Architect Toyo Ito and Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto Among 2026 Order of Culture Recipients; Nihonga Painter Hiroshi Senju Named a Person of Cultural Merit

The recipients of the Order of Culture and the Persons of Cultural Merit for fiscal 2026 (Reiwa 8) were announced on Friday, October 23, 2026. Those selected for the Order of Culture include architect Toyo Ito, known for the Sendai Mediatheque and other works; Shigeru Miyamoto, Representative Director and Fellow of Nintendo, who created “Super Mario” and “The Legend of Zelda”; and Kenso Soai, who has been named a recipient of the 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Nihonga painter Hiroshi Senju is among the Persons of Cultural Merit. The ceremony at which the Emperor personally confers the Order of Culture will be held at the Imperial Palace on Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday).

Order of Culture: Architect Toyo Ito, Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto and others

As of October 30, the official lists of recipients of the Order of Culture and Persons of Cultural Merit (with titles and fields) had not yet been posted on the websites of the Cabinet Office or the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (in fiscal 2025, they were posted on November 3). This article lists, in Japanese syllabary order, the recipients we could confirm through announcements by their affiliated institutions or related organizations.

• Toyo Ito: Architect. The Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari announced his selection on October 23.

• Tsuneyoshi Kuroiwa: Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo. According to the Japan Academy, his field is biological science, and he clarified mechanisms such as how mitochondria and chloroplasts divide and multiply within cells. The Botanical Society of Japan announced his selection on October 27.

• Kenso Soai: Distinguished Professor at Tokyo University of Science. On October 7, the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology issued a statement congratulating him on the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. According to Tokyo University of Science, he was also selected as a Person of Cultural Merit this year.

• Shunichi Tokura: Composer. The Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC) announced his selection on October 26.

• Shigekazu Nagata: Specially Appointed Professor at the Immunology Frontier Research Center (WPI-IFReC), Osaka University. According to the center, through research on “apoptosis,” the mechanism by which cells die of their own accord, he identified the receptor “Fas,” which triggers cell death, and the “Fas ligand” that binds to it.

• Shigeru Miyamoto: Representative Director and Fellow of Nintendo. His alma mater, Kanazawa College of Art, announced his selection on October 23.

Toyo Ito: Sendai Mediatheque and the 2013 Pritzker Prize

According to the official website of the Pritzker Prize, Ito was born in 1941 in Keijo (present-day Seoul). He graduated from the Department of Architecture at the University of Tokyo in 1965, worked at Kiyonori Kikutake’s office and in 1971 founded his own office, “Urban Robot (URBOT),” which he renamed Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects in 1979.

One of his best-known works is the Sendai Mediatheque in Sendai, completed in 2001. The building, which houses a library and galleries, is composed of thin floor slabs pierced by 13 tubes. Other works include the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London (2002), the TOD’S Omotesando Building (2004), Tama Art University Library (2007) and the Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari (2011) on Omishima Island in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture. In 2013 he received the Pritzker Prize, an international architecture award, and the prize’s website introduces him as the sixth Japanese architect to win it.

At the Sendai Mediatheque, the two-person exhibition “Body, It’s Fine” opened on November 3. The content is introduced in our article on the “Body, It’s Fine” exhibition. The Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari says that Ito will attend the conferment ceremony on November 3.

Shigeru Miyamoto: From “Donkey Kong” to “Wii Fit”

According to his artist profile on the Japan Media Arts Festival website, Miyamoto was born in 1952 in Sonobe Town, Kyoto Prefecture, and joined Nintendo in 1977 after graduating from Kanazawa College of Art. He created the “Donkey Kong,” “Super Mario” and “The Legend of Zelda” series, among others, and later produced titles such as “Pikmin,” “nintendogs,” “Wii Sports” and “Wii Fit.” At the festival, he received the Achievement Award at the 13th edition, and “The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” won the Grand Prize in the Digital Art (Interactive) Division at the 2nd edition.

He is currently Representative Director and Fellow of Nintendo. In its announcement of his selection, Kanazawa College of Art introduces Miyamoto as a graduate who opened up the possibilities of games as a form of expression.

Persons of Cultural Merit: Nihonga painter Hiroshi Senju, PIA founder Hiroshi Yanai and others

In the field of fine art, Nihonga painter Hiroshi Senju was named a Person of Cultural Merit. According to his official website, Senju was born in Tokyo in 1958 and studied at Tokyo University of the Arts. Known for large-scale works depicting waterfalls and cliffs, he received an Honorable Mention at the 46th Venice Biennale in 1995. He has also created fusuma paintings for Jukoin at Daitoku-ji in Kyoto and Kongobu-ji on Mount Koya, as well as the art direction for Haneda Airport, and has been a member of the Japan Art Academy since 2022.

Hiroshi Yanai, President and Representative Director of PIA and founder of the PIA group, was also selected. The company’s October 23 announcement includes a comment from Yanai referring to initiatives such as the film festival “PFF (PIA Film Festival).”

In addition, affiliated institutions and organizations have announced the selection of Masato Sagawa, adviser to Daido Steel and inventor of the neodymium magnet, and professional golfer Ayako Okamoto, among others.

What are the Order of Culture and Persons of Cultural Merit?

According to the Decoration Bureau of the Cabinet Office, the Order of Culture is a decoration awarded to “those who have made outstanding contributions to the development of Japanese culture.” Recipients are recommended by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology after hearing the opinions of all members of the Subdivision on the Selection of Persons of Cultural Merit under the Council for Cultural Affairs, and are decided by the Cabinet after review by the Decoration Bureau. The decorations are personally conferred by the Emperor at the Imperial Palace every year on Culture Day, November 3. The Imperial Household Agency describes the conferment ceremony as one in which the Emperor confers the decorations on the recipients, followed by the Prime Minister presenting the diplomas.

The Persons of Cultural Merit system honors “those who have made particularly outstanding contributions to the improvement and development of culture” by paying them an annuity under the Act on Pensions for Persons of Cultural Merit. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s administrative project review sheet (fiscal 2023) puts the annuity at ¥3.5 million a year. In fiscal 2025, the honoring ceremony was held on November 4, and the minister presented certificates to 21 people.

In the Cabinet Office’s list of recipients for fiscal 2025, all eight recipients are marked “Person of Cultural Merit.” Kuroiwa was also named a Person of Cultural Merit in 2011 (according to the Japan Academy), and Soai was selected as a Person of Cultural Merit and for the Order of Culture at the same time.

Editor’s perspective

The Order of Culture recipients we could confirm this year include creators of architecture and games. Ito’s major works include public buildings where people gather to engage with materials and works, such as the Sendai Mediatheque, which houses a library and galleries, Tama Art University Library and the museum that bears his name. Miyamoto is a game creator who received the Achievement Award at the Japan Media Arts Festival.

According to the Cabinet Office’s lists, manga artist Tetsuya Chiba (field: manga) received the Order of Culture in fiscal 2024. Following manga, a person who has created games will now receive the Order of Culture. Exhibitions on the theme of games are being held around the country and are summarized in our guide to anime, manga and game exhibitions.

Hiroshi Senju, named a Person of Cultural Merit, has also built a body of work tied to architectural spaces, such as fusuma paintings for temples and art direction for an airport. Major award news of 2026 is introduced in our roundup of major awards in art, design and spatial production.

Overview

Name: Order of Culture and Persons of Cultural Merit for fiscal 2026 (Reiwa 8)
Announced: Friday, October 23, 2026
Order of Culture conferment ceremony: Tuesday, November 3, 2026 (national holiday), Imperial Palace
Order of Culture (recipients confirmed in this article, in Japanese syllabary order): Toyo Ito (architect), Tsuneyoshi Kuroiwa (Professor Emeritus, University of Tokyo), Kenso Soai (Distinguished Professor, Tokyo University of Science), Shunichi Tokura (composer), Shigekazu Nagata (Specially Appointed Professor, Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University), Shigeru Miyamoto (Representative Director and Fellow, Nintendo)
Persons of Cultural Merit (those introduced in this article): Hiroshi Senju (Nihonga painter), Hiroshi Yanai (President and Representative Director, PIA), Masato Sagawa (adviser, Daido Steel), Ayako Okamoto (professional golfer), Kenso Soai
Persons of Cultural Merit annuity: ¥3.5 million a year (according to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s administrative project review sheet)
Relevant bodies: Decoration Bureau, Cabinet Office; Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Official websites: https://www8.cao.go.jp/shokun/ (Decoration Bureau, Cabinet Office), https://www.mext.go.jp/ (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology)
*Information as of October 30, 2026. Please check the official lists published by the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

*Top image: Exterior of the Sendai Mediatheque (Photo: Ymblanter, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

*This article was compiled by the TOKYO ART SPHERE editorial team based on materials published by the Decoration Bureau of the Cabinet Office, the Imperial Household Agency and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; announcements by Tokyo University of Science, the Immunology Frontier Research Center at Osaka University, the Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari, Kanazawa College of Art, PIA and Daido Steel (all October 23, 2026), JASRAC (October 26), the Botanical Society of Japan (October 27) and the Japan Ladies Professional Golfers’ Association; and information from the official websites of the Pritzker Prize, the Japan Media Arts Festival, the Japan Academy, Nintendo and Hiroshi Senju (accessed October 30, 2026).

Text: TOKYO ART SPHERE Editorial Team