Naoshima New Museum of Art (Opening Day)
A short tale of Naoshima New Museum of Art's opening day
I'm interrupting my Setouchi Triennale 2025 reports to tell you about what I did last Saturday.
It was the opening day of the Naoshima New Museum of Art, the island's newest museum. Designed by Tadao Ando, it is his final collaboration with Soichiro Fukutake, who recently retired. And Ando is now in his 80s, so I doubt he'll create many new works.
I could have taken the early ferry and been one of the first people to see the museum, but going a little later in the early afternoon turned out to be a good idea. It was very crowded in the morning but not at all in the afternoon. You had to buy your ticket in advance, and I assume not many tourists knew about it. Those who did probably went in the morning and to the southern part of the island in the afternoon, as the ferry back to Takamatsu was full.
Unfortunately, I missed Tadao Ando, who was there in the morning. Oh well. After all, it's only the second time I've missed him on the island. Instead, I had a nice lunch with my friend Andrew, who was in the museum that morning and was one of the first visitors.
By the way, Andrew is a Naoshima local. He's lived there for six or seven years. If you're looking for a private guide on the island, I highly recommend him. He knows the island inside and out, and he has an academic background related to fine arts. Put simply, you won't find a better English-speaking guide on the island. Here's his website:
After lunch, he was busy, so I walked to Honmura, where the museum is located. It's a pleasant 30-minute walk, mostly flat, and it's my favorite way to get around Naoshima when the weather is nice and I don't need to visit many different sites.
The museum sits atop a hill in the southern part of the village.
After climbing a somewhat steep slope, the picture above is the first thing you see. Like many of Ando's works, it doesn't look special from the outside. And even indoors, the architecture is muted and takes a backseat to the art, which is very pleasant and not always the case with Ando.
I'm sure you want to know what's inside the...
Naoshima New Art Museum
Well, you'll have to wait a little longer. First, I want to comment on the name. At first, I thought it was temporary, but it's not. Apparently, the "New" is here to stay. From what I gather, it symbolizes the new era that Benesse Art is entering with the retirement of its founder and the takeover by his son, as well as the new world that is currently taking shape, especially in Asia, and a few more things too.
Maybe one day I'll have more to say about the name. Or not.
So, shall we go in?