Tokyo International Forum

From the Ginza district I walked north west to see the Tokyo International Forum. It was designed by Rafael Vignoly and completed in 1996. It consists of a number of concert halls, exhibition spaces, retail establishments, with a central glass building. I knew of the general direction, but it wasn't until noticing this special glass detail on a large building that I knew I had arrived to it.

I saw a woman stand in front of some huge drums which turned out to be circular automatic doors. One opened and she entered it as if entering a science fiction movie set. On the wall I spotted this directory.

And later on I spotted this aerial picture which explains the complex.

There was also a picture of the concert hall.

There was an exhibition happening during my visit.

My special experience was visiting the glass building. It looked magical at this time of day because of the combination of light at sunset and the interior lighting of the space.

It was mesmerizing to see. I walked on the ramps up to the highest space, capturing the beauty of the space. These views are of the same space from different angles and heights.

Looking down at the connections at ground level.

Aproaching the ramp

Looking up from below towards the roof.

Starting the ramp ascent

The bridges that cross the space.

Detail of a bridge.

The roof structure, which looks like the belly of a whale, or the bottom of a ship.

A gallery at the top.

Details of the structure.

My former colleague G. studied Japanese and worked two years in the large firm that was the local architect of record for the project.