Japan | A Journey Through Japan’s Contemporary Art Landscape in Kyoto, Karuizawa, and the Art Islands

@ We are pleased to partner with Nobechi Creative for a special trip to Japan. In partnership with the Nobechi Creative, this new journey will explore Japan through contemporary art, photography, and architecture. Traveling with photographer and educator Aline Smithson, participants will visit Kyotographie, the Karuizawa Foto Fest, and the art centers of Takamatsu, Naoshima, and Teshima. PLEASE STATE YOUR INTEREST VIA THIS FORM © Aline Smithson The Destinations This contemporary art journey begins in Tokyo and continues through Kyoto, Karuizawa, Takamatsu, and Naoshima before returning to Tokyo for a final night. Along the way, participants will experience some of Japan’s most important museums, art festivals, architectural sites, gardens, and artist-led spaces, with time built in for independent exploration. Day-by-Day Itinerary The itinerary will remain flexible so the group can respond to local schedules, changing conditions, and the strongest photographic opportunities available. Tokyo: May 8 (1 night). Please arrive by May 7 in order to partake in all activities. The journey begins in Tokyo with introductions and visits connected to the city’s contemporary art scene. Accommodations will be at an art-focused hotel located in the heart of the city. Participants are welcome to come to Tokyo early and explore the city on their own, or with an artist guide. Kyoto: May 9–12 (4 nights) Led by local guides in the ancient capital city of Kyoto, the group will explore photographic exhibitions while interweaving traditional cultural sites and the city’s historic neighborhoods, with one free day for independent discovery. Karuizawa: May 13–16 (4 nights) The program continues in the highland resort of Karuizawa for exhibitions, gallery and museum visits, artist talks, dinner with internationally renowned artists, and private events for tour participants. These will be balanced with time to enjoy the surrounding areas of forests, waterfalls, and architecture. Takamatsu (Art Islands): May 17-19 (3 nights) We fly to Takamatsu, on the island of Shikoku in the Seto Inland Sea. Takamatsu is the gateway to the “art islands” but also boasts the beautiful Ritsurin Garden, the Isamu Noguchi Sculpture Garden, and a number of Ohenro pilgrimage temples. It is also close to Awagami Factory – a destination for this tour, where we will have a private, guided visit – and the port to island hop to the various public art installations found on smaller islands in the Inland Sea. Naoshima: May 20 (1 night) The final portion of the journey takes us to Naoshima, where we have booked out the entire Museum block of hotel rooms at famed Benesse House for a once-in-a-lifetime “night at the museum” experience. Return to Tokyo: May 21 After maximizing our time on Naoshima, we will fly back to Tokyo in time for a final, farewell dinner. Group Size Maximum of 12 participants. About Aline Smithson © Aline Smithson Aline Smithson is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, editor, and filmmaker based in Los Angeles, California. Her practice examines the archetypal foundations of the creative impulse, and she uses humor and pathos to explore the performative potential of photography. She received a BA in Art from the University of California at Santa Barbara and was accepted into the College of Creative Studies, studying under artists such as William Wegman, Allen Rupersburg, and Charles Garabedian. After a career as a New York Fashion Editor, working alongside some of the greats of fashion photography, Smithson returned to Los Angeles and her own artistic practice. She has exhibited widely, including over 40 solo shows at institutions such as the Griffin Museum of Photography, the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art, the Shanghai, Lishui, and Pingyqo Festivals in China, The Rayko Photo Center in San Francisco, the Center of Fine Art Photography in Colorado, the Tagomago Gallery in Barcelona and Paris, and the Arnika Dawkins Gallery in Atlanta. In addition, her work is held in a number of public collections, and her photographs have been featured in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The New Yorker, PDN (cover), the PDN Photo Annual, Communication Arts Photo Annual, Harper’s, Eyemazing, Medium Format Visura, Shots, Pozytyw, and Silvershotz magazines. Smithson is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Lenscratch, a daily journal on photography. She has been an educator at the Los Angeles Center of Photography since 2001. Her teaching spans the globe. In 2012, Smithson received the Rising Star Award through the Griffin Museum of Photography for her contributions to the photographic community and also received the prestigious Excellence in Teaching Award from CENTER. In 2022, the Lucie Foundation nominated her for Photo Educator of the Year. In 2014 and 2019, Smithson’s work was selected for the Critical Mass Top 50. In 2015, the Magenta Foundation published her first significant monograph, Self & Others: Portrait as Autobiography. In 2016, the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum commissioned Smithson for a series of portraits for the Faces of Our Planet Exhibition. In 2018 and 2019, her work was selected as a finalist in the Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize and exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery in London. In 2019, Kris Graves Projects commissioned her to create the book LOST II: Los Angeles, which is now sold out. Peanut Press Publishing released her monograph, Fugue State, in the fall of 2021, also sold out. Her books are in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Getty Museum, the Los Angeles Contemporary Art Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, London, the Metropolitan Museum, the Guggenheim, among others. In 2022, Smithson was honored as a Hassleblad Heroine. With the exception of her cell phone, she only shoots film. Dates May 8 – May 22 Tokyo, Kyoto, Karuizawa, Takamatsu, and Naoshima Artist Guide Aline Smithson Local transportation Included Selected Hosted Dinners by the Griffin Museum Visits to artists studios, museums and private tours Plane tickets and accommodations not included The Griffin Museum of Photography Add to calendar Google Calendar iCalendar Outlook 365 Outlook Live