The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka’s Renovation and Grand Reopening, Part 1
After having been closed for two years to construct a new entrance hall and café space, the Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka (MOCO) will finally reopen its doors on Friday, April 12, 2024, with the special exhibition “Reopening! The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka (MOCO). The museum is located in the eastern part of Nakanoshima, which has been the site remarkable urban renewal in recent years. In November 2002, the Osaka City Central Public Hall, a historic Neo-Renaissance building from the early 20th century, was renovated and reopened in November 2020, while the Nakanoshima Children's Book Forest, designed by famed architect Tadao Ando, opened in July 2020. Part of Nakanoshima Street running in front of the MOCO has been opened exclusively for pedestrians, and the Rose Path along the Dojima River is in full bloom with roses in May.
Amid all of this urban development, the MOCO had maintained a rather sturdy and robust image. However, the new entrance hall is now thin and stylish, with a transparent glass structure and wide-open space that harmonizes beautifully with the bright Nakanoshima Park. This new design aims to make the museum more accessible and inviting to a wider range of visitors. The museum has also improved its exhibition environment by introducing purple-enhanced LED lighting that is closer to the color of natural light as well as a new signage plan. The café space and museum shop have also been renovated. ★See here for more information: https://www.moco.or.jp/en/ Masashi Moriya, Biography 1956: Born in Katsushika-ku, Tokyo Graduated from the Department of Humanities, Faculty of Humanities, Shizuoka University, majoring in Japanese history and archaeology Completed the doctoral program in archaeology at the Graduate School of Literature, Nagoya University 1983: Appointed curator of ceramics at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts 2017: Appointed Professor, Faculty of Literature, Kobe Shoin Women's University 2022: Appointed to current position as director of the Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka Areas of Expertise: History of East Asian ceramics (mainly Cizhou ware from the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties), blue and white and five-colored porcelain from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and history of Japanese tea culture (mainly research on sencha utensils), among others Selected Publications: "Sencha no Yakimono: Seifu no Shogan" (2000), in Tankosha Mook: Shoshinsha no Tame no Yakimono Kansho Nyumon - Mikata ga Wakaru Yakimono no Kihon- (Tankosha Publishing) "Jizhou Yaokei Toki no Nagare" (2009), in Bessatsu Taiyo: Chugoku Yakimono Nyumon (Heibonsha Publishing) "Seibankan Chakai Zuroku ni Miru Senchaki no Toriawase ni Tsuite" (2007), in Nomura Bijutsukan Kenkyu Kiyo No. 16 (Nomura Cultural Foundation) "Jizhou Yaokei Toki no Soka Gijutsu ni Kansuru Shiron" (2012), in Osaka Shiritsu Bijutsukan Kiyo No. 12 (Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts)
