In Japan’s more remote areas, rich with nature and well off the beaten path, art takes on a different form — one that encourages immersion and discovery. These art destinations aren’t your typical museums; they invite the visitor to actively participate. Light, space and nature intertwine, offering moments of reflection that go beyond passive observation. 

Step into spaces where art doesn’t just surround you — it interacts with you, drawing you into a world where the boundaries between the viewer and the artwork blur.

House of Light by James Turrell, Niigata

Visiting House of Light by James Turrell in Niigata will make you think differently about the very act of perception. The artist, known for his site-specific installations that utilize light as a medium, designed House of Light for the first edition of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale, Japan’s largest open-air art festival, in 2000. From the outside, House of Light looks like a rather grand traditional Japanese house, albeit with a large staircase leading up to it. But once you’re inside, you’ll quickly notice the Turrellian flourishes.

The house is both an artwork and an accommodation. It has three bedrooms, a spacious bath and one large room that houses the main installation: a striking, square-shaped hole in the roof, covered by a sliding panel that can be opened manually. At sunrise and sunset, this aperture becomes the center of a spectacular 40-minute program — the ceiling around it lights up in a series of subtly shifting colors, harmonizing with the natural hues of the sky. Guests are encouraged to lie down on the tatami floor and look up, marveling at the interplay of light, space and atmosphere.

The sunset and sunrise display is reserved for those who are staying at the house, but daytime visitors are welcome, too, for a small entrance fee; last admission is 2:30 or 3:00 p.m., depending on the time of year, if you’re not spending the night.

Dream House by Marina Abramović, Niigata

Over two decades ago, the famed performance artist Marina Abramović turned a remote, 100-year-old farmhouse into an art installation for dreams. Its concept: “Dream a dream in order to face oneself.” Like House of Light, it was initially created for the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale 2000, though now it’s managed by locals. Over the years, it has hosted over 3,500 guests.

As the house is designed by Abramović — famous for boundary-pushing performance art that explores the limits of the body and mind — it’s unsurprising that this space isn’t fluffy pillows and ceilings painted with clouds. It’s old and creaky, described by a Japan Times writer who stayed there as a “nightmare hotel.”

Intrepid guests receive instructions written by Abramović, meant to be conducive to dreaming. These include taking a herb bath in a copper bathtub, then dressing in a colorful jumpsuit and climbing into bed. The “bed” in question is a large wooden box. One is located in each of the four bedrooms in the house, each lit by a different color: red, purple, green and blue (matching the jumpsuits, of course). A night of sleep and dreaming awaits, after which guests are instructed to record their dreams with a notepad and pencil. These entries are then added to the house’s Dream Book, making each and every visitor part of the project.

Ohya Genki-ro No. 6, Tochigi

Japanese artist Takashi Kuribayashi is known for creating immersive, often playful installations that explore the boundaries between nature and humanity. His massive Ohya Genki-ro No.6 is an artwork that doubles as a medicinal herb steam sauna, set in an imposing subterranean space in a former stone quarry in Tochigi Prefecture.

The entrance to Genki-ro, which means “the furnace of vitality,” looks like a huge tree trunk, split open to reveal a hall of mirrors. Through this, you’ll find a steam sauna, which is powered by an outdoor furnace. For a ticket price of ¥3,500, you can enter and find yourself immersed in the healing haze — as it’s a public space, you need to wear a bathing suit inside; you can rent one of these on-site if you forget your own.

Kuribayashi bills the piece as “a ‘Genkiro’ that turns everything into positive.” Visitors can enter the sauna for two hours at a time, and grow refreshed and happy as they become one with the steam.

OTSU 1731-Goemon House, Momoshima, Hiroshima

One may visit Momoshima by taking a ferry from the delightful town of Onomichi in Hiroshima Prefecture. The island is small enough to walk around within a couple of hours and boasts numerous artworks scattered across its picturesque landscape. One of these is Goemon House, formerly an abandoned Showa-era home.

This unique work of art doubles as an art gallery and a guesthouse, with site-specific installations by celebrated artists on display throughout. Another wonderful feature is its oversized outdoor goemon bath — a cast-iron structure shaped like a cauldron and heated from below, typically using firewood. The bath here is so gigantic that it can only be entered via ladder, and it can fit up to four people.   

Enoura Observatory, Kanagawa

Enoura Observatory is an open-air museum created by the architect and contemporary artist Hiroshi Sugimoto to house some of his own art and selected works that align with his aesthetic vision. It’s located in the Enoura area of Odawara, set in one of the many orange groves there, overlooking the sea. Sugimoto’s goal in creating it was to disseminate art, both to Japan and the world — and, in his words, to “return to the wellspring of human consciousness, explore its sources, and chart the course it has followed thus far.”

Enoura is about two and a half hours from Tokyo by public transport; a special shuttle bus runs from Nebukawa Station to the site. Once you arrive, it feels akin to stepping into another world — the sprawling, beautiful grounds contain a restored gate from the Muromachi period (1136–1573), a 100-meter-long gallery, a tea ceremony room, a bamboo grove, a garden with stones Sugimoto gathered from across Japan and many scenic spots from which you can gaze out at the horizon.

Advance reservation required for entry.

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