Pola Museum of Art Opens 'The New Vision: Monet and the Contemporary Gaze' in Hakone
The Pola Museum of Art, located in Hakone, Japan, is showcasing The New Vision: Monet and the Contemporary Gaze, which will be open until 7 April 2027. This exhibition boasts 19 paintings by Monet, marking the largest collection of his works in Asia, and features pieces from over 20 contemporary artists, such as Felix Gonzalez-Torres and Wolfgang Tillmans. The aim is to offer fresh insights into Monet’s art, created between 1872 and 1908. Highlights include Nakaya's fog installation and Horn's Still Water. Since its inception in 2002, the museum has focused on contemporary reinterpretation, acquiring international pieces like Richter’s Abstraktes Bild (649-2) for HK$214.6m in 2020 and Gonzalez-Torres's Untitled (America #3) for $13.6m in 2024.
Key facts
- The New Vision: Monet and the Contemporary Gaze runs until 7 April 2027 at the Pola Museum of Art in Hakone, Japan.
- The exhibition places the museum's 19 Monets—the largest Monet collection in Asia—alongside works by more than 20 Modern and contemporary artists.
- Participating artists include Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Wolfgang Tillmans, Roni Horn, Pierre Huyghe, Fujiko Nakaya and Noémie Goudal.
- The Monet holdings span 1872 to 1908, from Seine and Saint-Lazare Station scenes to Haystacks, Rouen Cathedral, London and Venice series, and late Water Lilies.
- The Pola Museum has been one of Japan's most active institutional buyers of international art since 2015, acquiring Richter, Gonzalez-Torres and Tillmans.
- Gerhard Richter's Abstraktes Bild (649-2) was bought at Sotheby's Hong Kong in 2020 for HK$214.6m ($29.2m).
- Felix Gonzalez-Torres's Untitled (America #3) was acquired at Christie's New York in 2024 for $13.6m.
- The museum was founded in 2002 on a collection assembled by Tsuneshi Suzuki, who began buying art in 1958.
Entities
Artists
- Claude Monet
- Gerhard Richter
- Felix Gonzalez-Torres
- Wolfgang Tillmans
- Roni Horn
- Pierre Huyghe
- Fujiko Nakaya
- Noémie Goudal
- Tsuneshi Suzuki
- Monami Tsukada
- Kōjirō Matsukata
- Cyanne Chutkow
- Paul Cézanne
Institutions
- Pola Museum of Art
- Pola
- Sotheby's Hong Kong
- Christie's New York
- Chain Museum
- National Museum of Western Art
- Christie's
Locations
- Hakone
- Japan
- Hong Kong
- New York
- United States
- Giverny
- France
- Seine
- Saint-Lazare Station
- Normandy
- Rouen
- London
- United Kingdom
- Venice
- Italy
- Tokyo
- Thames