Tokyo Bunka Kaikan
Kunio Maekawa · Tokyo, Japan · 1961
Kunio Maekawa's concert-hall complex translates lessons from Le Corbusier into a distinctly Japanese civic modernism. Heavy concrete canopies, textured surfaces and a generous raised foyer create a powerful threshold facing Ueno Park. Inside, carefully shaped auditoria and warm materials offset the monumental exterior, making the building a useful counterpoint to the National Museum of Western Art directly nearby.