Image: Suntory Museum of Art, Tokyo
The Suntory Museum of Art in Tokyo will hold ‘Sanbi Marugoto Art Festival 2026’ on August 2, 2026, turning its galleries and event spaces into a daylong program of workshops, tours, screenings and participatory activities. The museum says the festival is designed for visitors of all ages and does not require advance reservations for general admission, with only the museum tour program needing booking ahead of time.
According to the museum’s event page, the festival runs from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., with last entry 30 minutes before closing. Families arriving with children aged elementary-school level and younger may enter from 9:30 a.m., ahead of regular opening, for a dedicated morning slot. Program participation is free, while visitors age high school and older must also pay the museum’s regular admission fee. Admission is free for middle school students and younger.
The event is presented as an inclusive art day that encourages visitors to encounter the museum beyond the usual exhibition visit. The museum describes it as an art festival where children and adults can enjoy programs across genres, and it notes that the activities are open to families, friends and solo visitors alike. The museum’s stated aim is to make art enjoyable without the barriers of advance booking for most activities.
The day’s public programs include ‘Art Festival Special O-Sara Card,’ which hands out cards showing a fragment of an artwork for visitors to identify, and ‘Wakuwaku Work Sheet,’ an appreciation aid aimed at elementary and middle school students. Another drop-in program, ‘Let’s Gather! Enjoy Looking at Works Together,’ invites participants to talk with staff and use their bodies as part of looking at art, with sessions scheduled at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., noon and 1:00 p.m. in the exhibition rooms.
Visitors can also join ‘Design Your Own Welcoming Tableware!’, a hands-on activity in the lecture room on the first floor, where paper plates and paper cups are decorated with stickers and other materials to create original tableware. The program runs from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and is open for free entry, subject to crowd control if needed. In the sixth-floor hall, ‘Kino-Iglu’s Movie Party’ will screen five short films with commentary at 2:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.; the lineup includes ‘Ole Eksell In Motion’ and four additional shorts.
The museum is also offering a reservation-based tour of its building design and facilities, titled ‘Suntory Museum of Art Guided Tour.’ Scheduled for 1:30 p.m., 3:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., the roughly 40-minute tours will be held in the tea room ‘Genchuan’ and other areas of the museum. The tour is for middle school students and older, with advance registration opening on July 10 at noon and each session limited to 15 people on a first-come, first-served basis.
Alongside the public festival, the museum announced a middle and high school volunteer opportunity through its youth program ‘Sanbi Art Club,’ though applications for that role have already closed. The museum says the day’s activities are part of its broader educational outreach, which includes free admission for children and youth and hands-on learning programs at the museum in Tokyo’s Midtown complex in Roppongi on August 2.
