Kikuhata Mokuma (1935–2020) devoted his life to confronting his inner self while continually questioning what painting is and what it means to be a painter. Having lost his father at the age of three, he spent his early childhood on the Goto Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture. The memories of blue skies and the sea from those years became an elemental landscape that quietly underlies his later body of work.
After gaining recognition in the 1960s with his Roulette series, Kikuhata stepped back from the forefront of artistic production to engage deeply with modern Japanese art and the historical condition of the postwar era. Through this period of reflection, he returned to the canvas with Ptolemaic Theory, further deepening and refining his artistic expression.
This exhibition is held in support of LINKS — Kikuhata Mokuma, a project launched by the Mokuma Kikuhata Blue Home Art Association to mark the fifth anniversary of the artist’s passing. LINKS brings together institutions across Japan that hold Kikuhata’s works, each presenting them from their own perspective in order to reconsider his artistic legacy through their collective resonance.
At Dazaifu Tenmangu, the exhibition focuses on works that were carefully preserved by the artist’s family after his passing and have since been entrusted to the shrine’s collection. Born and raised in Kyushu, Kikuhata continued to create art deeply rooted in the land throughout his life. We hope this exhibition offers visitors a quiet opportunity to engage with his thoughts and the path he traced as an artist.

Kikuhata Mokuma: Five Years Since His Passing
Exhibition Period: February 5 (Thu) – May 17 (Sun), 2026
Closed on Mondays, except February 23 and May 4
Opening Hours:9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (Last admission at 4:00 p.m.)
Venue: Dazaifu Tenmangu Museum, Gallery 2
4-7-1 Dazaifu, Dazaifu City, Fukuoka 818-0117, Japan
Admission: Adults: ¥500 (¥400)
High school & university students: ¥200 (¥100)
Elementary & junior high school students: ¥100 (¥50)
Figures in parentheses apply to groups of 30 or more.
A 50% discount is available for visitors with a disability certificate and one accompanying person.
Organizer: Dazaifu Tenmangu
In Cooperation with: Mokuma Kikuhata Blue Home Art Association