Updates and new additions to our databases

July 14, 2026

We have updated our website and added new information as follows.

Additions and updates to the Japanese Museum Collections Search (SHŪZŌ)
We have updated the data on Japanese Museum Collections Search (SHŪZŌ) and added collection images.
Newly added collection images: 10,004 items (total 97,319) from Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art and Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art

Additions and updates to the Dictionary of Artists in Japan (DAJ)
We have updated the Dictionary of Artists in Japan (DAJ) and added new records of artists and groups.
Newly added records: 171 (total 5,609)

Enhancement of the Contemporary Japanese Art Exhibitions from 1945
For data in Contemporary Japanese Art Exhibitions from 1945 sourced from Nakajima Masatoshi and The National Art Center, Tokyo, eds. Nihon no Bijutsu Tenrankai Kiroku: 1945-2005 [Art Exhibitions in Japan: 1945-2005], we have added links to the corresponding DAJ pages for exhibiting artists (a total of 9,537 links). This update enables users to search both group and solo exhibitions by standardized artist names.

Additions and updates to APJ Bibliography
We have updated the APJ Bibliography with 19 new records. PDF files can now also be uploaded for individual records.

Artist headings now display life dates
Years of birth and death are now displayed in the Artist field of collection and exhibition records.

Improved search performance in SHŪZŌ
To improve search performance in English, machine-translated English text is now incorporated into the search index in advance. As a result, records provided by participating museums, such as artwork titles, are more likely to appear in English-language search results even when no English information is included in the original data.

Other updates

  • To make it easier to download search results from each database in CSV format, the download button has been moved to the top of the page and redesigned.
  • The Web Accessibility page has been updated.


We will continue updating and expanding our databases to ensure their reliability as valuable research resources.