We visited the impressive Shimane Art Museum on Monday 29th February.

The building is beautiful - a piece of art in itself, nestled beside Lake Nakaumi.

Outdoor sculptures (I loved the rabbits) are placed around the grassy lakeside and would be lovely to wander around on a warmer day. The enormous curved glass wall facing the lake gives good views of the sculptures too.

Don't miss the outdoor sculptures of hippos on the roof!! This "lookout" has fantastic views of the lake. Find the entrance on the second floor.

We saw 4 exhibitions - the Hokusai survey show on the ground floor - fascinating but so much material that we became somewhat overwhelmed, and 3 shows drawn from the permanent collection upstairs.

The first - paintings - both European and Japanese, the second, ceramics, also a cultural mix and extremely interesting, and the third of black and white photography. These were mainly French and British photographers, containing many absolutely iconic images - outstanding!!

My only disappointment was the gift shop. I just felt there was very little to choose from, especially compared to other art gallery gift shops around the world where you're spoilt for choice. Shimane Art Gallery could lift their game just by looking at what the Adachi Japanese Garden and Art Museum are offering.

Definitely worth a visit. Give yourself a few hours to do it justice and remember that it's also a great option if you have some bad weather.