Otaru International Information Center
Otaru International Information Center
waiwai
ARCHITECTS
Waiwai
DESIGN
Waiwai (Kazuma Yamao, Genta Sawai, Ayami Otsuki)
STRUCTURE
Hirotsugu Tsuboi Structural Engineering (Hirotsugu Tuboi)
EQUIPMENT
Comodo Engineering (Naohisa Yamashita, Tomoyuki Matsui, Shiori Ueno)
LIGHTING
Izumi Okayasu Lighting Design (Izumi Okayasu)
YEAR
2024
LOCATION
Otaru, Japan
CATEGORY
Tourism, Services
Text description provided by architect.
The Otaru International Information Center is located in the harbor area of Otaru in Hokkaido, once the heart of Japan's herring fishing industry.
With the decline of the fisheries, redevelopment was planned in order to revitalize the area around the port.
The information center features an assemblage of pillars arranged across the roof line at a 45-degree angle in the direction of the future harbor, expanding the space beyond the physical boundaries.
The rooftop deck is meant as a shared space to invite people to gradually return to the harbor and reinvigorate it.
