©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM

Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari 今治市伊东丰雄建筑博物馆

2011

by Toyo ITO

Opened in 2011, the Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture is a unique venue on the island of Omishima in Ehime Prefecture. Celebrated architect Ito Toyo designed the museum in two parts.

 

The first building, named Steel Hut, is made up of a collection of polyhedrons joined together, like building blocks. It is based on an Ito design for the Deichman Library in Oslo. Inside the Steel Hut are five separate spaces housing rotating exhibitions, chosen by Ito. Walking through the surprisingly large space can be disorienting—there are almost no purely vertical walls, and windows and doorways open from unexpected places.

 

The second building, Silver Hut, is a replica of Ito’s former home in Tokyo, which he designed in 1984. Covered with a thin, vaulted roof, Silver Hut is an open space with abundant natural light that looks like it was made to sit on the Seto Inland Sea. Known as one of his early masterpieces, the original Silver Hut was not open to visitors, so Ito created the replica for everyone to enjoy.

 

Inside, Silver Hut has brightly-colored, triangular skylights and furniture designed by Ohashi Akira, along with a library filled with project documents from a selection of Ito’s previous buildings. A running theme of the Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture is the way architecture and design can help local communities. This is a subject close to Ito’s heart, as he worked with different groups on Omishima to find new uses for old buildings to maintain the island’s heritage.

 

For those who wish to seek out more of Ito’s designs, the Ken Iwata Mother and Child Museum is just a short drive from the Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture. The spiral-shaped building housing Iwata’s sculptures was also designed by Ito.

 

伊东丰雄建筑博物馆是一处独特的存在。其位处爱媛县大三岛,于2011年开馆,由著名建筑师伊东丰雄(1941- )主持设计。博物馆分为两栋建筑,第一座名为“钢小屋”,仿佛由多面体组合而成,其原型是他此前设计的奥斯陆戴希曼图书馆。钢小屋内有五个独立空间,被伊东选定为定期举办不同展览的展示区。馆内几乎见不到完全垂直的墙壁,窗户和走廊也总在意想不到的空间突然出现。其空间极为开阔,漫步其中,或许迷失方向感也未可知。

 

第二座建筑“银小屋”,是伊东在1984年设计的东京旧宅的复制品。银小屋由薄薄的圆形屋顶覆盖,自然光洒满整个开放空间,仿佛是专为伫立于濑户内海而建。其原型是伊东早期的杰作,但因一直未对外开放,为此他建造了这一复制品供人们欣赏。

 

走进银小屋内部,可看到色彩明艳的三角形天窗及大桥晃朗设计的家具,其中的图书馆还藏有大量伊东至今经手过的建筑项目资料。如何通过建筑和设计为地方社会做出贡献,是伊东丰雄建筑博物馆的一贯主题,也是致力于保护大三岛传统及老屋新用的伊东本人心目中的永恒宗旨。

 

如欲深入了解伊东的设计,参观岩田健母子博物馆不失为优选。这座收录了岩田雕刻的螺旋形建筑同样出自伊东之手,自伊东丰雄建筑博物馆驱车片刻即可到达。

 

  • The whole building of Silver Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The exterior of Steel Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The whole building of Steel Hut (The view from the land) / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The whole building of Steel Hut (The view from the sea) / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The inside of Steel Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The exterior of Silver Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The exterior of Silver Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The inside of Silver Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The interior of Silver Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM
  • The interior of Silver Hut / Photo/©SETOUCHI | ARCHI-TOURISM

Urado Omishimacho Imabarishi, Ehime

+81-897-74-7220

Admission time: 9:00〜17:00(closed on Monday except National Holidays)

Admission fee: JPY840

http://www.tima-imabari.jp/en/