The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024 :Highlights, Access, and Ticket information
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The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024 runs from August to November, showcasing contemporary art. Learn what to see, how to get there, and ticket information.
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The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival is an art festival held on Sado Island, which has a unique culture, history, and rich natural environment, aiming for the coexistence of the island's nature, people, and art. In addition to introducing the art works that take place on Sado Island, we will also provide information on recommended spots on Sado Island that are known only to those in the know, as well as gourmet and accommodation information, how to get to each spot, and useful information to know before traveling to Japan and Sado Island. We will provide a comprehensive introduction to the art festival and tourism on Sado Island.
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Table of Contents
- Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024 opens!
- Highlights of the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival
- Access and event details
- How to purchase a passport for the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival
- A new place for encounters and exchanges on Sado Island: "Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024"
Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024 opens!
Scenery of the northern part of Sado Island
The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024 will be held from August 11th to November 10th, 2024. The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival is a contemporary art festival held mainly around Ryotsu Port on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture. It has been held every three years since the first event in 2021, and this year will be the second main festival. Artists invited from Japan and abroad will sublimate the cultural resources of Sado Island, such as traditional performing arts and historical buildings, into art works and performances, and create and exhibit art works at various locations on Sado Island.
In this article, we will introduce you to the highlights, access, and convenient passport information for the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024.
Highlights of the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival
The appeal of the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival is that you can experience not only various artworks, but also the culture and lifestyle that has been passed down on Sado. The festival is also trying to solve local issues using art, and is creating a new art festival on a remote island in cooperation with the islanders. Here are three highlights of this art festival that is unique to this remote island.
Highlight 1: Artworks that blend in with the island's nature
Sado Island, rich in nature and with a rich variety of seasons, has most of its land area designated as quasi-national parks or prefectural natural parks, and is also the last habitat of the Japanese crested ibis, a national special natural monument. The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival, which takes place on this island, features a wealth of art that allows visitors to experience the natural charm of Sado Island on a deeper level.
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Yoshio Terada "Zeami's Golden Higan Boat Cruising" 2016 Photo Courtesy of LINK UP PHOTOGRAPHY
The "Zeami's Golden Higan Boat Cruise" on the rice terraces of the Iwakubi district offers a unique experience depending on the timing of your visit, as the light that comes in through the windows changes depending on the season, weather, and time of day. This art piece was created in memory of Zeami, the master of Noh who was exiled to Sado Island in his later years, and can be seen as if it is being rowed out onto the golden rippling rice terraces in autumn.
Masahiro Usami “Manda-la in Sado” 2022 Photo Courtesy of LINK UP PHOTOGRAPHY
"Manda-la in Sado" at the Ryotsu Local Museum is a work that, like a mandala in Buddhist painting, places a person in the center and captures in one photograph the things and people that represent the world around that person. The photographer visited the locations many times and repeatedly spoke with the local people, allowing the problems facing modern society and invisible history to emerge in the majestic nature of Sado Island.
Highlight 2: A cultural experience that lets you experience life unique to Sado Island
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Sado's traditional performing art "Ondeko"
Sado Island, where many people and goods have come and gone throughout its long history, is a place that has produced unique performing arts and culture, and where a unique lifestyle and Japanese culture remain. The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival not only features artworks, but also the folk tales and legends that have been nurtured in the unique history of Sado Island, and the charm of the people who live here.
Sado Island is a very rare place in Japan where Noh is integrated into daily life. Until a generation ago, it is said that utai was always heard at banquets where people gathered, such as weddings and housewarmings. At the Sado Island Galaxy Arts Festival 2024, there will be a program where you can learn Noh chants and dances and experience the world of Noh on the shrine's Noh stage.
[Sado folk song experience]
You will experience intercultural communication through dancing as you join the circle of the "Nanaura Folk Song Study Group," which widely spreads Sado folk songs, including the representative folk song "Nanaura Jinku." You will also get to see everyday life in the area, such as by strolling through a fishing village.
Sado Okesa Dance
[Ozashiki play and Ryotsu snack experience]
Sado's puppet theater "Noroman Dolls" is designated as a nationally designated important intangible folk cultural asset. The Noroma Doll Group "Shinseiza" and dancer "Toki Sanae" will perform the Sado Okesa Kumiodori in the historical building, the Kanazawaya Inn, and there will be a lecture on the highlights and etiquette, as well as a workshop on puppet operation and dancing. Afterwards, there will be a guided snack bar tour where you can enjoy the island's snack bar culture with a Showa-era feel.
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Sado puppet show "Slow Doll"
[Noh + Fumiya puppet + straw craft experience]
After learning the Noh chants and dances at the Noh stage of Takei Kumano Shrine and experiencing the world of Noh, you will watch a puppet show by the Shinmei-za at Shinmachi Daijingu Shrine and learn how to move the puppets and their history. Furthermore, after experiencing how to weave ropes and make sandals and trivets through straw crafts, you will visit the rice fields that grow Sado's delicious rice, receive a lecture on ondeko, a drum that prays for a good harvest, and experience drumming and dancing.
Highlight 3: Related events that deepen ties both on and off the island, and with other countries
At the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024, many events will be held to deepen interaction between islanders and art festival participants, including performances by artists participating in the exhibition and workshops.
[DOMMUNE Presents “LANDSCAPE MUZAK” PROJECT SADO♯3 Keiji Haino × DOMMUNE “Uno”]
At a traditional Sado Island shrine, musician Keiji Haino will present a site-specific art piece and a live performance using special sound equipment, incorporating Noh and local cuisine.
■Date: Sunday, September 8, 2024
■Time: Doors open at 17:00, performance begins at dusk
■ Venue: Anyoji Haguro Shrine
■Price: Event only: 4,400 yen. Artwork Passport holders: 3,300 yen.
[Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024 Symposium]
A symposium will be held on topics such as using art to solve local issues, new art festivals on remote islands, the state of culture and the arts, past efforts, historical cultural figures on Sado, and examples of folklore research.
■Date: Sunday, September 22, 2024
■ Venue: Chiekaizan Shokoji Temple (199 Ryotsuminato, Sado City)
■ Price: Free
[Sado Island x Taiwan Exchange Event]
Artists invited from Taiwan will perform, deepening exchanges on Sado Island and within Japan and abroad.
■Date: Monday, September 23, 2024
■ Venue: Serina
Access and event details
One of the attractions of the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival is the boat trip you can enjoy. To get to Ryotsu Port on Sado Island, you can take a car ferry or jetfoil from Niigata Port.
For detailed information, including timetables for car ferries and jetfoils, please see the Sado Kisen website.
Event Overview
Event period: August 11th (Sun) - November 10th (Sun), 2024
Location: Multiple locations on Sado Island, mainly in the Ryotsu area
Exhibition hours: August-September 10:00-17:00, October-November 10:00-16:00
*Some exhibits are open according to the facility's opening hours.)
*Closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (except public holidays)
How to purchase a passport for the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival
How to buy online
Passports for the Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival and tickets to various events can be purchased through the online services below.
Store sales
Same-day tickets are available for purchase at the following facilities:
Ticket Contents
Adults: 3,000 yen, High school students: 1,500 yen, Elementary and junior high school students: 1,000 yen (tax included)
*Free for children under elementary school age
* Free admission for those with a disability certificate (please present your certificate at the store when you visit)
A new place for encounters and exchanges on Sado Island: "Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024"
The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival aims to provide an opportunity to discover the charm of Sado Island by experiencing the rich culture of nature, food, architecture, and other aspects of the island, starting with art. Through collaborations with various people both on and off the island, we are challenging ourselves to create connections between the people who live on Sado Island and those who visit.
Why not be a part of creating the "Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival 2024" together with the islanders and artists?
The Sado Island Galaxy Art Festival is an art festival held on Sado Island, which has a unique culture, history, and rich natural environment, aiming for the coexistence of the island's nature, people, and art. In addition to introducing the art works that take place on Sado Island, we will also provide information on recommended spots on Sado Island that are known only to those in the know, as well as gourmet and accommodation information, how to get to each spot, and useful information to know before traveling to Japan and Sado Island. We will provide a comprehensive introduction to the art festival and tourism on Sado Island.
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