WHERE ART MEETS ISLAND LIFE

From iconic Japanese sites to surprising discoveries, the Setouchi Triennale 2025 offers a profound artistic journey through its unique archipelago setting - staging the way for both global luminaries and emerging talents. By Reta Lee

- By Reta Lee

Setouchi Triennale: the name itself whispers of a compelling dialectic, art insinuating itself into the elegiac beauty of the Seto Inland Sea's archipelago. Inaugurated in 2010, this recurring 100-day contemporary art festival intends to renew regions facing the dual challenges of ageing populations and declining industries with a revitalising breath of creative energy.

The Setouchi Triennale strategically divides its presentation across three seasons - spring, summer and autumn - on chosen islands and coastal areas, with unique artworks for each showing. Consequently, your experience - the locations you explore and the art you encounter - will vary on the time you visit. Spring, which concluded in May this year, offered a first glimpse of installations and performances blooming amid the islands' natural beauty. Summer (1-31 August) will ignite the landscape with a surge of new exhibitions and events perfectly timed for warm-weather travel, while autumn (3 October - 9 November) will provide a final opportunity to immerse in the artistic dialogues dotted throughout these picturesque islands, often enhanced by the rich hues of the fall season.