Nagoyaka Gaiko – “Museums: A Refuge, A Respite, A Relief, A Reward”
by Philippine Consul General Celeste Vinzon-Balatbat
11 September 2022, Chunichi Shimbun
Sweltering temperatures during the summer prompted me to seek refuge indoors, mostly at home, the office, and, recently, over a period of four weeks, in the wonderful world of 12 museums in Japan.- Three in Aichi: the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, featuring works by Spanish artist Joan Miró; the Nagoya City Art Museum, featuring works by Colombian artist Fernando Botero; and the Tokugawa Art Museum.
- Five in Tokyo: the Sumida Hokusai Museum; the National Museum of Western Art; the Mori Art Museum; the National Museum of Nature and Science; and TeamLab’s Digital Art Museum.
- Two in Hakone: the Hakone Open-Air Museum and the Pola Museum of Art
- Two in Hokkaido: the Museum of Antique Music Boxes in Otaru and the Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, featuring “Egypt, Land of Discoveries,” in Sapporo.
Since I was visiting most of these museums for the first time, I took my sweet time in viewing the collections.
For example, I have been wanting to see “The Great Wave off the Coast of Kanagawa” by ukiyo-e artist Katsushika Hokusai, and it has been a treat to be able to view this world-famous print up close.
I was a repeat visitor in three of these museums and therefore had previously seen some of the artwork in their collections.
Nevertheless, when I went back to the Hakone Open Air Museum, it felt as if I was entering the place for the first time. As I headed for the “Symphonic Sculpture,” a stained glass tower created by Gabriel Loire, I kept stopping along the way to revisit the outdoor sculptures in the museum grounds.
I was pleasantly surprised to see paintings and sculptures by artists whose names and works I first encountered in books or in my freshman humanities class. The exhibits have also made me wonder how much time and effort were spent meticulously lining up the insects and other science specimens in the National Museum of Nature and Science and displaying them in such neat, symmetrical, precise formations.
It is fitting to house cultural treasures in museums, where they are curated in clusters with such care and creativity, so that the art works, when taken together, can tell a more coherent story.
I had found myself losing track of time, unmindful of my thirst or sometimes my hunger, bothered only by my tired legs and feet, and willing to wander off into a different universe, if only for a few hours.
My reward has been more than relief from the summer heat.
Museums provide a respite from the humdrum of daily existence. The science and art on display disturb and inspire, spark our imagination, transport us to a different world, and, perhaps, remind us to treasure the gift of the artist’s and scientist’s labor, love, life, and light.
A shorter version of this article in Nihonggo can be accessed at the Chunichi Shimbun through the following link:
Consul General Celeste Vinzon-Balatbat is a career diplomat from the Philippines. She has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics and a master’s degree in international studies. She held jobs in banking and the academe before joining the foreign service, and assumed her post in Nagoya in November 2020. She is married to a fellow Filipino diplomat, and they have a daughter and a pet cat.
