#Japan #Tokyo #Award Winning #architecture #WHAT MUSEUM

WHAT MUSEUM Unveils Award-Winning Models from Architecture and Coral Reefs Competition

WHAT MUSEUM, located in Shinagawa, Tokyo and operated by Terrada Warehouse, has recently announced the eight winners of its model competition associated with the exhibition titled "Waved Panels and Coral Reefs - Tossing Architecture Far Away through Eight Practices." The awarded models will be displayed from August 4 to September 13, 2026, at the architectural warehouse within the museum. During the exhibition, visitors will also have the opportunity to vote for the Audience Award, contributing to the interactive nature of the event.

The competition invited submissions that encapsulated the theme, "The Relationship Between What Is Near and Far," encouraging participants to creatively express the relationship between architecture and society through their models. In light of advancing information technology and pressing issues such as disasters, pandemics, and climate change, the societal context is shifting dramatically. This evolution calls for both immediate responses to contemporary challenges and long-term perspectives that transcend time and place, prompting a reevaluation of architecture's role in this era.

The jury for the competition consisted of eight architects featured in the exhibition: ALTEMY, Office Yuasa, Garage, GROUP, DOMINO ARCHITECTS, Tetsu Hirakawa + Taiki Yoshino + Archipelago Architects Studio, Toshiki Hirano, and RUI Architects. The judges assessed entries based on criteria including embodiment of the theme, perspective shifts, inquiries into architecture and society, and the feasibility of ideas, ultimately selecting award-winning models from a diverse pool of domestic and international submissions.

Each award winner is granted 50,000 yen for the creation of their models, which will be developed based on their proposed concepts. The completed works will be showcased at WHAT MUSEUM during the specified exhibition dates. Furthermore, visitors will engage in a general voting process until September 12, where they can help select the Audience Award.

This exhibition serves as a platform for visitors to engage with the diverse thought processes embedded in these models and encourages exploring the new possibilities of architecture.

Award-Winning Models Overview

ALTEMY Award

Winners: Hiina Nohara & Drew Hart
Model Title: A_RANGE
The model encapsulates a state of continuous transformation between different media, visualizing the process of interpretation stemming from oscillations and uncertainties.

Office Yuasa Award

Winner: Erika Kumada
Model Title: Beyond the Shore of Meaning
This collection of five works originates from a single film of Villa Savoye, exploring the variances of perspective while collating anticipations toward a singular piece of architecture.

Garage Award

Winner: Shogo Ota
Model Title: A Small Portion of Modeling
The model represents the transition from abstracting and scaling down a target to expanding its scale for greater visualization—an exploration of the model's potential.

GROUP Award

Winner: Aya Fujishita
Model Title: Weaving
It reflects a desire for a resilient home while highlighting the softer, more ambiguous aspects of life surrounding us, symbolized through elements like partially spoiled vegetables.

DOMINO ARCHITECTS Award

Winner: Kanta Akimoto
Model Title: Soft Structure
The model communicates unexpected motions through familiar forms losing contours, capturing a sense reminiscent of confusion.

Archipelago Architects Studio Award

Winner: Monika
Model Title: Folding Paper, Measuring the Moon
This work connects theoretical distance to the moon with tactile experiences through folding paper to its limits while questioning the unseen final form.

Toshiki Hirano Award

Winner: Shotaro Shimizu
Model Title: A Model of Somewhere Cities
This model visualizes the degradation of urban images as one approaches, challenging perceptions of proximity and distance within urban environments.

RUI Architects Award

Winner: Satsuki Numakawa
Model Title: World Complex
It historically ties together various comic panel elements into a cohesive structure that defies singular narrative and showcases unintended interconnections.

Exhibition Details

Title: Exhibition of Award-Winning Works from the Model Competition Linked to "Waved Panels and Coral Reefs - Tossing Architecture Far Away through Eight Practices"
Dates: August 4, 2026 - September 13, 2026
Venue: What Museum Architectural Warehouse
Hours: Tuesday - Sunday 11:00 AM - 6:00 PM (last entry at 5:00 PM)
Closed: Mondays (or the following Tuesday if a holiday)
Admission: 900 yen for adults, 700 yen for university and technical students, 500 yen for middle and high school students, free for children under elementary school age.
Official Website: WHAT MUSEUM

The models serve not just as representations of ideas but also facilitate dialogues about architecture's future.