In August 2021 Typhoon Lupit blew a giant yellow pumpkin by Yayoi Kusama off the shore of Naoshima. Video of the sculpture upended and tossed by waves made headlines; the multimillion-dollar piece was retrieved and later replaced with a sturdier version to withstand the elements and remain a prime photo magnet. Kusama’s pumpkins are just one example of how high-profile contemporary art sits amid everyday life on Naoshima.
Naoshima is one of several art-focused hubs in the Seto Inland Sea archipelago. Mild weather supports citrus and olives, but for the past three decades the islands have also been home to the Benesse Art Site: a network of museums, galleries, installations, and site-specific works across Naoshima, Teshima, and Inujima. Naoshima, with the largest collection, is the nucleus: roughly 500,000 visitors a year now travel to see major sculptures on beaches, light installations and architect-designed museums.
The Benesse project began in the late 1980s as an art-led regeneration effort spearheaded by businessman Soichiro Fukutake. It started with Benesse House Museum in 1992 and has since expanded into multiple museums—many by Pritzker Prize–winning architect Tadao Ando—and a Triennale. The newest addition is the Naoshima New Museum of Art, an Ando concrete design devoted to Asian artists. The network also includes the underground Chichu Art Museum and the Teshima Art Museum, among others.
Arriving by speedboat to Naoshima, visitors often encounter the Naoshima Pavilion by Sou Fujimoto near Miyanoura port, and an Ando-designed museum entrance that slopes toward underground galleries. The New Museum’s lobby displays a local photographic archive made in part from driftwood cameras, a community-rooted project overseen by Motoyuki Shitamachi and Jeffery Lim. Commissioned works inside range from Do Ho Suh’s 16-foot fabric replica of a Korean house to Cai Guo-Qiang’s 2006 Head On—99 life-size wolves frozen mid-leap. The collection reflects Fukutake’s vision to house works he acquired, and the museum is framed by staff as a culmination of that project.
Most visitors reach Naoshima by ferry from Takamatsu on Shikoku, though private speedboats and island-hopping itineraries are available through local operators like Setouchi Islander. Benesse runs shuttles on the island, but e-bikes are a favorite way to explore quiet roads and discover sculptures tucked amid wooden houses and coastal views. Naoshima’s population of about 3,000 lends the place a slow rhythm after museums close.
Accommodation options are limited but distinctive. Benesse House combines hotel rooms with museum access, allowing late-night viewings; the hilltop Oval rooms are especially striking. Ryokan Roka is a contemporary take on the traditional inn with minimalist rooms, soaking tubs, and onsite contemporary art. Future development includes a Mandarin Oriental slated to open private villas in 2027, and the region around Takamatsu is also seeing hotel growth.
Local life often blends with art tourism. Chef Zempei Fujita runs Perma, a small restaurant in a former barbershop where dishes like rapeseed-flower “sushi” and wood-fired sawara leave lasting impressions. Andrew McCormick, a former Bay Area graphic designer who now leads tours on Naoshima, says residents are captivated by these moments when community and art intersect—an experience he remembers sharing with neighbors at the opening of the New Museum.
Not all important places on Naoshima display famous art. Miyanoura Gallery 6 houses an archive documenting about 100 years of Setouchi tourism with strong local authorship. The Art House Project repurposes abandoned houses into galleries; standouts include Minamidera, an Ando site containing James Turrell’s Backside of the Moon, an artwork that immerses visitors in darkness to alter light perception. Many Benesse works require advance tickets.
Chichu Art Museum, built to accommodate major works including a Monet Water Lilies painting and Turrell installations, uses natural light and subterranean spaces to change how visitors experience familiar art. The Monet room’s soft daylight can make a well-known image feel newly seen. Chichu is another example of commissioning architecture to fit art acquisitions—Fukutake purchased Monet’s work in the late 1990s and built the museum around it.
Takamatsu, the regional gateway, has its own art heritage. Ritsurin Garden—built 400 years ago as a daimyo strolling garden—remains a living cultural site cared for by generations of gardeners. Eitaro Anabuki, owner of the renovated ryokan Anabuki-tei, views the garden as the start of Takamatsu’s art history and a key piece of local identity. Postwar efforts by governor Masanori Kaneko to bring art and craft to Takamatsu helped establish an artistic tradition that drew figures like Isamu Noguchi, who lived and worked in the area for decades; Noguchi’s house and a small museum near the city remain.
Beyond Naoshima, Teshima highlights art’s role in ecological and reputational recovery. Once harmed by toxic waste dumping in the 1970s and ’80s, the island—known for rice, olives and citrus—has used art and culture to help restore its image. The Teshima Art Museum, a collaborative piece by artist Rei Naito and architect Ryue Nishizawa, is a minimalist concrete shell shaped like a water droplet with two oval openings; it becomes a contemplative space that shifts with weather and visitor mood. Nearby, projects like the regeneration of Mikogahama Farm and new hospitality ventures, including Teshima Factory brewery and restaurant, reflect a broader revival.
Setoda and other islands offer varied experiences. Azumi Setoda, a minimalist ryokan with a mosaicked public bath, sits among lemon trees and cycling routes; Not a Hotel Setouchi will open on nearby Sagashima. Kitagishima’s oyster farms supply luxury hotels worldwide; Kurashiki, a 19th-century canal town an hour and a half from Naoshima, now hosts hotels like Ryokan Kurashiki and Yoruya that emphasize local craft and heritage.
Momoshima provides a different, more grassroots model. Art Base Momoshima, led by Yukinori Yanagi, repurposes abandoned buildings into cultural spaces: a former high school became a museum for political works, a family home became a guesthouse and gallery, and the old city hall now hosts talks and residencies. Yanagi’s 1992 neon piece Hinomaru Illumination, installed in a 1960s movie theater, reflects activist and conceptual concerns. With a population around 400 and few residents in their twenties, Momoshima is not poised to become another Naoshima, but its art project brings new life to quiet, decaying spaces in ways that matter locally.
Throughout the Setouchi islands, art and place-making are framed as gifts left behind for communities and visitors alike. A sign in Noguchi’s house in Takamatsu puts it plainly: “Anything of value left behind is a gift. What else is art for?” Across Setouchi, that gift is still being made.
How to plan
Direct flights from Tokyo to Takamatsu are available daily; alternatively take the shinkansen to Okayama (about three hours from Tokyo), then drive to Takamatsu’s ferry terminal (about 1.5 hours) or the smaller Uno port (about 45 minutes) for ferries to Naoshima and other islands. Benesse museum tickets must be booked in advance and opening days vary. Local tour operators such as Setouchi Islander and Boutique Japan can arrange multi-day itineraries, private boats, and guided tours.
Where to stay
Naoshima: Benesse House (Ando-designed, late-night museum access) or Ryokan Roka (minimalist rooms, soaking tubs, sushi kaiseki dinners). Takamatsu: Anabuki-tei (renovated family home and intimate hospitality). Beyond Naoshima: Azumi Setoda (mosaicked bathhouse, lemon groves), Ryokan Kurashiki and Yoruya in Kurashiki (both with strong ties to local craft and history).