Naha City Gallery & Apartment house / 1100 Architect

Architect: 1100 Architect
Location: Okinawa, Japan
Principal: Juergen Riehm
Project Architect: Joanna Chen
Project Managers: Bo Lee, Sebastian Kaempf
Designer: Jesse Wark
MEP Engineer:American Engineering Corporation
Lighting: Litelab/ Continental Lighting
General Contractor: Katsuko Tokuchi, Taishin Kensetsu
Project Year: 2003
Constructed Area: 650 sqm
Photographs: Shinito Sato

The Naha project includes a gallery, retail space, partially submerged parking lot, and three rental apartments that each occupies an entire floor. The varied programs are unified by a consistent focus on the permeable interface of interior and exterior. Transparent, translucent, or opaque glass is used depending on the amount of privacy desired. Clear glass showcases the gallery and retail space and opens up the living and dining areas of the apartments, whereas translucent and opaque glass envelop the apartment bedrooms and bathrooms.

The east and west walls are solid cast concrete. Light enters through small, deep windows placed along the stairwell on the east side and the apartment kitchens on the west. This design feature provides dramatic lighting effects without sacrificing a private, enclosed feeling. Cast concrete is a durable, affordable and widely used material in Okinawa. An engaging contradiction is achieved as channels cut out along the edges of these massive walls and floors evoke a lightweight appearance.