Time capsule
An Instagram hotspot in Tokyo is under threat, so snap it before it’s flattened
Designed by architect Kisho Kurokawa in 1972, the iconic Nakagin Capsule Tower, in the heart of Tokyo, was originally conceived for elite businessmen seeking conveniently-located private or rented accommodation or offices. But, after years of neglect, the building fell into a state of disrepair and has long been in danger of demolition. For architecture enthusiasts, it has become something of an Instagram pilgrimage as they head to Ginza to snap images of ‘pods’ that have been abandoned, metal doors rotted and broken, ceilings and walls peeling. The owners are divided into two camps: one that wants to save the tower because of its architectural value, and one that would prefer to demolish and rebuild, cashing in on the land value. The final decision will be made by the building’s management society by vote next year, but it might be wise to make your pilgrimage now, before it’s gone.
That traditional savoury staple of Japanese gastronomy, miso is beginning to venture outside its comfort zone and into the sweet dish sphere. Satisfying our cravings for umami (the fifth taste sensation), miso can add a rich, savoury baseline to cakes, cookies and ice cream, as we recently sampled in New York (Oddfellows’ miso cherry ice cream), London (Honey & Co’s apple and miso cake with butterscotch) and Paris (Mokonuts’ miso sesame cookies). Inspired by the salty sweet combo, Wallpaper’s entertaining director
Melina Keays created her own sweet miso concoctions, which we then staged on and around recent Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Mathilde Philipponnat’s tableware, which finds inspiration in the work of Fauve painter Maurice de Vlaminck. The French designer takes the oversimplified lines, feisty outbursts of colour, and visible brushwork of her muse, dragging his artwork Nature
Morte (1909-11) from the canvas and into a characterful collection of tableware where ‘functional objects would be as alive as those in the paintings’, as she puts it. This is one of a three-part Stories project, which also gives physical life to the artwork of Jean-siméon Chardin and Jan Groover. Philipponnat models individual pieces using software before casting them in either earthenware slip or terracotta clay. Finer details are attached by hand, the terracotta imprinted with a piece of textile, mirroring the criss-cross grains of de Vlaminck’s brush motions. Next in the pipeline is a collection inspired by Giorgio de Chirico. mathildephilipponnat.com