About us
Overview and history
Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum of Art opened in July 1982 in Tokiwa Park, a place of recreation for the citizens of Asahikawa.
As a hub of art and culture in northern Hokkaido, we hold a wide variety of exhibitions, including works connected to the region as well as those from across Japan and around the world. We also conduct many locally-based activities to promote art.
One of our unique features is the collection of wooden works (woodcarvings, woodcrafts, chairs, and other works of Japanese and foreign artists), as the furniture and woodworking industry is very active in our region thanks to its abundant forest resources. We have also amassed a large number of paintings, prints, sculptures, and crafts from outstanding artists associated with northern Hokkaido.
History
| July 1977 | The Plan for Establishing Public Art Museums was formulated as part of the Hokkaido Development Plan (1978–1987). |
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| July 1979 | Research expenses for the establishment of prefectural local art museums were appropriated, and the Study Group for the Construction of Prefectural Local Art Museums was organized. |
| September 1979 | The Board of Experts on the Establishment of Prefectural Local Art Museums was organized. |
| October 1979 | The Initiative for Establishing Prefectural Local Art Museums was presented to the Hokkaido Council for Cultural Promotion. |
| November 1979 | The Basic Plan for the Establishment of Prefectural Local Art Museums was formulated with the city of Asahikawa selected as the location of the first museum. |
| March 1980 | The expenses for designing and constructing the Hokkaido Prefectural Asahikawa Museum of Art (provisional name) were appropriated. |
| June 1980 | The Basic design for Hokkaido Prefectural Asahikawa Museum of Art (provisional name) was completed. |
| August 1980 | The architectural designs for the Hokkaido Prefectural Asahikawa Museum of Art (provisional name) were completed. |
| October 1980 | Construction of the Hokkaido Prefectural Asahikawa Museum of Art (provisional name) started on October 17. |
| December 1981 | Construction of the Hokkaido Prefectural Asahikawa Museum of Art (provisional name) was completed on December 7 (2,558 square meters). |
| April 1982 | The Hokkaido Prefectural Art Museum Ordinance was partially amended on April 5 (Ordinance No. 17) to establish the Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum of Art. Misao Akiyama took office as the first director of the museum. |
| July 1982 | Inauguration and opening ceremony of the museum was held and the museum first opened to the public on July 24. |
| June 1987 | Tamotsu Isobe took office as the second director of the museum. |
| July 1987 | The museum celebrated its fifth anniversary on July 24. |
| March 1990 | Construction of the second storage room (154 sq.m.) was completed. |
| September 1990 | The total number of visitors reached 500,000 on September 20. |
| April 1992 | Hiroshi Takahashi took office as the third director of the museum. |
| November 1992 | Construction of the permanent exhibition gallery (241 sq.m.) was completed. A ceremony celebrating the museum’s tenth anniversary and the completion of the permanent exhibition gallery was held, and the permanent exhibition gallery was opened to the public on November 13. |
| April 1996 | Osamu Iijima took office as the fourth director of the museum. Free admission for elementary, junior high, and high school students to the exhibitions of the museum collection and the permanent exhibition began. |
| August 1998 | The total number of visitors reached one million on August 12. |
| April 2000 | Takeshi Sato took office as the fifth director of the museum. |
| October 2000 | The 20th anniversary ceremony was held on October 26. |
| April 2004 | Free admission to exhibitions of the museum collection and the permanent exhibition for high school students ended, except on Saturdays, Children's Day, and Culture Day. |
| April 2006 | Koichi Kanamaru took office as the sixth director of the museum. |
| July 2006 | The total number of visitors reached 1.5 million on July 28. |
| April 2012 | Hajime Suganuma took office as the seventh director of the museum. |
| November 2012 | The total number of visitors reached 2.5 million on November 2. The 30th anniversary ceremony was held on November 16. |
| April 2018 | Hitoshi Kajiura took office as the eighth director of the museum. |