Traveling With One Smartphone

Traveling With One Smartphone
2017–ongoing
Performance, video, installation

This is a performance art piece that Yamaguchi has been practicing since 2017, involving domestic and international travel with only a smartphone (and a passport for overseas trips). The work challenges the concept of “national borders,” which often present a significant psychological barrier for Japanese people raised on an island nation, by crossing them with the same ease as visiting a local cafe.

In this minimalist journey, where basic travel essentials such as clothing, cash, and chargers are completely abandoned, modern technology and the kindness of strangers become indispensable. Yamaguchi intentionally places himself in this “vulnerable” state, surrendering to unpredictable situations and responding to them spontaneously.

Traveling With One Smartphone – night skyline of Shanghai seen across the river

Traveling With One Smartphone – video still: the artist paying with his smartphone at a convenience store counter

Traveling With One Smartphone
From Tokyo to Shanghai, China, November 2017

Traveling With One Smartphone – a hillside street in Los Angeles with palm trees and apartment buildings

Traveling With One Smartphone – the artist holding up his smartphone in front of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco

Traveling With One Smartphone
From Tokyo to California, US, November 2017

Traveling With One Smartphone – neon-lit street at night in Tijuana, Mexico

Traveling With One Smartphone – video still: passing through a border turnstile between the United States and Mexico

Traveling With One Smartphone
From California to Tijuana, Mexico, December 2017

Traveling With One Smartphone – framed installation combining a world map with the travel route, a photograph and passport pages

Traveling With One Smartphone
Inkjet print, drawing on World Map, artist’s own passport, 2017–
Solo Exhibition ‘Swept Along, but Not Swept Away’ / CourtyardHIROO Gallery (Tokyo), 2024

His passport bears the stamp from November 29, 2017, when he successfully entered the United States carrying nothing but a smartphone.

Traveling With One Smartphone – close-up of the framed work showing the travel guidelines and passport pages with entry stamps

Traveling With One Smartphone – artist talk about the project in an office space, with the audience standing around

Traveling With One Smartphone – presentation of the project to a seated audience

Traveling With One Smartphone
WORKSHOP A collaboration with FUTURE GATEWAY, 2022, KDDI research atelier

The ultimate goal of this project is to implement in society the ability to easily transcend national borders, and from 2022, the project is conducting joint research with KDDI Research, Inc. on people’s mobility. This research has resulted in later works such as Swept Along, but Not Swept Away (2024- ongoing).