Osaka Science Museum

 

My final stop on my afternoon architectural exploration of Namba and nearby areas of Osaka was the Osaka Science Museum on Nakanoshima, adjacent to the National  Museum of Art.

The structure is primarily an oval. It opened in 1989.

It was designed by Environmental Development Institute, about whom I can find no info.

The two themes of the museum are Space, and Energy.

Kansai Electric was the primary funder of the museum, so the energy theme is not surprising.

The museum is home to one of the largest planetariums in the world.

From the aboce photo you would be forgiven for thinking you were in a shopping mall.

The museum seems to be aimed at younger visitors.

There are many interactive exhibits, and several times a day a Sciemce Show is performed.

I was in somewhat of a hurry to get to an appointment, so I did not look around.

In 2020, long after this visit of mine, the museum was completely renovated...

The previous post in this series was on the National Museum of Art by Cesar Pelli next door.

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Inside HITOHAKU

 

HITOHAKU in Sanda, Hyogo is a huge natural history museum.

I covered the exterior architecture in the last post in this series.

In English, it is called the Museum of Nature and Human Activities.

When I visited in 2017 there was little information in English, but now the whole museum is covered with smartphone-readable info in multiple languages.

It is not just a museum,but also includes several research facilities.

The museum's collections are staggering, with 152,000 geological items and more than 2,000,000 biological specimens.

Included in that are 1.3 million insects, 68,000 animals, and 641,000 plants.

The museum is spread over four floors and includes sections on the natural history of Hyogo, and the always-popular-with-kids dinosaur exhibits.

The human impact on nature is also covered.

I found the msueum and its displays surprisingly interesting, and good value. The most expensive entry fee is 200 yen.

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Kinki Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage was on the wonderful exterior of the museum.

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National Museum of Art Osaka

 

The National Museum of Art Osaka is unusual in that it is completely underground.

It is located on Nakanoshima, the long island between the Dojima River and the Tosabori River.

The Japanese name translates as National Museum of International Art, although some Japanese works are represented.

The bulk of the collection is post-1945.

It was designed by Cesar Pelli.

The entrance is above ground and is inside a very sculptural structure made out of tubular steel.

Pelli says it represents reeds waving in the wind.

The museum claims it represents bamboo.

The museums origin is in a temporary art museum as part of Expo 70.

It opened in 1977 as the NMAO.

Due to aging facilities it closed down and was moved to the new site at Nakanoshima in 2004.

It is said to be the largest collection of contemporary art in Japan with more than 8,000 pieces.

The collection contains works by Picasso, Cezanne, & Max Ernst.

Mostly paintings, prints, and sculptures, in recent years the musuem has collected workd in other medio including video and Performance art.

The collection is displayed in changing exhibitions and also the msueum hosts special themed exhibitions...

Other Cesar Pelli structures I have covered are the Osaka Museum of History, also in Osaka, and the Seahawk Hotel in Fukuoka with its impressive atrium.

The previous post in this series on architecture in Osaka was on the walk from Namba Yasaka Shrine.

If you would like to subscribe by email, just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published or made public. I post new content almost every day, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the last ten posts.