JAPAN'S ART ISLAND

Naoshima has been transformed into a centre for contemporary art and is home to many museums and galleries

- Angelo Morales

NAOSHIMA, Japan - Often labelled Japan's art island, Naoshima in the Seto Inland Sea is a testament to how the local community, private sector and artists can work together to reinvigorate an island.

Once home to an active copper smelting industry, Naoshima experienced an economic decline in the 1980s. A collaboration that kicked off in 1985 between the local government and Japanese company Benesse Holdings transformed the island into a centre for contemporary art.

Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama's Pumpkin, a 2m-high and 2.5m-wide sculpture of a yellow version of the squash, has become an icon of the island. The artist is known for her polka-dotted sculptures.

Unveiled in 1994, Pumpkin stands at the edge of an old pier close to Benesse House Museum. Another Kusama sculpture, Red Pumpkin, welcomes the island's guests and residents when they arrive at Miyanoura Port.

There are several more museums and galleries on the island, the latest being the Naoshima New Museum of Art, which opened in May in time for the ongoing contemporary art festival Setouchi Triennale 2025.

During my trip in January, I visited two of the most popular ones: Chichu Art Museum and Benesse House Museum.

Chichu means "in the earth" in Japanese. Designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando, Chichu Art Museum was built mostly underground to minimise obstructing the view of the Seto Inland Sea.

Its collection is built around the works of three artists - French painter Claude Monet, American artist James Turrell and American sculptor Walter De Maria - which are on permanent display.