TAKIYA タキヤ株式会社

The Origin: Kunio Maekawa.

Designed by Le Corbusier, a master of modernist architecture, and registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the National Museum of Western Art was built following the postwar return of the Matsukata Collection--assembled by Kojiro Matsukata--from the French government to Japan. The museum was designed by Le Corbusier, one of France's most renowned architects, with support from his disciples Kunio Maekawa, Junzo Sakakura, and Takamasa Yoshizaka, and opened in Ueno in 1959.

In 1975, when plans were made to expand the museum with a new wing, the commission was entrusted to Kunio Maekawa, who had become a leading figure in Japanese modernist architecture. Having worked under Le Corbusier during the construction of the main building, it was only natural for Maekawa to take on the design of the extension. The new wing was conceived as an integrated structure with the original building, embracing a central courtyard and forming a unified architectural composition.

In designing the extension, Maekawa also paid close attention to the functionality of museum spaces. In Japan, museums frequently host special exhibitions, requiring flexible and efficient display systems for artworks. With this in mind, he sought a simple, elegant, and highly durable hanging system specifically for paintings. Responding to this request, Takiya brought the concept to life. After four years of trial and refinement, a picture rail unlike any other in the world was completed in 1979, alongside the completion of the new wing.

Named "Koreder Line" and the "Picture Hanging System," Takiya's innovation quickly gained widespread acclaim and was adopted by museums and galleries across Japan. Beginning with the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium in 1990, it was subsequently introduced to leading museums around the world. Continuously evolving through collaboration with museum professionals, it has become the global standard in picture rails, supporting masterpieces in over 1,000 museums and galleries across Japan and in more than 30 countries and regions worldwide.