Kadare Cultural Center / Chiaki Arai Urban And Architecture Design

Architects: Chiaki Arai Urban and Architecture Design
Area: 11,750 m²
Year: 2011
Photography: Taisuke Ogawa
Project Team: Chiaki Arai, Ryoichi Toshizaki, Masanori Asai, Miroku Arai, Toshihiro Yano
Landscape Construction: Muraka Construction Inc, Osada Construction Co., Ltd.
Acoustical Consultant: Nagata Acoustics
Contractor: Toda Corporation
Structural Engineering: Arup
Theater Consultant: Theater Workshop
HVAC Engineering: PT Morimura & Associates, Ltd.
City: Yurihonjo
Country: Japan

The Kadare Cultural Center, designed by Chiaki Arai Urban and Architecture Design in 2011, is a complex in Yurihonjō, Akita, Japan. Spanning 11,750 m², the facility includes a Multipurpose Transforming Theater, a Library, and a Community Center. The design features an indoor “Gathering Street” that unifies the site and allows natural light to penetrate the building’s core. Key elements of the design include a flexible theater, a “Super Box” that combines multiple facilities, and a library with a floating planetarium.

Kadare Cultural Center / Chiaki Arai Urban and Architecture Design

Initially, the project spanned two separate sites divide by a road, presenting a challenge for spatial unity. To address this, design incorporated the indoor “Gathering Street,” which not only connects the various functions but also channel natural light throughout the building via its fissure-like form, enhancing the cohesion and accessibility of the complex.

The spaces within the center were developed through workshops with the local community, focusing on somesthetic experiences, such as human scale and room usability. The structure of the building mimics the organic growth of mangrove trees, incorporating a high level of redundancy and creating intentionally varied, inconsistent spaces.

Workshops were also conducted with local children and students, who represents the future of the region, emphasizing the importance of “Cultural Sustainability” in the development process of the Kadare Cultural Center.

This theater is adaptable, offering various configurations including flat floor, normal, and center stage settings for different events. The movable seats are designed to accommodate these configurations while ensuring optimal acoustics. The seats on the first floor can be retracted to the back of the theater and stored in a pit beneath the floor. The stage can also be lowered to create a flat floor setup.

The “Super Box” integrated the theater, Citizen Activity Room, Gallery, and north and south Pocket Parks into a cohesive unit. These facilities can be combines to form a 135-meter-long, dynamic, and spacious tunnel, offering a versatile environment for various activities.

The planetarium is suspended above the library, supported by four bending columns, creating the illusion of a floating moon. The skylights surrounding the planetarium allow natural light to filter into the space. The library’s large, open area, achieved with minimal structural elements, houses approximately 220,000 volumes and offers 188 browsing seats, providing users with a variety of spaces for reading and study.