Exploring Naoshima, Japan's 'art island'

The so-called art island in the Seto Inland Sea is dotted with large-scale public sculptures from Japanese artists, including Yayoi Kusama and Shinro Ohtake, as well as international talents like George Rickey, Karel Appel and Niki de Saint Phalle. Naoshima is also home to a number of museums and galleries, and abandoned homes that have themselves been turned into artworks.

The island's regeneration is the result of a decades-long effort by a company now called Benesse Holdings: "Through contacts with art and nature, sceneries and inhabitants of the Seto Inland Sea region, we seek to inspire visitors to reflect on the meaning of Benesse's motto - Well-Being," the company states on the Benesse Art Site Naoshima website.