geometric garden in the northern part of Himeji Castle’s former middle defensive enclosure. After dark, the buildings are illuminated, creating an attractive nighttime scene that contrasts beautifully with the surrounding greenery.
The museum offers a range of spaces for viewing art, learning, and relaxation. These include permanent exhibition galleries, special exhibition galleries, a gallery space, an auditorium, an art library, a museum shop, and a café. Sculptures are also displayed in the outdoor garden, allowing visitors to enjoy artworks in an open-air setting.
The museum’s collection is built around three main areas: artworks connected with Himeji and its local history and culture, modern and contemporary Japanese art, and modern and contemporary international art, particularly from Belgium.
The emphasis on Belgian art reflects Himeji’s sister-city relationship with Charleroi, Belgium. The museum holds approximately 350 works of Belgian art, offering visitors a valuable overview of the country’s modern artistic traditions.
Another important part of the collection is the modern Western art assembled by Keizō Kunitomi, a local physician and collector. This collection was donated to the museum in 1994, the year Himeji Castle was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The museum holds notable works by major European artists, spanning the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Highlights include Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot’s Lake (around 1860), Gustave Courbet’s The Wave (around 1870), and Claude Monet’s Sunset at the Port of Argenteuil (1874).
Visitors can also discover Edgar Degas’s Woman in a Bathtub (around 1882–1883) and Maurice Utrillo’s Saint-Médard Church and Rue Mouffetard (1913). Together, these works offer an introduction to the varied styles and subjects of modern European painting.
Belgian art is one of the museum’s defining specialties. The collection includes Félicien Rops’s An Old Story (1867), Fernand Khnopff’s Ceiling Painting: Painting, Music and Poetry (1880), and Jean Delville’s Dante Drinking the Waters of Lethe (1919).
Twentieth-century highlights include René Magritte’s The Guide (1947) and Paul Delvaux’s The Sea Is Near (1965). These works reveal the distinctive imagination and artistic developments that have shaped Belgian art, including its connections with symbolism and surrealism.
The print collection includes all four of Francisco de Goya’s major print series: Los Caprichos, La Tauromaquia, The Disasters of War, and Los Disparates. The museum also holds first-edition sets, making this an especially noteworthy part of its collection.
Another highlight is Henri Matisse’s illustrated book Jazz (1947). The museum preserves all 20 works in the series in a rare edition numbered 26.
The museum’s collection also encompasses traditional Japanese painting, Japanese Western-style painting, and sculpture. Japanese painting highlights include Sakai Hōitsu’s Thirty-Six Immortal Poets Outside the Selected Collection and Hashimoto Kansetsu’s The South (1913).
Among the Japanese Western-style paintings are Takeji Fujishima’s Official Lady of Taiwan (1920) and Ryōhei Koiso’s Portrait of a Woman in a Kimono (1935).
The sculpture collection includes works by Auguste Rodin and Antoine Bourdelle. Particularly notable examples include The Walking Man (1878) and Crouching Bather (1906–1907), offering a different perspective on the development of modern sculpture.
The museum is approximately an 18-minute walk from JR Himeji Station or Sanyo-Himeji Station. Alternatively, take a Shinki Bus from Himeji Station and get off at the Himeyama Park, National Hospital, and Art Museum stop, which is close to the museum.
The museum is generally open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with admission ending 30 minutes before closing. Opening days and admission arrangements may vary depending on exhibitions and other circumstances, so checking the latest information before visiting is recommended.
Its location makes it easy to combine an art visit with other attractions in the area. Nearby highlights include Himeji Castle, the UNESCO World Heritage Site famous for its elegant white exterior, Koko-en Garden, a traditional Japanese garden, and the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of History. Together, these destinations offer an enjoyable day of art, history, architecture, and Japanese garden culture.