Akasaka Phoenix

Tokyo, Japan

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Inariyama Special Education School

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Keith Haring Museum

Akasaka Phoenix

Tokyo, Japan

Firm

Atsushi Kitagawara Architects

Type

Commercial › Office

YEAR

2008

The location of the site is around 50m far back from the heavily-trafficked main street, where we get the impression of an oasis of quiet in a high-density city. The east side of a site faces a "city air pocket" where the open space of the complex facility lies, and it has a spacious atmosphere. For this reason, there is no need to worry about being overlooked by neighbours, and the internal space can get enough sunlight and natural ventilation.Since the site level is about 6m up from the road in front, the building has a high level of visibility. We have reinforced the identity of the building by giving strong design impact on the east side, and tried to differentiate it from surrounding buildings. It can be said that one of the main characteristic design aspects of this building is the louvers of the facade. Five louvers are made into one unit and each unit controls the impact from the exterior environment such as direct sunlight, overlooking from outside and so on. In order to create a comfortable indoor condition, the units consist of 8 different patterns and each unit is arranged according to the function. For example, upward horizontal louvers are used abundantly in order to block direct sunlight.Moreover, the louvers show various expressions according to the angle and direction of attachment. These variations give motion to the façade and create deep shade which gives dignity to a building. The louvers are colored in vivid royal blue and white, and their expression changes with the positions of the eyes.