January 4th (Sunday) - February 1st (Sunday), 2009 Planned Exhibition Inviting Good Fortune: Auspicious Designs Wealth or professional advancement, a long and healthy life, the prosperity of one's family: the objects of our prayers for good fortune are constant throughout time. These wishes of all people appear in various guises in the themes of paintings and in the designs for the decorative arts. Embodying longevity, the god of good fortune, cranes, or turtles, appear as beloved motifs. The evergreen pine or the unending ivy also symbolized good fortune for their ageless characteristics. To celebrate the New Year, we assemble works with such auspicious designs. February 7th (Saturday) - April 5th (Sunday), 2009 Special Exhibition The Doll Festival of the Owari Tokugawa Family The Doll Festival, otherwise called the Peach Blossom Festival, is a heartwarming, flowery annual observance that tells of spring's arrival. With the figurines of the imperial couple at the center, the three female attendants, the five musicians, and courtiers line the stands along with many other dolls of various roles. What makes the display all the more impressive are all the numerous wedding accouterments. The dolls and their implements in the collection of the Tokugawa Art Museum are suitably gorgeous, as befitting one of the main three branches of the Tokugawa ruling family. We introduce this world of the Doll Festival at its pinnacle of luxury, craftsmanship, and sweet elegance, possible only in such a household of the daimyo elite. February 21st (Saturday) - March 1st (Sunday), 2009 Special Viewing Sen no Rikyu: The Tea Scoop of Tears   April 11th (Saturday) - May 24th (Sunday), 2009 Special Exhibition Encountering Masterpieces of Calligraphy The Tokugawa Art Museum holds several thousand pieces of calligraphy passed down in the Owari Tokugawa Family. They include Tempyo-era sutra copies, Heian poems, Kamakura and Muromachi-period literature or records in the classical tradition, letters of Momoyama and early Edo-period warriors, and the ink traces of Zen monks from the Chinese Song and Yuan dynasties to the Muromachi period in Japan. This exhibition will feature such exemplary, famed pieces from the museum's collection, along with donations and works that will be displayed publicly for the first time. May 30th (Saturday) - July 12th (Sunday), 2009 Special Exhibition Doorways to Masterpieces - the Appreciation of Art in Japan Only with the presence of both the artist and the audience does the world of art emerge. Behind the birth of every masterpiece is the mature viewer who allows the artist's talents and skills to flower into a work of art. Through beloved, superb examples of paintings, decorative arts, and tea utensils that have been passed down as the marker of an incomparable daimyo taste, we will unravel the history of art connoisseurship in Japan. July 18th (Saturday) - August 30th (Sunday), 2009 Summer vacation history class The Battles of Nobunaga, Hideyoshi and Ieyasu Oda Nobunaga - who, as a small lord in Owari Province, aimed to conquer the realm through martial might; Toyotomi Hideyoshi - a vassal of Nobunaga, rising in a single generation to rule over the entire nation; and Tokugawa Ieyasu - who, under Nobunaga and Hideyoshi, consolidated his power and laid the foundation of 260 years of peace: the battles waged by these so-called Three Unifiers, and the changes they brought to the realm, will be introduced through the weapons, armor and heirlooms in the Tokugawa Art Museum collection. September 5th (Saturday) - October 4th (Sunday), 2009 Special Exhibition Into the Forest of Tales: the Classics Enjoyed through the Eyes Easing boredom and weariness, monogatari (tales) invite the reader to embark upon voyages that transcend time and space. From ancient to modern times, stories of many kinds - legends based in religion or history, family dramas about parents and children, or romances about the love and hate between men and women - such have been long recounted with pleasure. Beginning with The Tale of Genji, The Tales of Ise and The Tale of the Heike, tales have often been brought to life through not only text, but also illustrations, taking on many forms. Weaving together painting and various decorative arts, we will introduce the world of fiction beloved by the Japanese. October 10th (Saturday) - November 15th (Sunday), 2009 Autumn Special Exhibition Fashion of the Warring States Era: The Aesthetics of the Samurai The Japanese fashion leaders of the Warring States Period were the many samurai commanders who aspired to rule the realm. The suits of armor, helmets, or battle jackets that they wore characteristically had bold and flamboyant patterns which reflected their daring spirit. Furthermore, the fascination with Western things in this era greatly influenced people's customs. Concentrating on samurai fashion, this exhibition will introduce the exuberant designs of the Warring States Period. November 21st (Saturday) - November 29th (Sunday), 2009 Special Viewing The Illustrated Scroll of the Tale of Genji (National Treasure): "Bamboo River" (1) and "The Eastern Cottage" (1)   November 21st (Saturday) - January 31st (Sunday), 2009 Special Exhibition Horai: Imbued with Wishes for Longevity Exemplified by Mount Penglai (Horai in Japanese), the ancient Chinese concept of an Immortals' realm was brought to Japan early. As Mount Fuji, Sumiyoshi and Atsuta, Mount Horai developed in Japan while undergoing changes in meaning and form. Cranes sent flying forth from the Immortals, evergreens that symbolize everlasting life - such various felicitous patterns emerged from prayers for longevity and prosperity, eventually coming to permeate daily life. From paintings, various furnishings to costumes, we will exhibit various works with such traditional designs of good fortune, along with related literary works such as poems, tales and plays. Closed on December 14th, 2009 - January 4th, 2010.