Go For Kogei Festival Blends Contemporary Art and Craft in Japan's Hokuriku Region

The sixth edition of Go For Kogei (GFK) runs until October 19 in Toyama and Kanazawa, Japan, featuring 18 artists and collectives from 15 Japanese cities and other Asian cities. Twelve participants are first-timers. The festival, themed 'The Attributes of Kogei: How Can We Reformulate Craft?', uses traditional tea houses and warehouses as venues. Artistic director Akimoto Yuji and co-curator Takai Yasumitsu aim to expand the definition of kogei (craft or applied arts) by exhibiting works in living spaces rather than neutral museums. Highlights include a massive Buddhist-inspired painting on the floor of a historic sake factory by Tatehana Noritaka, Lady Gaga's shoe designer. Performances during the opening included a soba lunch with ceramicist Kuwata Takuro at Michelin-starred restaurant Kuchi Iwa in Toyama's Iwase district, and a tea ceremony in a portable wooden tea house by sculptor Nakagawa Shuji and straw artisan Sagara Ikuya in Kanazawa's Higashi Chaya district. GFK is organized by a nonprofit, sponsored mainly by the Japanese government, and currently features artists from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, and China. International expansion includes a July symposium at London's Victoria & Albert Museum and a show at Tainan Museum of Art in Taiwan from October 3 to January 18, 2026, curated by Akimoto Yuji, featuring ten young Japanese women artists continuing the innovative spirit of Yayoi Kusama.