Each year, the Crafts Gallery acquires works by important figures in the history of modern craft, as well as works that show contemporary trends. Over the five years from 2001 to 2005, about 200 works were newly added to the collection through purchases and donations.

During this period, the Crafts Gallery placed particular emphasis on collecting works by artists such as Miyagawa Kozan I, who were active from the Meiji period through the early Showa period, the formative period of modern craft. At the same time, it has consistently followed developments among contemporary craft artists. It strengthened its holdings of works by artists currently active and introduced in special exhibitions, and it also collected works by Kosei Matsui and Kyohei Fujita, leading figures in contemporary craft. In addition, by adding many Japanese and international works of industrial design, including numerous works by Mori Masahiro, the collection has become broader and more substantial.

This exhibition traces the recent history of the Gallery’s collecting through about 100 works, focusing mainly on works that will be shown to the public for the first time.