A steel-and-glass structure rises above the Nakanoshima district, but the National Museum of Art descends beneath it. Its bamboo-like exterior and bright central atrium turn an underground gallery into a carefully staged passage from city daylight to modern art.
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The silver framework above ground looks like a cluster of bamboo stems, but the galleries are below your feet.
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UpgradeQuick facts
- The museum opened at its current Nakanoshima site in 2004.
- César Pelli designed the above-ground entrance structure.
- The permanent collection focuses on modern and contemporary art from 1945 onward.
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