Nakagawa-machi Bato Hiroshige Museum of Art, Tochigi Japan

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Kengo Kuma designed the Bato-machi Ando Hiroshige Museum in Nasu Tochigi Japan. It was completed in 2000. It is largely inspired by the painting “People on a Bridge Surprised by Rain” by Ando Hiroshige.

Kuma employs his typical horizontal lines to portray continuity in form, and introduces vertical louvers to portray the falling rain that falls on the natural earth. Filtered light penetrates layers of structure. The great sheltering roof covers a "cloud of particles floating in the natural landscape."

Repetition of form, of light penetrations, and contemporary and historic forms come together in this museum for ancient woodcut art. Voids of space are ready for the visitor who becomes part of the community and a creator of art himself.

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^japanese_craft_construc tion- flickr/cc license