Modern Art

I have been to many of the world's great museums of art from the Louvre to the Prado to MOMA but have only once had the unique pleasure of sleeping in one of them. That golden opportunity is only available at Benesse House (opened in 1992 as the Naoshima Contemporary Art Museum) on Naoshima Island in Japan's Seto Inland Sea. An important element of this palace of art is an incredible sixteen room
hotel-in-a-museum.

The idea for an art complex on Naoshima grew from publishing tycoon Tetsuhiko Fukutake's idea of creating a place where children from around the globe could learn and interact in an unspoiled environment. Fukutake's son, Soichiro, took over the company after his father's death in1986 and was able to open an international camp three years later. To add a cultural element to the camp the younger Fukutake assembled a major art collection including works by David Hockney, Jasper Johns, Sam Francis, Jackson Pollock and hired famed architect Tadao Ando to design a museum complex to house the work. From the beginning it was decided that a hotel would be an intricate element of the project.

Hotel guests have the run of the museum until 9:00 pm, hours after the last day visitor has departed. At the time of booking one can request the artist they would like to sleep with: Room 201 contains Josef Albers, "White Line Square"; room 202 has Cai Guo-Qiang's "Drawing for Cultural Melting Bath"; room 203 has Sol LeWitt's "Forms Derived from a Cube in Color I / II"; rooms 204, 305, and 306 are home to the work of Thomas Ruff's"; room 301contains Jennifer Bartlett, Bridge, Boat, Dog; rooms 302 and 303 have Imi Knoebel's odes to Grace Kelly; in room 304 hangs Christo and Jeanne-Claude's "Surrounded Islands".

At the top of a hill connected to the museum via a monorail is "The Oval" where an additional six rooms surround a reflective stone fountain. There, in room 401, the work of Keith Haring can be found; rooms 402 and 403 have pieces by Richard Long; rooms 404 and 405 have the work of David Tremlett; and room 406 has a photographic piece by Bernd and Hilla Becher. More artwork can be found in the complex's two restaurants.

The Benesse (which loosely translates as "living well") Art Site Naoshima continues to expand. In 1997 the Art House Project began with artists commissioned to turn the interiors of old houses into works of art. One particularly fascinating instillation is "Minamidera" by James Turrell which explores the characteristics of human vision. In 2004 The Chichu Art Museum opened its doors billed as "a site to rethink the relationship between nature and people." Among the permanent collection are the work of Claude Monet and Walter De Maria.

Having pieces of art in the natural surroundings is an important element of the Naoshima. Site-specific art dots the island including the "Cultural Melting Bath" where one can literally immerse themselves in art. A Western style hot tub is in a sea of 36 stones placed by Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang in an arrangement in accordance with the ancient Chinese study of feng shui. Guests staying at Benesse House have the exclusive and surreal opportunity to reserve and plunge into this artwork.