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Yoshio Hattori, former president of the Yamagata Shimbun (Newspaper) and Yamagata Broadcasting Co., was a central figure in the establishment of a foundation which led to the Yamagata Museum of Art being opened in the August of 1964.　The Yamagata Art Club had been hoping for an art museum in Yamagata since after the Second World War. The concept of a municipal art museum was broadened to a museum for the residents of the whole prefecture. After much consideration, a suitable site was found and it was decided that the museum would be
managed by a privately run foundation with the full cooperation of both the prefecture and the city.

The annex opened in 1968, and then in 1984 a new building was planned as a 20th anniversary project. The design of the new building was modern yet echoed the style of the steep roofed multi-level houses found in the snowy, mountainous areas of the region. The new three-story museum opened on August 10, 1985. The annex was renovated the following year in October, bringing the museum to its present state. The total floor space is 6400㎡ with eight exhibition rooms (2100㎡).

Since the museum opened, the Japanese and Oriental Art Collection, the Regional Art Collection, and the French Art Collection have formed the three pillars central to the museums activities of continued research and collection of works, and also continuing plans to enrich the archive and the permanent exhibition. Moreover the museum holds exhibitions in a variety of disciplines, and also hosts group, individual, and touring exhibitions. The museum plays an active role in the promotion of the arts and lifelong learning for the residents of the prefecture. In April 2011 the foundation switched from a private to a public foundation. The hopes for the role of the museum were increased with its 50th anniversary in 2014.

Art in Yamagata: 60 Years of the Yamagata Museum of Art and the Museum Collection