Tokyo National Museum Grand Renewal of the Honkan [Japanese Gallery]

Abstract

In April 2000, the Tokyo National Museum aimed to improve services, realigned various operations and thus implemented a broad range of organizational reforms, which resulted in a change in the flow of projects and situations. The process of renewal took place over two years. Part of this renovation included the revitalization of the Honkan. This was a large-scale project that had been viewed with increasing interest in recent years, but it became an urgent matter following the opening of the Heiseikan in 1999. The Heiseikan, which is used for special exhibitions, occasionally has over ten-thousand visitors daily. Conversely, the number of visitors to the Honkan, the main exhibition space for the regular exhibitions, was a cause of great concern. Until the renovation, the second floor of the Honkan was used to display objects according to their genre. The renovations changed the second floor to a format that is separated by time period in the "Highlights of Japanese Art" exhibition. While the previous display style was aimed more at specialists and experts, the new way offers a circular flow that functions like a textbook and being geared for the average visitor, so it is easy to understand. Visitors provided feedback and further work was performed in July and August of 2004. After the renewal of the Honkan, a grand reopening was held in September 2004.