Kengo Kuma & Associates

This entire building is covered with vertical louvers made of white ceramic panels. We chose this material based on the image of earthenware and porcelain pieces that compose the museum’s collection. Because ceramic panels are a rather weak material, they are usually thickened or set into concrete for enhanced strength; as a result they tend to be heavy and dull, a far cry from the delicate imagery of a tea bowl. In this project, however, a new method of reinforcing thin ceramic panels with aluminum extrusions made it possible to use extra-fine edges in the details. Our idea was to realize within a massive urban structure an image so fragile it seemed it would break if not treated with great care.