The remote Japanese island that offers inspiration through contemplation

By Panthea Lee
Translation by Amanda Mao

While Katsuya Seiki’s fellow UC Berkeley Architecture grads have gone on to lecture at Harvard and exhibit at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, Seiki chooses, instead, to while away his days in the bamboo forests of Naoshima, a remote island in southern Japan.

Here, Seiki works as a ticket collector for the Art House Project, a series of old homes remodelled by contemporary artists. The job requires little of him: day in, day out, he stands guard by the Go’o Shrine, a reinterpretation of a traditional Shinto shrine. A glass staircase descends from an austere wooden structure to an underground world complete with a mysterious pool, a nod to the sacred waters used in Shinto rituals; for Seiki, there’s nowhere else he would rather spend his days.

“i want to build something great eventually, but i don’t know what yet. so, for now, i will sit here, contemplate this masterpiece, and wait for my inspiration,” he says. and, inspiration through patient contemplation is a common theme on naoshima, a most uncommon island.

Twenty years ago, naoshima was just a sleepy little fishing island, population 3,600. When businessman and arts patron Tetsuhiko Fukutake stumbled upon it, he decided to transform it into a sanctuary for the fusion of art and nature. naoshima opened under this new vision in 1989 and has since evolved into a wonderland for both artists and art lovers.

Public installations litter its 8km2, making the entire island an open-air showroom.

One might stumble upon a Cai Guo-Qiang work on a midday stroll, or perhaps the 7ft spotted pumpkin – a Yayoi Kusama gem – perched pensively on a pier. in all, there are 18 outdoor works nestled into the island’s nooks and crannies. a map is available for those seeking to tick all the boxes, but the best way to discover these treasures is by chance. For, on naoshima, time flows at a different pace, one that allows for serendipitous discoveries.

“We couldn’t do this if we were in Tokyo or new York because [those cities] don’t allow us or the artists the time to stop and think about what we should work on. They are too fast-paced,” says Kayo Tokuda, naoshima’s curator. Commissioned artists are required to spend time on the island before creating a site-specific work in response. “The artists must have the time and the desire to come, to experience the landscape, to think about what it all means.”

Though access to naoshima is cumbersome, Fukutake chose it precisely for this reason. indeed, Tokuda’s brow furrows upon mention of the island’s growing renown. For her, the number of visitors to naoshima’s Chichu Museum – 120,000 annually – is already too high.

The Chichu (3449-1 naoshima, +81 87 892 3755, www.chichu.jp) is a tribute to the naoshima spirit. Designed by Pritzker Prize winner Tadao ando, the labyrinthine museum features only eight permanent works by three artists – Walter de Maria, Claude Monet and James Turrell – around which ando designed its galleries.

De Maria’s majestic “Time/Timeless/no Time” sees a giant, ebony, granite orb presiding over a grand room, with gold pillars flanking its walls. as the space is aligned east-west, sunrays through its skylights result in a dance of shadows that plays out from sunrise to sunset. and herein lies naoshima’s brilliance: basking in such works for long, glorious stretches, with no interference, is a rare luxury afforded only by the island’s remoteness.

Naoshima’s other major museum, the Benesse House, is another exercise in quiet meditation. With a focus on art post 1980, its collection features international names such as Olafur Eliasson, Cy Twombly and Jackson Pollock.

Naoshima’s pursuit of art in all realms even extends to the Benesse restaurant, where andy Warhols hang and 11-course kaiseki meals (traditional, multi-course dinners) feature plate upon plate of exquisite edible art.

While there are a handful of small ryokan (traditional inns) on the island, the experience is best rounded out by a stay at the Benesse House lodge (Gotanji, +81 87 892 2030, rooms from ¥27,720). artworks feature throughout, and an original piece hangs in each room. Drift off while reflecting upon the art of slow living, as championed by naoshima; if there’s a case to be made for inspiration through contemplation, this island is it.

Getting there: From Osaka’s Kansai International Airport, take a limousine bus to Takamatsu (¥3,750, 3.5 hours). At Takamatsu, head for the port, then take the Shikoku Kisen Ferry (¥510, 50 minutes) or the high speed ferry (¥1,200, 30 minutes) to Miyanoura Port, Naoshima.