{"id":2134,"date":"2025-07-03T22:30:50","date_gmt":"2025-07-03T22:30:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/?p=2134"},"modified":"2025-07-05T15:09:54","modified_gmt":"2025-07-05T15:09:54","slug":"sculptural-ovals-shape-seismic-retrofit-of-50-year-old-building-in-japan-by-ca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/03\/sculptural-ovals-shape-seismic-retrofit-of-50-year-old-building-in-japan-by-ca\/","title":{"rendered":"sculptural ovals shape seismic retrofit of 50-year-old building in japan by C+A"},"content":{"rendered":"

C+A gives seismic upgrade to 50-year-old building in Japan<\/h2>\n

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C+A \u2013 Coelacanth and Associates renovates<\/strong><\/a> KUBO-BLDG, a small four-story tenant building<\/strong><\/a> in downtown Nagoya, Japan<\/strong><\/a>. The architects’ team gives the building a new identity, more than fifty years after it was first built, with a seismic upgrade using asymmetric oval-shaped structural elements and a new concrete<\/strong><\/a> column-beam frame. The project transforms the aging structure into something that is at once safer, more expressive, and in tune with its urban context.<\/p>\n

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Instead of hiding the building\u2019s new structural components, C+A chooses to highlight them by embedding oval-shaped seismic elements on the facade<\/strong><\/a>. These large, asymmetrical ‘icons’ visibly wrap around a triangular bracing system and frame, reinforcing the building while helping it stand out in the dense, often chaotic streetscape. The ovals are carefully arranged to strengthen the structure while still allowing generous openings throughout the facade.<\/p>\n

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all images by ToLoLo studio<\/a><\/p>\n

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Asymmetric Oval-Shaped Elements define KUBO-BLDG facade<\/h2>\n

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Japanese architecture firm<\/strong><\/a> C+A \u2013 Coelacanth and Associates reimagines the facade of KUBO-BLDG with function in mind. The new structure creates space for balconies on each floor, semi-outdoor zones that encourage natural ventilation, and support airflow throughout the building. These additions speak directly to lessons learned from the pandemic, offering better air quality and a stronger connection to the outside. The balconies also animate the street, adding a more social and open layer to the building\u2019s edge.<\/p>\n

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Inside, the renovation refreshes the common areas and upgrades outdated systems, while in the tenant spaces, the architects keep things intentionally raw. They preserve as much of the existing structure as possible, exposing utility lines and simplifying the layout so that future tenants can shape their spaces as needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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With a total floor area of just over 350 square meters, C+A\u2019s retrofit shows how seismic safety can also drive creativity, turning technical requirements into forms of expression.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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C+A \u2013 Coelacanth and Associates renovates KUBO-BLDG<\/p>\n

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C+A choose to highlight the structural elements of the building<\/p>\n

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these large, asymmetrical ‘icons’ visibly wrap around a triangular bracing system<\/p>\n

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reinforcing the building while helping it stand out<\/p>\n

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C+A \u2013 Coelacanth and Associates reimagines the facade of KUBO-BLDG with function in mind<\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

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\t\t\"sculptural-ovals-seismic-retrofit-50-year-old-building-japan-c-and-a-coelacanth-associates-designboom-large02\"<\/p>\n

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these additions speak directly to lessons learned from the pandemic<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

\t\t<\/p>\n

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C+A\u2019s retrofit shows how seismic safety can also drive creativity<\/p>\n

\"\"
the renovation refreshes the common areas and upgrades outdated systems<\/p>\n

\"\"
they preserve as much of the existing structure as possible<\/p>\n

\"\"
exposing utility lines and simplifying the layout<\/p>\n

\"\"
the architects\u2019 team gives the 50-year-old building a new identity<\/p>\n

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the upgrade inncludes asymmetric oval-shaped elements and a new concrete column-beam frame<\/p>\n

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project info:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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name:<\/strong> KUBO-BLDG<\/p>\n

architect:<\/strong> C+A \u2013 Coelacanth and Associates<\/a> | @coelacanth_and_associates<\/a><\/p>\n

location:<\/strong> Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan<\/p>\n

site area:<\/strong> 108.66 square meters<\/p>\n

building area:<\/strong> 98.82 square meters<\/p>\n

total floor area:<\/strong> 353.17 square meters<\/p>\n

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project team:<\/strong> Susumu Uno, Yasuharu Rachi<\/p>\n

photographer: <\/strong>ToLoLo studio<\/a> | @tololostudio<\/a><\/p>\n

The post sculptural ovals shape seismic retrofit of 50-year-old building in japan by C+A<\/a> appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

C+A gives seismic upgrade to 50-year-old building in Japan   C+A \u2013 Coelacanth and Associates renovates KUBO-BLDG, a small four-story tenant building in downtown Nagoya, Japan. The architects’ team gives the building a new identity, more than fifty years after it was first built, with a seismic upgrade using asymmetric oval-shaped structural elements and a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2136,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[14],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2134"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2134"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2134\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2148,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2134\/revisions\/2148"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.diamondstatemanagement.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}