Located in the upmarket area of Aoyama, the Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum is like a miniature hidden jungle. The avant-garde painter was one of the most acclaimed Japanese artists of the 20th century.
The memorial museum is situated in his former atelier. Most of the exhibits simply portray his studio as it was when he died. Visitors can check out the Salon, where Okamoto held meetings on funky stools that he designed himself. The second-floor atrium, created especially for the museum, hosts temporary exhibitions (mainly in Japanese) about his life and works.
The garden is an unkempt path of tropical plants and weeds. It houses a number of Okamoto’s iconic, cartoon-like sculptures, which look out from every nook and cranny. The café is a delightful shop called A Piece of Cake, where guests can sit and look out over the garden jungle.