Mocha Pinku
- Sep 28, 2023
- 3 min read

Art Aquarium Museum

Updated: Oct 20, 2023

In Ginza, Tokyo

The Art Aquarium Museum in Ginza is a captivating fusion of art and goldfish, showcasing goldfish as living art. Located in the Mitsukoshi building in Ginza, this unique museum offers a mesmerizing experience created by Hidetomo Kimura. Visitors are immersed in a world of colorful, illuminated fish tanks that showcase over 30,000 goldfish in a variety of stunning underwater landscapes. The interplay of light, sound, and water creates a dynamic and surreal ambiance, making it a must-visit for those seeking an enchanting art experience!

My experience

We visited the Art Aquarium Museum over New Years holiday this past year. We purchased tickets on the first floor of the Mitsukoshi building before heading up to the museum on the 9th floor. I believe they also have kiosks on the 9th floor as well! We spent about 45 minutes in the exhibit. The exhibition was split into various sections with different themes featuring many different types of goldfish! Goldfish originally gained popularity during the Edo period as pets, and have long been an inspiration in Japanese art.

Ginza Mantoro

As soon as you enter the museum, you go through the Ginza Mantoro, the first section that features various hanging lanterns.

Goldfish Corridor

The goldfish corridor is a long hallway with cylindrical tanks of goldfish on each side. The tanks changed color which was pretty cool!

Goldfish Collection

This features rare breeds of goldfish that you can look at from various angles. I thought this exhibit was so pretty! The way the glass tank frames the goldfish looks so picturesque.

Goldfish Display Cabinet

This exhibition combined traditional Japanese bonsai and goldfish.

Goldfish Waterfall

This section featured multilayer tanks that is supposed to resemble a waterfall.

Shojirium

This uses shoji, a traditional type of Japanese door, to convey the feeling of looking into the world of goldfish.

A Show of Kingyo

This was probably my favorite exhibit! Getting to see all the goldfish up close and from above and from the side was really beautiful. There were also so many different types of goldfish!

Teitourium

This uses traditional Japanese lighting and glass to magnify the goldfish, making them appear larger than there are.

Origamirium

This piece uses light and color to resemble origami, a traditional Japanese paper art form.

Goldfish Bamboo Grove

This section featured a row of lanterns to mimic a bamboo grove . The colors were constantly changing!

Flowerium

This piece combines the stillness of ikebana, traditional Japanese flower arrangement, and the movement of goldfish, showcasing a unique sense of color and a bold style.

Goldfish Stone Lantern

This piece features a stone lantern that is traditionally used in temples and shrines.

Rium Inome

This was a really popular piece! The line to take a picture of it was quite long.

Tenku Rium

I think I actually saw this years ago at the first art aquarium years ago! The glass structure is so beautiful and unique.

Collaboration Art

This was also one of my favorite parts of the exhibits. They displayed modern works of art from top creators using goldfish as a motif. I thought a lot of the art was really unique and executed beautifully! They also had a gift shop selling various goldfish items!

Overall this was a neat and unique exhibit! There are occasional art aquariums that pop up time to time in Tokyo (usually during the summer), but this is the only permanent one in the area, so I would definitely recommend checking it out if you are in Ginza.

Autumn Special Exhibit

September 28 ~ November 21, 2023