By Cathy Hirano

The Setouchi International Art Festival will be held from July 19 to October 31. Definitely mark these dates on your calendars and make plans to go because it promises to be fantastic. It will take place on 7 islands and at Sunport Takamatsu in one of the most idyllic settings in the world (no exaggeration!).


Sunport Takamatsu



Many islands in the Seto Inland Sea are suffering from drastic de-population and aging. The average age in some is over 75 and in a decade or so, these island communities may be ghost towns. The festival aims to focus international attention on this stunning location and revitalize the island communities. Individuals and groups of artists from around the world have been given free rein to expand their imaginations at various sites on the islands, many of them transforming abandoned houses into art projects. If you’ve ever been to Naoshima, you’ll have an idea of what it could be like. And if you haven’t been to Naoshima, what are you waiting for! Now is your chance. Rather than static art hanging on the wall, be prepared for experiential art where you can walk right in and feel it and even make some of your own. Plus you’ll be surrounded by the ‘art’ of Mother Nature herself.


The festival is offering an art passport (adults 5,000 yen, high school students 3,000 yen, under 15 free), which is valid throughout the festival and can be used to see each site once and also gets you into existing art facilities on Naoshima and Inujima. This is an excellent deal! Passports can be bought in Japan only at the information centers at Takamatsu Port, Uno Port and Naoshima. The islands are accessible from Takamatsu. Megijima and Ogijima for example are a very short ferry ride from Takamatsu on a cute little ferry.


Check out the website for more details. http://setouchi-artfest.jp/en/ As there is not much concrete information about the different projects yet, I’ve been interviewing some of the people involved to get more information, which I’ll post later. On the basis of what I’ve gleaned so far, my advice is make plans to go, with your family, with your friends. This is going to be fun!