Oyama Training Services
Oyama Training Services
LOCATION
Oyama, Japan
CLIENT
Tokyo Marine and Fire Insurance Company
Completion Date
1993
Architect
Kunihide Oshinomi of Kajima Design
Description
Located on the outskirts of Tokyo, the Oyama Training Center is sited in an historically agricultural area. The architectural design by Kunihide Oshinomi of Kajima Design in collaboration with PWP creates an oasis that evokes the agricultural past in the middle of the urban landscape. The main structure recalls a barn, while the landscape design directly relates to cultivated fields through patterns composed of grasses and gravels.
A triple allée of poplar trees surrounds the site, separating the Center from the community yet providing glimpses from one to the other. The arrival courtyard is marked with a large wooden disk of carved timbers lying on a square plain of slate that is delineated by a square of light. From a hole in the center of the bright red sculptural disk emanates a deep violet light. In another area, a double curved row of pruned hedges creates an open yet protected space that includes a half-hidden pool between the hedges and a fountain at its center.