Kazuya Saito Architects

Kanahebisui Shrine

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

KANAHEBISUI SHRINE

Kazuya Saito Architects

CATEGORY
Hospitality Architecture

LOCATION
Iwanuma, Japan

YEAR
2020

MANUFACTURERS
Dym Wakai, yamaki kogyo

SIGN DESIGN
Blmu Inc.

AREA
1014 m²

LEAD ARCHITECTS
Kazuya Saito

STRUCTURAL DESIGN
yAt structure design office limited liability Company

LIGHTING DESIGN
lighting design, Izumi Okayasu - Lighting Design

PHOTOGRAPHS
Daici Ano

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

It is a resting place open to the community, connecting visitors with the shrine. The shrine is located at the outlet of a valley where a stream with a bank in the mountains as its source flows into the plain.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

We wanted to incorporate the elements of the stream and the bank, the flow and the pool, into this building.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

An arc-shaped approach to the site creates a flow of visitors. On both sides of the approach, we placed a resting area and a peony building to create a gathering place.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

The approach, resting building, and peony building were shifted in plan so that visitors would naturally head for the temple grounds while letting the nature, light, and wind of the surrounding area into the building.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

Since there is a 2.2m difference in level between the top and bottom of the approach, stairs, ramps, and flat areas were combined to rub against the slope of the original land.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

The approach, resting building, and peony building are set up as a single space, covered by a single large roof made of two gables and kept at a height that blends in with the surrounding mountains.

The wooden trusses of the same shape repeat in a circular arc at a constant rhythm, gradually increasing in height at each street core.

In combination with the change in floor level, the scene changes with each step, and visitors are led into the shrine grounds with a sense of nature.

The use of the shrine changes drastically between festivals and daily life.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano

During festivals, the area underneath the structure is bustling with activity, and when the festival is over, it returns to the tranquil approach. It is a path like an architecture, and an architecture like a path.

Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano


Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano
Kanahebisui Shrine
© Daici Ano


Kanahebisui Shrine
Site
Kanahebisui Shrine
Plan


Kanahebisui Shrine
Structure
Kanahebisui Shrine
Elevation


Kanahebisui Shrine
Section 01
Kanahebisui Shrine
Section 02
Kanahebisui Shrine
Section 03

Kazuya Saito Architects
T +81 22 2210655 F +81 22 7975597
Kazuya Saito Architects
9-15 #403, Kasugamachi, Aoba-Ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-0821, Japan