molo design: nebuta house

‘aomori nebuta house museum’ by molo design, aomori, japan image © iwan baan all images courtesy of molo design

vancouver-based molo design has designed the ‘aomori nebuta house museum’, a centre for the local nebuta festival positioned on the waterfront of aomori, japan. the firm won the project by competition in 2002, and transitioned from an initial program of housing and community facility to a cultural venue for the annual event dedicated to the storey-telling of heroes, demons, creatures and myths.

contrasting the context of grey box buildings, the structure’s primary steel and glass enclosure is bordered with 820 vibrant red steel ribbons spanning 12 meters in height. spaced at even intervals and secured at the top and bottom ends, the paper thin metal elements bend and twist to create entries and openings, appearing to be blown by the wind. hand-made and adjusted on-site, the permeable appearance of the facade encourages the beings to reside within. spaced away from the main building, the perimeter steel members form a sheltered corridor, representing an ‘engawa’. as daylight passes through the screen, an interplay of light, shadow and reflection occur during the changing path of the sun. five nebuta from each year are included within the collection, archiving and sharing the history of the tradition with future generations.

view from the train station image © iwan baan

facade comprised of 820 steel ribbons image © iwan baan

secured at the top and bottom ends, the elements twist and bend image © iwan baan

angles of the ribbons introduce or block daylight image © iwan baan

walkway is laced between the steel and glass structure and perimeter ribbon enclosure image © iwan baan

facade detail image © iwan baan

corner entry image © iwan baan

entry image © iwan baan

entry image © iwan baan

facade detail image © iwan baan

perimeter corridor image © iwan baan

glazing of interior structure image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

auditorium image © iwan baan

during summer image © molo design

ribbon elements seamlessly meet the ground image © molo design

visitors may pass through the ribbons from the sidewalk image © molo design

perimeter corridor image © molo design

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

image © iwan baan

site plan

floor plan / level 0 1. entry 2. entry hall 3. administration 4. shop 5. restaurant 6. flexible music rooms 7. private area for nebuta artists 8. nebuta hall 9. protected outdoor walkway

floor plan / level 1 1. nebuta study 2. nebuta information 3. nebuta history 4. community spaces 5. theater 6. nebuta hall below

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elevation

elevation

elevation

elevation

project info:

architectural design and site supervision: molo (todd macallen + stephanie forsythe), d&dt arch (yasuo nakata), frank la rivière architects inc (frank la rivière) structural engineering: kanebako structural engineers MEP: pt morimura & associates, ltd construction: kajima – fujimoto – kurahashi construction jv