Todds Omote Sando
(11 votes, average: 3.73 out of 5)
Loading ...
Location:
Show on map
5-2-6 Minami Aoyama
Shibuya-ku / Omoto Sando area
Tokyo
Japan
coordinates:
35.6659966 139.7101746
Building names(s): Todds Omote Sando
Architect/Designer:
Toyo Ito
architect website:
Other Information:
Completion date: 2004
Function: retail
Last update: 29 June, 2011 | Suggested By LT
The branching structures aren’t merely a two-dimensional lattice on the exterior. They run through the inside, as well, serving as points of interest, section dividers, and even stairways of sometimes unusual gait. This creates numerous possibilities, but also some problems. Ceiling heights can be unpredictable as one moves toward the edges of the building. And in some places the floor is glass. It is assumed that the glass used is not strong enough to support pedestrian traffic, which is a shame, as it could have allowed the shoppers-cum-birds hopping through this building’s tree branches to occasionally have the sensation of flight. Alas, these patches of glassy floor are barricaded by generic-looking metal fences.
The unity between exterior and interior form was possible because the same architect created both. Ordinarily, there is an architect for the building and another one for the interior. In this case, a single person was tasked with creating the building, and the result was worth the gamble.
read more at glassstellandstone.com
“Sando” is the name given to roads leading up to shrines for the purpose of visiting them. Omote-sando stretches west from Meiji Jingu Shrine, built in 1920.