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In collaboration with Ikawaya Architects, Nendo has designed an office building in Tokyo (for Yokohama Ekimae Building) that brings the outside in with large leafy balconies. Wrapped by a thin framework of timber, the eleven-story Kojimachi Terrace is set apart from its neighbours with its grid-like appearance and its terraces, which create more space for the building’s users.

“Typical office buildings are usually closed-off blocks with artificial climate control that do not share any real physical connection with their exterior environments,” says the team at Nendo. “The external elements were taken into account to allow for a more physical experience of the outdoors, like witnessing the changing weather and yearly seasons.”

The light timber exo-skeleton acts as a connecting element throughout the building, jutting out from the top of the structure and extending into the entrances. It also camouflages safety railings around the balconies. “By designing these rails and pillars to appear the same size and wooden finish as the facade, and by weaving this together into a natural looking grid, the visual noise has become integrated and camouflaged,” says the team.

Inside, the iconic timber battens, in the same proportions as outside, run around the corridors and conceal lighting that illuminates all directions to create a warm, intimate atmosphere. Nendo accompanies the bars with bronze-coloured stainless steel and raw stone. The walls and ceilings are in hand-finished plaster, providing a natural appearance.

Nendo placed balconies sporadically on six of the building’s 11 floors. The balconies, clad in pale timber, both improve the view for those working inside and act as additional usable spaces. “Assumed to be used as exterior spaces, each terrace can easily transform into a private meeting area by closing the doors and windows around it,” says Nendo.

On the highest levels, a three-story “sky forest” is designed as a nature-like hideaway for employees. Trees and other vegetation create different experiences on each level while also creating unity between one area of the building and another. Words: Rik Glauert. Photo: Takumi Ota.