Arima’s Warehouses / 1110 Office for Architecture

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Warehouses : creation and transformation –  The plot is situated in the garden city of Miyamae in the city of Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture. Here, the existing buildings traditional family house and an agricultural warehouse_ are bordering vegetable gardens and agricultural lands, giving a rare impression of an untouched postwar bubble within the ever-developing urban fabric of the greater Tokyo Metropolitan Area. This nostalgic atmosphere and feel is the beginning point as well as the underlying idea of our project. 

The program is the refurbishment of the former agricultural warehouse into a restaurant and the creation of a new warehouse housing the transformation and stocks of locally produced vegetables and fruits. To understand as well as reveal this strong context, we found old pictures and plans of the plot and decided to take them as a reference:  trees were transplanted into their former places, and old limon bridge stones were reused to form pathways and steps.

Transformation of a Kura – The agricultural warehouse has remained untouched since the end of the Edo period. To respect this important historical context, we decided to carefully restore it by using the same traditional materials for the façade and imposing doors. Inside,  to house the restaurant, we dismantled the second story’s flooring to create a light well that would enhance both volume and light, displaying the beautiful wooden skeleton’s structure. The dismantled wooden flooring was later refurbished and used as a cladding material for the inside peripheral walls. The wall facing the counter is cladded with locally grown cedar. The overall feeling is as if we were standing on a very old tree trunk, giving a sense of warmth and safety.

Creation of a Kura – To create a continuity between the old and new, the created building is placed right beside the former warehouse, and its height and overall section are the same. For its roof, we used hammered copper sheets to bring light and reflections of the garden’s trees and plants. These sheets were designed in close collaboration with the clients and were hammered during a workshop gathering all the local community on a hot summer day. We like to think that this copper roof as well as the outside facade design create a dialogue with the greater context. Overall, this building is “new but doesn’t feel so” to blend with its environment.

In addition, a small tea room was attached to the Kura with a 45-degree angle, offering the best possible view of the garden.

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Project location

Address:Kobe, Japan

Location to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.

Published on October 12, 2024

Cite: “Arima’s Warehouses / 1110 Office for Architecture” 12 Oct 2024. ArchDaily. Accessed .