From the Heian period in 794 to the end of the Edo period in 1868, Kyoto was the cultural and political epicenter of Japan. It was the “capital of a thousand years,” and the Kyoto National Museum that opened in 1897 houses cultural properties from that period. Its vast collection is in itself a representation of Japanese cultural heritage. It is a heritage we must protect and pass on to future generations to come, which the museum has done since its inception.

For the June Art for Breakfast, we invite Ms. Melissa Rinne who is a senior specialist at the museum. She will present an insider’s view of the museum, taking us through its vast collection of priceless objects, historical significance, and the challenges of running such an institution with national treasures. Ms. Rinne knows museums globally, being a Japanese art curator at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco and a Japanese textile specialist. She will give us insights into how Japanese national museums are managed and how they differ from museums abroad.

Please join us and engage in a roundtable discussion at Art for Breakfast to get an insider’s introduction to the Kyoto National Museum.

This event will be conducted in-person and online.
In-person participation is for members and guests only. Online participation is open to the public. Registration is required.
There is an in-person guest fee of 5,000 yen. Online participation is free.

Speaker Bio

Melissa M. Rinne
Senior Specialist
Department of Research and International Collaboration, Curatorial Division
Kyoto National Museum

Melissa M. Rinne is a senior specialist at the Kyoto National Museum and serves on the board of ICOM-ICDAD (International Council of Museums, International Committee for Museums and Collections of Decorative Arts and Design) and Japanese government advisory committees. She was previously a Japanese art curator at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco (2005–2013) and a US member of the CULCON Arts Dialogue Committee (2010–2020). Educated at Brown University, Kyoto City University of Arts, and Kyoto University, she specializes in Japanese art history with a focus on textiles and decorative arts. Her books and articles in English and Japanese have been published by the Asian Art Museum, the Tang Center for East Asian Art at Princeton University, the Kyoto National Museum, the Tokyo National Museum, the Fowler Museum at UCLA, and Google Arts and Culture.

Related Information

• Kyoto National Museum
• Stories of the Kyoto National Museum
• Kyoto National Museum International Symposium: Dunhuang Forgeries and Recent Silk Roads Research, March 19, 2022
• Torarin’s Museum Channel - YouTube
• Kyoto National Museum’s Twitter @kyohaku_gallery