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10 Jan 2011

Tokyo International Forum

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This isn't a space ship. It is the Glass Hall, the grand space, of Tokyo International Forum, Rafael Viñoly, 1996. A congress center located next to the Yamanote and Tokaidao lines just south of Tokyo station.

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This building is a result of an international competition, the first one approved by the International Union of Architects. A professor of mine in Sweden was deeply impressed by the quality of Viñolys proposal, at the time he was involved in a competing proposal. Not that I've looked into the competition. But this Glass Hall is deeply impressive.


A huge atrium access bridges in the air.

The Glass Hall is visually impressive but has no true purpose, making it pure untainted architecture. The bridges doesn't lead anywhere, maybe they a stabilising effect for the super structure. But still I really like  magnitude of this space. The rest of the congress center with a series of restaurant etc. lies behind the plaza which the glass side of the Glass Hall opens up to.

This is truly a bubble project, begun before the bubble burst and then impossible to cancel.

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