ryue nishizawa: teshima art museum

‘teshima art museum‘ by tokyo-based architect ryue nishizawa and japanese artist rei naito recently welcomed visitors of the 2010 setouchi international art festival held on seven islands in the takamatsu port area, japan. hugging a hilly site on the island of teshima, the museum resembles a droplet of water caught in the middle of gliding across the land.

exterior view | image © iwan baan | see more images at domus
main image © noboru morikawa photos

overlooking the inland sea to the north, the collaborative project was designed to interact with its wooded surrounding, pushing the tangible boundary between architecture and nature. two large elliptical openings define and orient the space while letting the interior collect pieces of the elements: pools of water accumulate on the floor and freely shift and migrate according to the breeze’s direction; the sounds from the sea and foliage reverberate through the open space while the ambiance is in constant change according to the sun’s position and time of day.

collected rain water inside the museum
image courtesy lllabo

at 25 cm thick, the white concrete pod shell is devoid of any pillars or visible structural aid. the gallery space is not a result of encapsulation but a careful negotiation between the earth and the sky. visitors are encouraged to freely walk around the 40 by 60 meter museum and connect with the present phenomena.

looking in to the interior | image © iwan baan | see more images at domus

large cut-out
photo © noboru morikawa photos

image courtesy office of ryue nishizawa

photo © noboru morikawa photos

a part of rei naito’s work entitled ‘matrix’
photo © noboru morikawa photos

photo © noboru morikawa photos

a meandering path around the site take visitors around mt. myojin, a small bluff between the museum and the sea. the form and presence of the structure seemingly fluctuates with the observer’s vantage point, much like a dynamic drop of water traveling across a surface.

outside promenade | image © iwan baan | see more images at domus

art museum in context
image courtesy prkbkr

image courtesy prkbkr

image courtesy office of ryue nishizawa

made possible by the patronage of the naoshima fukutake art museum foundation, the teshima art museum will continue to operate after the festival, hosting activities involving art, architecture, food, the environment, and other creative intersections.

the museum adjacent to the nearby rice terraces
photo © noboru morikawa photos

site plan
image courtesy office of ryue nishizawa

contextual site plan
image courtesy naoshima fukutake art museum foundation

plan
image courtesy office of ryue nishizawa

sections
image courtesy office of ryue nishizawa

a model of the teshima art museum as seen at the 2010 venice architecture biennale
images © designboom

image © designboom

image © designboom

about ryue nishizawa:
born in 1966, nishizawa joined kazuyo sejima & associates in 1990, established SANAA with her in 1995, and established his own practice in 1997. along with sejima, he was awarded the pritzker architecture prize in 2010. significant works include, ‘honmura lounge and archive’ (2005, naoshima), ‘moriyama house’ (2005, tokyo), and the ‘towada art center’ (2008, aomori).

about rei naito:
born in hiroshima in 1961, naito’s major exhibitions and projects include ‘being given’ (2001, kinza, art house project, benesse art site naoshima), ‘un luogo sulla terra’ (1997, japanese pavilion, 47th venice biennale), ‘tout anial est dans le monde comme de l’eau a interieur de l’eau’ (2009, museum of modern art, kamakura).

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be sure to check out raymund ryan’s coverage of the museum for domus , with the always stunning photographs by iwan baan, by clicking here.