Ghibli Museum - Wikipedia

Art museum in Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan Not to be confused with Ghibli Park. Ghibli Museum

Exterior of the Ghibli Museum
Established	1 October 2001; 24 years ago (1 October 2001)
Location	1-1-83 Shimorenjaku, MitakaTokyo 181-0013
Website	Official website

The Ghibli Museum (三鷹の森ジブリ美術館, Mitaka no Mori Jiburi Bijutsukan; Mitaka Forest Ghibli Museum) is a museum showcasing the work of the Japanese animation studio Studio Ghibli. It is located in Inokashira Park in Mitaka, a western city within the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, in Japan. The museum combines features of a children's museum, technology museum, and a fine arts museum and is dedicated to the art and technique of animation. Features include a replica of the Catbus from My Neighbor Totoro (1988), a café, bookstore, rooftop garden, and a theater for exclusive short films by Studio Ghibli.

Background

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Planning for the museum began in 1998, and construction started in March 2000. The museum opened on 1 October 2001.[1] Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki designed the museum himself, using storyboards similar to the ones he creates for his films. The design was influenced by European architecture such as the hilltop village of Calcata in Italy. The museum features internal and external spiral staircases built from iron, interior bridges, and balconies stretching throughout the building's height. The stairways lead to exhibits, dead ends, and across bridges.[2] These characteristics are meant to reflect Miyazaki's building designs displayed in his film work.[3] Miyazaki's aim was to make the building itself part of the exhibit[4] and for the museum to be an uplifting and relaxing experience "that makes you feel more enriched when you leave than when you entered".

Photography and video recording is prohibited inside, because the museum is described as a "portal to a storybook world".[3]

"Let's get lost together" is the museum's slogan, derived from Miyazaki's vision for visitors to immerse themselves in his imagination and film work.[3][5]

In February 2020, the museum closed temporarily as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[6][7] It re-opened to Mitaka residents only in July and fully in September.[8]

Exhibits

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Permanent exhibitions

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On the bottom floor of the museum is an exhibit room showing the history and science of animation, including a three-dimensional zoetrope named "Bouncing Totoro", with models of characters from My Neighbor Totoro (1988).[9] On the first floor is a mock-up of an animation studio. Called "Where a Film is Born", the five-room exhibit is meant to showcase the creative process of an animation filmmaker, including illustration techniques.[2] Packed with books and toys, the room also displays drawings and illustrations that cover the walls.[3] Another exhibit demonstrates the process of creating an animated film, with sketches, storyboarding, keyframing, cleanup, coloring, and background painting.

Special exhibitions

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In addition to Ghibli-oriented exhibitions, the museum hosts an area showcasing work from other studios.

Date	Exhibit
2001–2002	Spirited Away
2002–2004	Castle in the Sky and Imaginary Flying Machines
2003–2004	Works by the Russian animator Yuri Norstein
2004–2005	Pixar Animation Studios
2005–2006	Heidi, Girl of the Alps
2006–2007	Aardman Studios, primarily focused on their work on Wallace and Gromit.
2007–2008	Goldilocks and The Three Bears (3びきのくま, Sanbiki no kuma), based on a picture book version by Leo Tolstoy. Panda! Go, Panda!, one of Miyazaki's and Isao Takahata's early, pre-Ghibli films from 1972.[10]
2008–2009	Petit Louvre[11]
2009–2010	Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea[12]
2010–2011	Ghibli Forest Movies — Welcome to Saturn Theater[13]
2011–2012	The View from the Cat Bus[14][15][16]
2012–2013	The Gift of Illustrations ― A Source of Popular Culture[17][18]
2013–2014	The Lens at Work in the Ghibli Forest[19]
2014–2015	The Nutcracker and the Mouse King ― A Fairy Tale Treasure[3]
2015–2016	The Haunted Tower ― Perfect Popular Culture[3][20]

Short films

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The Ghibli Museum shows several short films. Located in the basement is the Saturn Theater,[3] which has windows where automated shades lower and open before and after each showing. This is because Miyazaki designed the theater with small children in mind, who could possibly be scared of the closed-in space.[21] The museum shows one of the following Ghibli short films in the Saturn Theatre:[22]

• Koro's Big Walk (コロの大さんぽ, Koro no dai-sampo)
• Water Spider Monmon (水グモもんもん, Mizugumo Monmon)
• Mei and the Kittenbus (めいとこねこバス, Mei to Konekobasu)
• The Day I Harvested a Star (星をかった日, Hoshi o Katta Hi)
• The Whale Hunt (くじらとり, Kujiratori)
• Looking for a home (やどさがし, Yadosagashi)
• A Sumo Wrestler's Tail (ちゅうずもう, Chūzumō)
• Mr. Dough and the Egg Princess (パン種とタマゴ姫, Pan dane to tamago hime)
• Treasure Hunting (たからさがし, Takara Sagashi)
• Boro the Caterpillar (毛虫のボロ, Kemushi no Boro)

The films are also screened at the Cinema Orion in the Grand Warehouse section of Ghibli Park, in Nagakute.

Other features

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Tri Hawks

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Tri Hawks is a reading room and bookstore in the Ghibli Museum. Opened on 6 February 2002, it is filled with books recommended by Hayao Miyazaki. The name Tri Hawks comes from a translation of "Mitaka", the city where the museum is located, which means "three hawks".[3][23]

Mamma Aiuto

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Mamma Aiuto, on the top of the Ghibli Museum, is a souvenir shop named after the band of sky pirates in the movie Porco Rosso.[24][25] The film is set in Italy, and the name Mamma Aiuto translates to "mama, help me" in Italian.[3] Among other items, it sells classic and non-Japanese animated movies under the Ghibli Museum Library label.

Straw Hat Café

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The Straw Hat Café is the Ghibli Museum's only sit-down restaurant. It was created with the help of a housewife and mother of four; Miyazaki wanted the café's food to be "a kind of home cooking".[26] It serves hot and cold food, snacks, and desserts.[3] Sold at the takeout section is an original alcoholic beverage, "Valley of the Wind" beer, which was created in a collaboration with Dairy Kingdom Oratche, a microbrewery in Tanna Basin. The beverage's label was hand-drawn by Gorō Miyazaki, Miyazaki's son, who is an animation director at Studio Ghibli.[27]

Catbus room

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There is a playroom for children aged 12 and under, with a stuffed Catbus toy to play in. Its size is slightly reduced from the original scale in My Neighbor Totoro, for it to fit into the museum.[3][28]

Rooftop garden

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On the museum's roof is a garden with a life-size, five-meter-tall statue of a robot from the final episode of Lupin III Part II and from the film Castle in the Sky.[2][29] The Robot Soldier was made by the artist Kunio Shachimaru. It is formed from a hammered copper plate and took two years to complete. The keystone from Castle in the Sky, bearing an inscription in Old Persian cuneiform, which can also be found in the rooftop garden, is a replica of the control room stone found in the floating castle, Laputa, in the movie.[30]

Fresco painting

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At the entrance of the building, the museum's ceiling is covered in a fresco painting that features characters from Studio Ghibli films, such as Kiki on her broomstick from Kiki's Delivery Service (1989).[3][28]

Tickets

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Tickets to the Ghibli Museum are only accepted if bought in advance. They range in price from ¥1,000 for adults to ¥700 for 13–18-year-olds, ¥400 for 7–12-year-olds, and ¥100 for 4–6-year-olds. Younger children can enter the museum for free.[2][3][31]

See also

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• Ghibli Park
• Meiji-mura
• Toei Kyoto Studio Park
• Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo – The Making of Harry Potter

References

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1. ^ Miyazaki, Hayao; Isao Takahata (2009). Starting Point 1979–1996. Viz Media. pp. 446–447. ISBN 978-1-4215-0594-7.
2. ^ a b c d Michael, Bodey. "Studio Ghibli: Celebrating Japanese Animation". theaustralian.com.au. The Australian. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Museo d'Arte Ghibli. "The official site of Ghibli Museum, Mitaka in Japan – This is the Kind of Museum I Want to Make!". ghibli-museum.jp. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
4. ^ Isao Takahata, Goro Miyazaki (2005). 宮崎駿とジブリ美術館 (Hayao Miyazaki and Ghibli Museum) (DVD). Japan: BVHE Japan.
5. ^ Huang, Eric (24 April 2015). "'The Continuing Allure of Hayao Miyazaki': Celebrating Japanese Pop Culture". The Stanford Daily. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
6. ^ "Notice – Ghibli Museum, Mitaka".
7. ^ "Sanrio Puroland and Ghibli Museum closing temporarily due to Covid-19".
8. ^ Imada, Kaila. "Ghibli Museum demonstrates its new safety measures ahead of September reopening". Time Out Tokyo. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
9. ^ Miyazaki & Kitazawa 2006, p. 54.
10. ^ "ギャラリー展示「パンダコパンダ展」". www.ghibli-museum.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 28 February 2008. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
11. ^ 企画展示「小さなルーヴル美術館」展 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 27 October 2008. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
12. ^ 企画展示「崖の上のポニョ展」 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 5 April 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
13. ^ "Welcome to the Saturn Theater 〜 The Ghibli Forest Film Exhibition". www.ghibli-museum.jp. Archived from the original on 8 February 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
14. ^ "The View from the Cat Bus". www.ghibli-museum.jp. Retrieved 11 December 2011.
15. ^ 企画展示「ねこバスから見た風景展」. www.ghibli-museum.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 17 April 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
16. ^ "The View from the Cat Bus". Halcyon Realms. Animation.Films.Photography. 16 December 1994. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
17. ^ ""The Gift of Illustrations – A Source of Popular Culture" Exhibition". www.ghibli-museum.jp. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
18. ^ "新企画展示「挿絵が僕らにくれたもの」展". www.ghibli-museum.jp. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
19. ^ "新企画展示のお知らせ 「ジブリの森のレンズ展」". www.ghibli-museum.jp. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
20. ^ Phro, Preston (5 April 2015). "Miyazaki-curated Ghibli Museum exhibit of "Ghost Tower" to open at end of May". Rocket News 24. Socio Corporation. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
21. ^ Miyazaki & Kitazawa 2006, pp. 192–193.
22. ^ 映像展示室 土星座 (in Japanese). Retrieved 7 January 2010.
23. ^ Miyazaki & Kitazawa 2006, pp. 146, 266.
24. ^ "Porco Rosso". IMDb. 16 December 1994. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
25. ^ Miyazaki & Kitazawa 2006, p. 267.
26. ^ Miyazaki & Kitazawa 2006, p. 201.
27. ^ Rodgers, Krista (26 January 2015). "For grown-ups only! Ghibli Museum's Straw Hat Cafe is offering "Valley of the Wind" beer". Rocket News 24. Socio Corporation. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
28. ^ a b Takai, Shinichi. "Welcome! – Ghibli Museum, Mitaka". ghibli-museum.jp. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
29. ^ Museo d'Arte Ghibli. "The official site of Ghibli Museum, Mitaka in Japan". ghibli-museum.jp. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
30. ^ Miyazaki & Kitazawa 2006, pp. 123.
31. ^ "Ghibli Museum". Japan Guide. japan-guide.com. Retrieved 7 May 2015.

Further reading

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• Miyazaki, Hayao; Kitazawa, Satoko (2006). Ghibli Museum, Mitaka Catalog, Newly Revised and Enlarged Edition. The Tokuma Memorial Cultural Foundation for Animation. ASIN B005VKJA4G.

External links

[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ghibli Museum.

• Ghibli Museum travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Official website
• Illustrated Guide to the Studio Ghibli Museum
• Information about some of the short films shown at the museum
• Studio Ghibli Museum Mitaka: everything you need to know guide from Appetite for Japan

35°41′46.44″N 139°34′13.55″E / 35.6962333°N 139.5704306°E / 35.6962333; 139.5704306

v t e Mitaka, Tokyo
Education	Primary and secondary schools Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education Mitaka High School (JA) Taisei High School Kokugakuin Kugayama Junior High/High School Hosei University Junior and Senior High School [ja] Musashi International School Tokyo (formerly Little Angels International School) Colleges and universities Graduate University for Advanced Studies (Department of Astronomical Science, School of Physical Sciences) International Christian University Japan Lutheran College Kyorin University - School of Medicine/Nursing School Tokyo Union Theological Seminary University of Tokyo Mitaka campus
Landmarks	Inokashira Park Ghibli Museum
This list is incomplete.

v t e Studio Ghibli
List of works
People	Founders Hayao Miyazaki Toshio Suzuki Isao Takahata Others Joe Hisaishi Katsuya Kondō Yoshifumi Kondō Kitarō Kōsaka Goro Miyazaki Hiroyuki Morita Tomomi Mochizuki Yoshiyuki Momose Yoshiaki Nishimura Kazuo Oga Yasuo Ōtsuka Yoshinori Kanada Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Films	Feature films Castle in the Sky My Neighbor Totoro Grave of the Fireflies Kiki's Delivery Service Only Yesterday Porco Rosso Ocean Waves Pom Poko Whisper of the Heart Princess Mononoke My Neighbors the Yamadas Spirited Away The Cat Returns Howl's Moving Castle Tales from Earthsea Ponyo Arrietty From Up on Poppy Hill The Wind Rises The Tale of the Princess Kaguya When Marnie Was There The Red Turtle Earwig and the Witch The Boy and the Heron Short films Nandarō On Your Mark Ghiblies Ghiblies Episode 2 Imaginary Flying Machines The Whale Hunt Koro's Big Day Out Mei and the Kittenbus Looking for a Home The Day I Harvested a Planet The Night of Taneyamagahara Water Spider Monmon Iblard Jikan A Sumo Wrestler's Tail Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo Boro the Caterpillar Zen - Grogu and Dust Bunnies
Video games	Magic Pengel: The Quest for Color Ni no Kuni Dominion of the Dark Djinn Wrath of the White Witch
Other productions	Shiki-Jitsu (Studio Kajino) Ronja, the Robber's Daughter
Related articles	Catbus Ghibli Museum Ghibli Museum Library Ghibli Park The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness Miyazakiworld Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Nausicaa.net Studio Kajino Studio Ponoc Susuwatari Topcraft
Category Portal

v t e Hayao Miyazaki
Accolades Bibliography List of works
Films writtenand directed	The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) Castle in the Sky (1986) My Neighbor Totoro (1988) Kiki's Delivery Service (1989) Porco Rosso (1992) Princess Mononoke (1997) Spirited Away (2001) Howl's Moving Castle (2004) Ponyo (2008) The Wind Rises (2013) The Boy and the Heron (2023)
Written only	Panda! Go, Panda! (1972–1973) Whisper of the Heart (1995) Arrietty (2010) From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
Short films	On Your Mark (1995) Kujiratori (2001) Koro's Big Day Out (2002) Imaginary Flying Machines (2002) Looking for a Home (2006) Hoshi o Katta Hi (2006) Mizugumo Monmon (2006) Boro the Caterpillar (2018)
Television	Lupin the 3rd Part I (1971–1972) Future Boy Conan (1978) Lupin the 3rd Part II (1980) Sherlock Hound (1984–1985)
Manga	Sabaku no Tami (1969–1970) Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1982–1994) Shuna's Journey (1983) Hayao Miyazaki's Daydream Data Notes (1984–2009) Hikōtei Jidai (1989)
Documentaries	The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (2013) Never-Ending Man: Hayao Miyazaki (2016) Hayao Miyazaki and the Heron (2024) Miyazaki, Spirit of Nature (2024)
Related	Studio Ghibli Ghibli Park Ghibli Museum Goro Miyazaki Miyazaki Airplane Miyazakiworld (2018) Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water (1990–1991) Ni-Tele Really Big Clock Nandarō Susuwatari

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