Research Your Way Up to Stars at KIT Pavilion, Kyoto

If you’re in the habit of browsing ModernOctopus at the office, we advise you save this particular post for home, or you might decide to resign and go work for the Kyoto Institute of Technology. Its new headquarters, designed by leading architecture practice Atelier K, is a gem of a building with strikingly angular roof, interiors dominated by warm lighting and organic materials, and a beautiful yard at the rear of the property. The angular roof, whose aim seems to be to pierce the fluffy white clouds on the serene Japan sky, extends dramatically upward and achieves a superb differentiating effect between the building and its soothing, green environment. There’s a circular ramp going in a soft half-circle at the front, up to the main entrance. The southern wing comprises three rooms organized around an ‘active yard’, which features ‘a carpet of white sand’ that tucks neatly into the design of the adjoining interior spaces.

The roof, reminiscent of a crane resting after a tiresome flight, is multi-functional, not just aesthetically striking. Inside, it creates a western-facing surface which allows plenty of natural light to flood the interiors. The ample glazed surface, circular bamboo chairs and shelf space in white oak complete a clever design, which renders a place of consummate professionalism into one that is also warm and inviting. All photos taken by Taizo Furukawa.

(Source: Homepage2.Nifty.com/ATELIERK/)