Project Name: Tower for Birds

Location: Takamijima, Japan

Design Team: Atelier Íchiku

Sculpture: Michiko Nakatani

Total Floor Area: 2.48 m²

Completion: September 2025

Photography: Isato Wakabayashi

Feature: Atelier Íchiku, led by architect Yusuke Omuro, has created a contemplative tower on Takamijima Island in Kagawa Prefecture as part of the Takamijima Art Trail during the 2025 Setouchi International Art Festival autumn session. The Tower for Birds stands as a delicate intervention on a depopulated island where fewer than 30 residents remain, offering a vertical sanctuary that contrasts with the horizontal expanse of the Seto Inland Sea.

The structure exemplifies restraint in its architectural expression. Rather than asserting itself as a dominant landmark, the 4.65 metre tall tower was conceived as a humble addition to the landscape, respecting both the island's majestic natural surroundings and its proximity to a cemetery that preserves the traditional double grave system unique to Takamijima. The octagonal exterior, clad in corrugated metal sheets, emphasizes vertical lines that draw the eye upward while maintaining a modest 2.48 square metre footprint.

What distinguishes this project is the interplay between its geometric exterior and cylindrical interior. The regular octagonal plan transitions into a 1.5 metre diameter circular space inside, creating an unexpected spatial experience. Natural light filters through a translucent roof, transforming the plastered interior walls into a luminous well. Embedded within the curved surfaces are two concave relief sculptures titled Blue Bird by artist Michiko Nakatani, filled with transparent resin that subtly reflects light and adds gentle movement to the serene atmosphere.

The entrance, proportioned at 1:1 plus 1.618 to reference the golden ratio, marks the threshold between the horizontal seascape outside and the vertical contemplative space within. Hand assembled on site by Omuro and a small team of collaborators, the tower serves as both an exhibition space for encountering art one on one and a device for experiencing the sounds and light of nature, isolated from the surrounding maritime vista.

The project's most compelling design feature lies in its architectural response to Takamijima's unique spirit of place and precise control of geometric purity. The design team transforms the historically rich architectural archetype of the tower into a contemporary contemplative space, constructing a vertical experience that possesses both ceremonial presence and intimate scale through the geometric transition from regular octagon to circle. The combination of corrugated metal panels, translucent roofing, and plastered walls creates a poetic atmosphere where light and texture interact.

Most remarkably, the architects create spatial experience that transcends its physical dimensions within an extremely modest scale through clever manipulation of proportion and light. Natural light cascading through the translucent roof resembles a well of light, complemented by Nakatani's relief works and the subtle reflections of transparent resin, filling the entire interior space with tranquil spiritual atmosphere. The main space establishes visual connection between earth and sky through cylindrical layout and carefully designed openings, creating transcendent contemplative experiences beyond the everyday.

Spatial strategy continues this harmonious unification design philosophy between place reverence and architectural intervention. Precise geometric control and restrained material application create mutual resonance, with the regular octagonal plan reinforcing structural stability and symbolic presence. Emphasis on vertical dimension promotes visual transition from horizontal seascape to vertical sky, ensuring comfortable and focused artistic experience environment, perfectly suited for the art festival's expectations of site specificity and immersive experience.

Design Team: Atelier Íchiku, founded in 2009 by architect Yusuke Omuro, has established itself as a distinctive voice in contemporary Japanese architecture, known for creating contemplative spaces that balance geometric rigor with poetic sensitivity. Omuro, born in Tokyo in 1981, brings a refined design sensibility cultivated through his education at Tama Art University and formative years working under Pritzker laureate Arata Isozaki from 2007 to 2009.

The practice operates from dual bases in Tokyo and Mie Prefecture, allowing the firm to engage with both urban and rural contexts across Japan. This geographic duality informs atelier Íchiku's design philosophy, which consistently demonstrates respect for natural landscapes while exploring the expressive potential of pure geometric forms.

Omuro's architectural approach is characterized by meticulous attention to proportion and material honesty. His work reveals a deep understanding of how simple geometric transformations can create profound spatial experiences, as evidenced in projects like the Tower for Birds, where an octagonal exterior seamlessly transitions into a cylindrical interior volume. The firm excels at creating intimate scaled interventions that engage thoughtfully with their surroundings rather than dominating them.

The studio's design philosophy prioritizes organic integration of spirit of place with spatial narrative, emphasizing that each project should respond to its unique geographical and cultural context. This approach has garnered recognition within the architectural community, manifested through diverse practice ranging from small installations to architectural projects. The firm's design reputation is built upon commitment to craftsmanship and persistent pursuit of detail, establishing atelier Íchiku as a practice of profound humanistic concern that combines geometric precision with spatial poetry.

The firm's design philosophy emphasizes that architectural design should transcend formal pursuits, designed not merely to create visual impact but to evolve organically with spirit of place and user experience. Through deep attention to project site recognition and material expression, working across diversified projects from installations to architecture, they believe the best design results from humble interventions through precise and thoughtful processes. Atelier Íchiku believes space should serve as a carrier of place memory and natural experience, creating unique meditative design through strategic geometric organization and material selection.

With over fifteen years of independent practice, through thoughtful integration of geometric purity with place reverence, natural light and spatial narrative application, and time tested architectural wisdom, atelier Íchiku has established itself as a significant contributor to contemporary Japanese architectural discourse, creating works that are both spiritual and embrace craft spirit. The firm currently occupies a unique position within Japan's architectural landscape, focusing on creating memorable and place poetic spatial experiences.