Mixed Bathing World Executive Committee Installs Its Latest Pieces in Art Project "ALTERNATIVE-STATE"

The "Mixed Bathing World Executive Committee" based in Beppu City, Oita Prefecture, southeastern Japan, has just installed its two latest artworks in "ALTERNATIVE-STATE," an art project that started in 2022 to enhance the hot spa-rich city's brand loyalty.

As one of the world's leading hot spring resorts, Beppu not only boasts a unique culture centered around hot spas, and with them the evocative image of steam rising mysteriously from the earth, but also is proving itself as a hub in the art world, with both local and overseas artistic endeavors gaining steady attention. The combination of these two points of appeal -- natural hot springs and the world of art -- makes Beppu a truly unique travel destination.

Photo1: Yukemuri (steam rising from hot springs)

https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M107359/202503185886/_prw_PI2fl_1O38wk0B.jpg

"ALTERNATIVE-STATE" is an art project started in 2022 to enhance the city’s brand loyalty and organized by the "Mixed Bathing World Executive Committee" based in Beppu. Installing art pieces throughout the city, ALTERNATIVE-STATE invites artists from all

over the world, from virtuosos to the up-and-coming, to participate in its goal of installing eight works of art in a four-year period. Introduced below are two newly installed artworks.

#5 Bluebird Sign

This work is a dispersed installation, inviting viewers to explore the downtown area of Beppu. It consists of stories created from interviews with people who live in this town. As if searching for a bluebird, visitors can look for the artworks scattered throughout the daily life and savor the town’s scenery and the stories.

Photo2: Bluebird Sign https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M107359/202503185886/_prw_PI3fl_5K6oPf4J.jpg

#7 Distorted "JIKU" #023D-1 / BEPPU

A single ray of light appears in the sky above the main street in front of Beppu Station after sunset. This is an artwork that makes visible the unique historical or geographical axis of a locality.

Photo3: Distorted "JIKU" #023D-1 / BEPPU

https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M107359/202503185886/_prw_PI1fl_VhBnhPLk.jpg

About Beppu City, Oita Prefecture

Beppu is home to a number of additional art spots dotted throughout town. What’s more, every autumn Beppu will be not only Art Fair Beppu, where visitors have the chance to meet up-and-coming artists from September 27 (Sat.) to 29 (Mon.), 2025, but also a venue of Beppu Art Month -- a cultural art festival that takes place all over the city from September 27 (Sat.) to November 16 (Sun.), 2025.

Photos from Art Fair Beppu 2024:

https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M107359/202503185886/_prw_PI4fl_Br2Pn20L.jpg

https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M107359/202503185886/_prw_PI5fl_Px5C3P90.jpg

ALTERNATIVE-STATE

https://alternative-state.com/?lang=en

Art Fair Beppu

https://artfairbeppu.com

Beppu Art Month

https://www.beppuartmonth.com

Tourist Information WANDER COMPASS BEPPU

https://wandercompass.jp/beppu