Sendai Mediatheque // Toyo Ito
precedent analysisToyo Ito's approach for Sendai Mediatheque was a seamless intersection of the beauty behind architecture and the specificities behind engineering. Whether one calls this project Architecture or Engineering is redundant, yet surely is a marvel of the capabilities architecture and design can influence within a the city of Sendai, more so, for the community of the city who have undergone tragic natural disasters resulting in 88 earthquakes in the past year alone. This is a piece of architecture which not only stands the test of time but also stands the test of functionality in a pragmatic manner.
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approachThe approach for the old bus depot was through a competition won by Toyo Ito & Associates. In 1995, the need for a learning hub dedicated to Sendai and its inhabitants was at the forefront of the competition. With this, Toyo Ito instilled the notion that informational data and technology should be embraced within the project, by the viewer, as it was the soul behind the project. It became apparent that media and the information it can transpire would be what brings people to experience the Mediatheque. From this, he treated the site around a glass cube, supported by its perceptible columns spiraling from floor to floor.
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structureSendai is a city renown for having seismic issues affecting its economy. The solution was to create twelve openings composed of smaller individual structures spiraling their way through each floor plate. It was because of this meticulous consideration that the Mediatheque continues to withstand tremors through its life and yet, at the same time tying back to the concept of the project. The open floor plan remains free from a congestion of columns that could have been, and the openings directly engage viewers to explore the columns and engaging with other spaces above and below.
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