Kurokawa Nakagin Capsule Hotel
Nakagin Capsule Tower (AKA The BC25 Capsule) designed by Kisho Kurokawa
The 60s and 70s were an exciting period for Japanese architecture. In particular, the Metabolist Movement which was founded by a group of futuristic visionaries, including late architect Kisho Kurokawa, puts forth ideas of “large scale, flexible and extensible structures that facilitate an organic growth process”. Perhaps the most exemplary metabolist building is the Nakagin Capsule Tower built to accommodate bachelor salarymen in downtown Tokyo.
Completed in 1972, Kisho Kurokawa designed the 14-story tower which consists of 140 pre-assembled individual capsules hoisted by a crane and bolted to the concrete core shaft. Functioning as apartments and business offices, each capsule unit comes complete with appliances and furniture for a single dweller, and by connecting additional units, can accommodate a single family. The Nakagin tower is designed to be adaptable and sustainable, with the capsules’ ability to be removed and replaced for upgrades, and thus minimizing construction waste in the process.
The Nakagin Capsule Tower has been short-listed for the World Heritage by the International Committee of Docomomo International since 1996. However it is currently at the mercy of the wrecking ball, and efforts are still being made to preserve this masterpiece.
images 1. via my future me 2. via found 3. via Daily Contributor 4. via URBZOO
More info over at Apartment Therapy.
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Also worth checking: The architecture of La Vele di Scampia + Frederic Chaubin – Photographs of Space Age Soviet Architecture.
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Tags1970s, architecture, hotels, japan, Tokyo
