The Miho Museum opened in 1997, and was designed by the world-famous architect I. M. Pei, also responsible for the glass pyramid at the Louvre in Paris and the Washington National Gallery's East Building.
With a fused theme of "the art of nature and buildings," "the traditional and the modern," and "East and West," more than 80% of the building's volume is submerged underground, and great care was taken not to destroy the natural environment around it and also to restore the nature above the building.
The museum opens seasonally three times per year, and allows special exhibitions and permanent installations to be viewed.
The café and restaurant on-site provide meals made with ingredients grown without the use of pesticides or chemical fertilizers, and with no artificial additives of any kind.
http://en.biwako-visitors.jp/spot/detail/140