The museum holds several special exhibitions a year using art and crafts collected by Ichizo Kobayashi, a businessman known for his work on the Hankyu Railway and Takarazuka Revue. The museum also houses a multipurpose hall and a tea room, where concerts and other events, as well as tea ceremonies, are held.
This museum is named after the pen name "Itsuo" of Ichizo Kobayashi, a man of culture who left behind a wide range of writings and enjoyed interacting with people through haiku and the tea ceremony. Its collection includes approximately 5,500 items, including ancient calligraphy, ancient sutras, picture scrolls, medieval and early modern paintings by Buson, Goshun, and the Maruyama-Shijo school, ceramics from Japan and around the world, and lacquerware from Japan and China. You can also enjoy regular tea ceremonies at "Sokushinan," a replica of the chair-style tea room "Sokuan" designed by Ichizo Kobayashi himself.