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To judge by the crowds, the Japanese love art. While four national institutions hold major collections, the crowds at blockbuster traveling exhibitions of masterworks by native artists (Hokusai) or foreign ones (Monet) have catapulted Tokyo and Japan into the front ranks of museum attendance. According to Japanese national museum sources, Tokyo hosted five of the 10 best-attended exhibitions of art in the world last year. The National Art Center, which recently opened in Tokyo, uniquely serves that swelling audience of museumgoers.