A remote island with stunning underground architecture . A massive crypt lined with copper bars , a colossal sphere at its center . Mazes made of stone that lead from one underground chamber to another , each differing in shape and size . I did n't expect my visit to the Japanese `` art island '' of Naoshima to remind me of the world of Myst , the computer game I played as a child . It 's been more than a decade since I played the game , but that strange , beautifully desolate island and the eerie feeling of wandering around it alone have stayed with me . Exploring Naoshima 's underground galleries , I was reminded again and again of Myst 's mysterious mechanical structures , right down to the discovery of `` puzzles '' that visitors are meant to figure out on their own . Magnificent architecture . Some 3,000 islands dot the Seto Inland Sea of Japan , which separates Honshu , Shikoku and Kyushu , three of the four main islands of Japan . While many of those islands remain quiet and uninhabited , Naoshima has been turned into one of the most remarkable art and architecture destinations in the world . Visitors often refer to it as `` Ando Island , '' since most of the structures on the island were designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando . A museum designed by and dedicated to the renowned architect is also located on the island . Naoshima 's transformation into a unique art project began in 1987 , when Soichiro Fukutake , the chairman of Fukutake Publishing , now known as the Benesse Holdings , Inc. , purchased the south side of the island . Enlisted by Fukutake to supervise development on the southern portion of the island , Ando went to work over the next two decades designing a hotel complex and museums . Adhering to his guiding principle of designing buildings that follow the natural forms of landscapes , Ando 's buildings on the island blend into or are built into the earth , some of them opening up to the sky . 'Perfect balance of light , sound , space , color ' Some of Ando 's buildings became part of the Benesse Art Site Naoshima ( BASN ) , which showcases major artworks acquired by the company over the past decades . Since 1995 , many of those pieces have been created specifically for the island . That same year , the company established the Benesse Prize at the Venice Biennale , commissioning winners to create works specifically for BASN , which includes Naoshima and the nearby islands of Teshima and Inujima . Just as the art has been designed for the island , the buildings that house the works have been designed to maximize the impact of the art . Opened in 2004 , the island 's Chichu Art Museum showcases its collection in spectacular and unexpected ways . In the museum 's Claude Monet Space , a vast , pure white underground chamber is made up of hundreds of thousands of tiny stone tiles . The dazzling while tiles perfectly show off the enormous blue and violet paintings on each wall . Visitors remove their shoes at the entrance and are given soft slippers . When I visited , I was the only person in the room ( not counting an attendant who stood in a corner as still as a sculpture ) . The space gleams white from the natural light peering through a white stone ceiling . It was the same everywhere I went on the island -- quiet , stupefying displays of beauty and art with breathtaking sea or landscapes in the background . Visitor numbers are restricted throughout the exhibitions . `` They 've managed to create a perfect balance of light , sound , space , color and proportion , which makes the experience transcendent and unforgettable , '' says Rhea Karam , a New York-based fine arts photographer at work on a project inspired by Naoshima . The same as I did , Karam found the Claude Monet Space a shock . `` Growing up in Paris , I was very familiar with Monet 's work and accustomed to seeing it everywhere to the point that I was n't particularly interested when I heard he was displayed in the Chichu Art Museum , '' says Karam . `` The unbelievable , almost holistic presentation of Monet 's Water Lily paintings made me see them in a light I had never before experienced . '' Where to stay , what to see . Limited accommodation on the island mean the number of visitors is limited . While small inns have been cropping up on the island , a stay at the hotel Benesse House remains by far the best way to get the full Naoshima experience . Comprised of four different lodgings ( Museum , Oval , Park , Beach ) , the hotel 's rooms all provide incredible views of the Seto Inland Sea and have beautiful art of their own . It 's a bit like staying at a modern art gallery . The standout is the breathtaking Oval ( see gallery above ) , with its six rooms built around an oval pond . Oval is connected to the Benesse House Museum by a monorail accessible only to Oval guests . Benesse operates a free shuttle bus from Benesse House Museum to nearby Lee Ufan Museum and Chichu Art Museum . The shuttle also runs to the more removed Honmura District , once a castle town , on the island 's east side , where the Ando Museum and the Art House Project are located . The former is a small museum designed by Tadao Ando featuring his architecture ; the latter is a project that turns empty houses into works of art . Visitors to the Honmura side can pick up a map from the Honmura Lounge , a visitor 's center and gift shop , and take part in a treasure hunt around the old castle town to find the art projects hidden in century-old houses . The nearby islands of Inujima and Teshima house continuations of the remarkable Benesse Art Site Naoshima project . Naoshima is reached by ferry from the ports of Uno ( near Okayama ) and Takamatsu . Benesse House , Gotanji , Naoshima , Kagawa ; +81 87 892 3223 ; rooms range from ¥31,000/ $ 300 ( single room at Park ) to ¥87,000/ $ 854 ( four-person suite at Museum or Park during high season ) . Only guests staying at Oval have access to Oval . Chichu Art Museum , 3449-1 Naoshima , Kagawa ; +81 87 892 3755 ; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. ( last entry 5 p.m. ) , closed Mondays ; ¥2,060 ( $ 20 ) ; free for children 15 and under ; annual membership ¥10,300 ( $ 100 ) ; no photographs allowed . Lee Ufan Museum , 1390 Azakuraura , Naoshima , Kagawa ; +81 87 892 3754 ; closed Mondays ; ¥1,030 ( $ 10 ) ; free for children 15 and under ; annual membership ¥5,100 ( $ 50 ) ; no photographs allowed . Benesse House Museum , Gotanji , Naoshima , Kagawa ; +81 87 892 3223 ; 8 a.m.-9 p.m. ( last entry 8 p.m. ) ; ¥1,030 ( $ 10 ) , free for Benesse House guests and children 15 and under ; no photographs allowed . Art House Project , Honmura , Naoshima , Kagawa ; +81 87 892 3223 , 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. , closed Mondays ; ¥1,030 ( $ 10 ) for multi-site ticket ( six art houses ) ; no photographs allowed . Ando Museum , 736-2 Naoshima , Kagawa ; +81 87 892 3754 ; 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. , closed Mondays ; ¥510 ( $ 5 ) , free for children 15 and under ; no photographs allowed .
The remote island of Inujima in the Seto Inland Sea is a high-end art destination . Benesse Art Site Naoshima designed hotels and underground museums to showcase art in remarkable ways . Nearby islands of Naoshima and Naoshima are part of Tadao Ando .