Sendai Mediatheque

Description

This building is an expression of Toyo Ito’s architectural language, which is marked by an interest in the expressive and visual capacity of technology. According to Ito, the building was designed for both the biological body – which needs oxygen – and the digital body – which needs information –. This multimedia library consists of a series of horizontal planes traversed by a forest of lattice-like steel tube columns. The building is conceived as an infinite system delimited by the boundaries of the plot on which it is located. Its glass envelope oscillates between transparency and reflection, changing the interior atmosphere and its perception from the outside. The programme of the building, which includes a library and several exhibition halls, is organised vertically. The programme is connected via vertical spaces that house the lifts and stairs leading to the different areas. The flexibility and evolving capacity of the design has not only allowed for changes in the use of the building over time – very necessary in a context of accelerated technological progress –, but also for collaboration with different designers for each of its floors. In this sense, the ground floor stands out. It was designed in collaboration with Kazuyo Sejima and creates a double-height interior plaza as a continuation of the public space of the street.