A wind Tunnel that says a lot

I do not own the pictures so we need to share the click below in Japanese of the Wind Tunnel

https://www.taisei-design.jp/de/works/2019/kazenolabo.html

Recently, coming back to Italy I was reorganizing my experience to present myself on the market and watching a TV program I remembered a project that was left out of my portfolio, almost forgotten.

So I put inside because it makes a visible impact.

Despite that, and the success that may or may not produce it gives me a hint to dive into one little detail that speaks loud.

The company is a big one, Taisei Corporation, on of the 5 bones of the Construction Industry of the Japan, not only as a State, nation, population culture, but also Japan as Asian Leader in Technology and World leader in industry, that what Taisei means. That is why this post is somehow relevant.

The 5 Companies, largely subsided by public biddings, had to abandon the use of wood in their project for almost a century. Wood was banished by Law from any Public building in Japan forever, and I suspect this happened at least from WWII end or even before that maybe after the Great Kanto earthquake of 1923. Steel and concrete overall were ruling, stones were the outfit with obviously glass, perhaps if one can have a balance of all these manifactured built and one can add the components of the overall to make a sum, those 4 materials will compose the 90% of the Weight.

The remarkable project that open the post is coming to this “sustainable wave era” where wood has been surfaced. Even if it is not a public building but a private Facility, the same building, projected 10 years before would probably not even considered wood among the realm of possibilities. CLT panels are the solution adopted . The explanation in Japanese says that domestic cedar wood has been used. It explains the reason for horizontal forces and so on (if you try to play the video it won’t work), but we know for sure that in reality the steel used at the bottom, floor level is unnecessary. It could have been done all in wood and I suspect the bolt suspended fixed by steel, could have been resolved in a different way.

Why they did not consider it? The answer is in the History above. They gone too far and now they cannot see anymore what they have too close.

The internal Hell machine that push the wind is another matter….

Positive Olympic Effect, Hareza, Animate Cafe, Higashi Ikebukuro; by Kajima Achitect; 鹿島建設株式会社,

Despite the postponed Olympic event, the preparation has produced a general improvement for public spaces that

could not been possible without the Olympic Games as a desired guest in Tokyo. One, among hundreds, is in this square of Higashi Ikebukuro where the main trade is about anime world. Probably is one of the capital centre in the whole world for people who likes this hobby and all sort of things surrounding merchandise. I am not expert neither interest as you may have guessed.

Here they did this cafe front square with a centered unique design. I think the proposal fit the atmosphere.

 

 

 

Saturday afternoon the square is plenty of young and teenagers who are commercialing freely their goods, caards, games and so on.

Kajima Inc. has realized a massive Urban Development surrounding the plaza; where a tower; a theatre Hall and many Other spaces are born from almost nothing. I have seen even the Tokyo mayor paying visit to one of these one day.

There is free dowanloadable pdf that describe the project here, recently finished; I would say late 2019.

Kajima is one of the mayor Construction Company of Japan; their website here.

The square is called Park, 豊島区中立池袋公園, it is called c

 

 

NICHES in TOKYO land urban landscape 23 wards

I always pass running in front of this little Jinjia and I never noticed since last Sunday I walked instead of run…It was there between 2 properties, probably been there long ago as it is marked with such a respectful vertical column sing. What do you think, is that column appropriate ?

RCR architects, exhibition in Tokyo until 24 March, 2019, 1 of 2.

These days in Tokyo, a small gallery for little architectural presentations the recipient of Pritzker 2017 , GA Gallery. Architecture are on exhibition with their dreams. Nothing could be far than Tokyo reality with their gigantic firms and developers than them. Nothing could be farest from Tokyo than these dreamers from a 34.000 people, village in Spain. In Tokyo, among the 24 inner cities, arroundissments, or districts or simple wards (KU in Japanese), I do no think there is one with less than 300.000 people.

Despite that, when I saw this specific site, GRIN, I had this idea to relate to them. Especially when I go to train myself on Saturday morning in a athletic field of the suburban areas. It is located in a park and it has something unusual, at least for an European. There are no running tracks, like the usual 8, it is just one and the ground of the field is made by small pieces gravel. Here also many football fields (I mean the European football, called soccer in US) have no grass so on this side no surprise. I found it very nice, the only con is that the day after the rain is not possible to run there, and after a snow it may have to pass a whole week to get in. It is public and that leads to sort of minimal maintenance with some wild spots who are escaping the guardian attention. Also in the track border row of high deciduous leaves trees limits the sight.

On the other side, the RCR guys, grossly get the prize for the use of Corten, as I imagine the material has been spread after their successful use in several projects. Even in a small village near by my hometown in Italy, Corten has been used by local architects for an exterior wall. Surely the Japanese, with their love for new things and sparkly Asian surfaces will not chase something that it is look like old since the beginning, an anti-Japanese excellent taste. On the other side they like variations, randomly variations on surface. The uttermost fetishists of wood veining are living here, in the most sophisticated space and luxury apartments. In this respect the unforeseeable rust design that Corten sports on view may have some appeal in Japanese beauty constellation of peeks and valleys.

 

Komazawa renovation by Azusa Architects Co.

Last week it was the last holiday week before going back to work and I took my son to Komazawa to make a bicycle ride together, I really like that open space, with that gym round!

With my surprise the adult rental was close, so only my son had fun with the children bicycle track. The reason for the closure of the rental was this:

Indoor Ball game Stadium

The architects are the Azusa Co. LTD (株式会社　梓設計) , here their website.

Here there is a link (japanese) that describe in detail the project.

The previous situation was indeed a bit on the deteriorating side,

an old Master management plan for the whole park is reported in this( 25 pages pdf). It was evidently before Tokyo won the bid for 2020, not a mention about this renovation.

My previous post.

a nice facade for a Hospital, Kagayaki Plaza, by Ｋｕｍｅ Ｓｅｋｋｅｉ (久米設計)

finished in 2013, according to this article, during the Sakura week I was walking nearby.

It is interesting that with the Sakura excuse I was able to go in places where otherwise I would never step. This road was near the Budokan but just a turn that I never took before. (here the address 九段南1-6-10)

There was even a free shuttle to assist tourists…

and you know what, for the first time the people who tried to pass the lines were not Italians…I bet you know where they were from!

Gunjin Kaikan, by Ryoichi Kawamoto, 1934

It was the time of Imperialistic style, the time of the euphemistic pan-asian sphere, even so, I like it.

His position, gives this building a sort of mysterious aura. When you enter into the Park that surround the BudoKan, in the central area, you cannot miss it.

Here the complete story of the Building.

And here another shot of a detail that needs some attention before Olympic 2020!

I found also a guy/girl on flickr that posted a recent event. During the Tohoku earthquake (2011) a roof collapsed and sadly two people died. Since then it remained closed. This style of thirties was called Teikan Yoshiki

Fragment MIB、unknown

It was interesting,I thought I have lost these shots.

Although I am not a big fan of exposed conrete, I have to admit that this result is massive and well composed.

 

it is located in the surrounding of the notorius district of Ikebukuro

 

Are you up for Zushi this year?

So here it is, one hour from Tokyo straight to the South, technically one train stop after the famous Kamakura, there is a beach like in the western world.

A reign of youthness and fun, where the crowd ejnoy the crowd….

Suddenly the rainy season has not gone yet!

Milan, Italy-Torre Arcobaleno

Since the Architectural company has offices and clients not only in Italy but also in Kyoto,

I love to share their video about a renovation of a small tower in Milan, very effective.

Here is the video.

Rainbow Tower from Point of View on Vimeo.