The Nara Centennial Hall, the object of an international competition won by Isozaki, was completed for the centennial of the municipality and eloquently combines past, present and future. Taking into account location, site and orientation, the building is designed as an independent monolith. Photo: courtesy of Hisao Suzuki
Media Category: 2019.0318
Domus: La Casa del Hombre. This interactive science museum, dedicated to the exploration of humankind, sits overlooking Orzan Bay on a site that was once a quarry. The seaside-facing exterior forms a curved protective wall, resembling a windsail or a shell, that is clad in slate panels. The opposite exterior wall, composed of local granite, zig-zags similarly to a folding screen. Photo: courtesy of Hisao Suzuki
Palau Sant Jordi. The massive domed roof, with its signature convex windows, was constructed on the ground and then elevated atop the building over a period of 20 days. Rising 148 feet above the arena floor, the roof encloses the generous interior space with a feeling of lightness. Local materials including brick, tile, zinc and travertine were used as finishes. Photo: courtesy of Hisao Suzuki
Designed for the 1992 Summer Olympic Games, Palau Sant Jordi remains Barcelona’s largest covered sports facility. Situated on the Montjuïc hillside, the versatile structure is positioned partially below ground to minimize the profile of the 17,000-person facility. Photo: courtesy of Hisao Suzuki
Art Tower Mito, exterior of gallery. The iconic tetrahelix tower was inspired by Constantin Brancusi’s Endless Column (1938), and is comprised of 56 triangular panels in varying orientations. Photo: courtesy of Yasuhiro Ishimoto
Commissioned to celebrate the centennial of Mito, Art Tower Mito was built as a cultural complex consisting of a theater, performance hall and contemporary art gallery. Photo: courtesy of Yasuhiro Ishimoto
: Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. The barrel-vaulted library and copper-clad pyramids are part of the three stories that are above ground, while visitors must descend downstairs to the underground galleries that comprise four subterranean floors. Photo: courtesy of Yasuhiro Ishimoto
Tsukuba Center Building, located in one of the first postwar cities of Japan, is a civic center designed to evoke both ruins and reinvention. This complex is comprises a concert hall, information center, hotel, restaurants and shopping – all of the facilities needed to give life to a new city. The focus of the project is a sunken plaza or “forum.” Photo: courtesy of Yasuhiro Ishimoto
Hotel Lobby at Tsukaba Center Building. The façades facing the plaza display a variety of forms and are finished with contrasting materials such as sleek aluminum and concrete, rough and smooth granite, and polished and unpolished tile. Photo: courtesy of Yasuhiro Ishimoto