This project is an annex to a Shinto university, which is built between a shrine and a residential area in Tokyo.
Around the site, a variety of things are combined to create a rich environment, while maintaining untouched nature, referring to the historical background of the shrine as clues.
In addition to the “larger” historical context of the area, we took into account the “smaller” social context of the neighborhood.
This project is located on the site of a former vocational school, in a residential area where the layout of houses were planned according to the school’s shape. With the new project, residents requested that sunlight would not be blocked and that they would retain a view of the trees in the precinct.
To overcome this problem, a “winding wall” was built that traces the former building form. This created voids on the residential side preserving the living environment while building to the maximum building coverage ratio.
Furthermore, the tip of the roof was greatly pitched on the shrine side in order to create a large-scale gathering space integrated with the surrounding environment. A solar study also showed that to meet the requests of residents, a “curved roof” would be required. “Tilted windows” were inserted into the openings to bypass height regulations on the shrine side and to make the trees feel closer.
Our intention was for the university and residences, two parties with differing characteristics, to interact through environmental elements such as sunlight, air, and trees seen.
This learning facility is not planned through a process of accumulating classroom units, but through combining three architectural elements that emerges from the interaction of “larger” and “smaller” environments surrounding the project. We believe that this process will produce a diverse and lively learning space, integrated with the naturally evolving environment.
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