Japan Pearl Center at risk of demolition
The owners of the Japan Pearl Center building, a well-known modernist building in Kobe’s old foreign settlement area, recently announced that they are considering demolishing the 62-year old building.
The four-storey building was designed by architect Yoshimitsu Mitsuyasu completed in 1952. It was built by Hyogo Prefecture as a centre for the local pearl industry. It was fitted out with fluorescent lighting, which was very new at the time. The building survived the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake which devastated much of the city. Read more
Kitakyushu modernist buildings at risk of demolition
Two buildings designed by modernist architect Togo Murano are at risk of demolition as the rising maintenance costs are proving too much for the city's finances. The Yahata City Meeting Hall (1958) and Yahata Library (1955) are located in Yahatahigashi-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka.Read more
Daiwa House to demolish modernist building in Kobe
An example of Japan's pre-war modernist architecture is slated for demolition in February. The former Osaka Gas Shinkaichi Building in Chuo-ku, Kobe, has survived WWII firebombing raids and the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake, but is unlikely to survive the urban redevelopment as it will soon be replaced by an apartment building. Read more
Modernist House in Kobe demolished
The former Matsuhashi Ryuzo Residence is a 2-storey home in Ashiya City that was built in 1935 for a businessman from Tennoji in Osaka. It was one of the few remaining examples of modernist architecture in the Hanshin area. It was designed by architect, Kikuji Ishimoto, who also designed the Shirokiya Department Store in Nihonbashi.Read more