November is an excellent month for art in Tokyo. The city combines a major J.M.W. Turner exhibition at the National Museum of Western Art, a three-part Hiroshige exhibition at the Tokyo National Museum, and contemporary photography at the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum.tnm+1
Here’s what to see in Tokyo this month.
Turner at the National Museum of Western Art
Turner: Painting the Sublime, in Dialogue with Contemporary Art is on view at the National Museum of Western Art until February 21, 2027. The exhibition is organised with Tate and brings together more than 80 works by J.M.W. Turner, primarily from the Tate collection.musa
The show explores Turner’s interest in light, nature, atmosphere and the sublime, while placing his paintings in dialogue with later and contemporary artists. For visitors interested in landscape painting, Romanticism and the emotional power of weather and light, this is the major exhibition to prioritise in Tokyo this November.musa
Hiroshige at the Tokyo National Museum
Hiroshige: New Perspectives on Edo Japan is on view at the Tokyo National Museum until December 20. The exhibition presents Hiroshige’s most renowned landscape and bird-and-flower prints, including complete rotations of The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road, The Sixty-Nine Stations of the Kiso Road and One Hundred Famous Views of Edo.tnm+1
November is a particularly good time to visit because the exhibition is in its second and third parts. Part Two, focused on the Kiso Road series, runs from October 27 to November 23, while Part Three, centred on One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, begins on November 25.tnm
For anyone interested in Japanese woodblock prints, Edo-period visual culture and the art of landscape, this is an essential exhibition.
Contemporary photography in Ebisu
The Tokyo Photographic Art Museum is one of the best destinations for contemporary photography this month. Duet: Asian Contemporary is on view until January 17, 2027, presenting photography and video by six artists from Japan and China.topmuseum+1
The exhibition uses the idea of a “duet” to place different perspectives, cultures, times and personal experiences in conversation. It is a strong choice for visitors interested in contemporary Asian photography, moving image and cross-cultural dialogue.tokyo-culture-circuit.rekibun.or+1
The museum also presents Assembling Anew: Memories, Materials, Context, Technology — Contemporary Japanese Photography vol. 23, another major photography exhibition on view until January 17, 2027.tokyo-culture-circuit.rekibun.or
Musée d’Orsay comes to Tokyo
At the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, What a Wonderful World: Masterworks from the Musée d’Orsay opens on November 14 and runs until March 28, 2027.nact+1
The exhibition brings together around 110 works from the Musée d’Orsay, spanning painting, sculpture, decorative arts and photography. It includes works by Monet, Van Gogh and Renoir, making it a strong option for visitors interested in Impressionism and late nineteenth-century European art.musa
More exhibitions to consider
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Nikolai Astrup: Creating a Garden opens at Tokyo Station Gallery on November 21, presenting around 130 oil paintings and woodblock prints of the changing seasons around Jølster Lake in Norway.musa
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Takehisa Yumeji: An Artist Who Defined His Era is on view at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo.artweektokyo
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Marimekko: Art of Printmaking — Beauty, Dream, Love is on view at the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum.artweektokyo
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Daitokuji: A Zen Temple Beyond Compare continues at the Tokyo National Museum until December 6.tnm
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Bugaku Costumes: The Enduring Beauty of Textiles opens at the Nezu Museum on November 23.musa
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The Little Prince: A Journey Through the Sky to Find What Matters opens at Tokyo City View on November 14.note
Evening openings and planning tips
Six Tokyo museums and galleries are staying open until 8 p.m. on selected Fridays in November as part of Autumn Night Museum 2026. Participating venues include the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, the Teien Art Museum, the Edo-Tokyo Museum and the Tokyo Shibuya Koen-dori Gallery.timeout
The Tokyo Photographic Art Museum also has extended evening openings on selected Thursdays and Fridays, including November 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 26 and 27. This makes it easier to combine a photography exhibition with dinner or an evening walk in Ebisu.haveagood-holiday
How to plan your visit
For a focused day, visit the Tokyo National Museum for Hiroshige: New Perspectives on Edo Japan, then continue to the National Museum of Western Art for Turner: Painting the Sublime. The two exhibitions offer a compelling contrast between Japanese and European approaches to landscape, atmosphere and visual storytelling.tnm+1
For a photography-focused day, head to the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum for Duet: Asian Contemporary and Assembling Anew. If you have time for a third visit, add What a Wonderful World at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum for Impressionism, sculpture and decorative arts.
