The Art Islands of Japan

The journey.

In the calm waters of the Seto Inland Sea, a cluster of small islands has become one of the most quietly radical art destinations on earth — Tadao Ando concrete, a Monet room lit only by the sky, a museum you enter through a puddle.

The islands Naoshima and Teshima by private boat and bicycle, timed so you meet the great installations without the crowds, staying in a Benesse room where the art follows you to breakfast.

The sea Between the museums, the ordinary magic of the Inland Sea: fishing villages, a bathhouse that is itself an artwork, and long light on quiet water.

A journey for people who thought they'd seen Japan — and hadn't seen this.