Most big cities are known for having unique architecture and design and Tokyo is no exception. These are pictures of interesting buildings, houses & designs I've taken over the past few years while wandering the streets of Tokyo. Let's go.
This is a new building in Harajuku I spotted the other month.
It's not just the shape, but the color that makes you stare at it.
This one gives me a Minecraft vibe.
One thing I have noticed, angular is the trend. While there are buildings with curves as you'll see later, most building designs these days are rectilinear.
This building is in front of the Bay Bridge and it really stands out.
I always wonder how much more expensive it is to do something like this vs just a vertical box?
Let's look at some homes.
Location is everything, especially when designing a home. If you happen to be looking for status you'll build your's on a corner like these people did.
This looks more like a Luis Vuitton compound.
If you can't afford the status of building on a corner, you can always build a metal box vertically behind the larger, more expensive houses.
This house went for 3 different styles, tile, natural wood, and painted. It definitely stands out.
This house is pretty crazy. That many windows could be a maintenance nightmare if not sealed perfectly.
I need to go back and take pictures of the other sides of it.
Moving on to lighting.
Lighting has such a huge impact on design. Weather it's the kitchen's I'm designing or large buildings in Tokyo, lighting has become integral to any design. Take this stream for instance, kinda boring and dirty during the day, but add some different lighting at night and it becomes a pleasant environment.
Sometimes the lighting can create unforeseen things. This is the Tokyo Mode Educational Tower. During the day it's a cool looking, modern building.
At night it turns into and 50 story angry face.
Have a look at storefronts.
There are never ending amounts of store fronts in the mega city. That means you've gotta do something to stand out. This men's clothing store looks like it was pulled right out of somewhere in England and placed here.
Motorcycle added for authenticity and tax write off.
Don't have a store? You can always convert a house into a store!
This mochi shop looks very inviting.
Maybe it was bad timing when I took the picture though....
One store front for a restaurant that I love is covered in horizontal planks of reclaimed wood. These two pictures were taken 4 years apart, 2017 & 2021.
My absolute favorite building in Tokyo for now is this Cyberpunk Tokyo looking place. It's something so creative that it belongs in the future forever.
It's located in Shinjuku right by the station if you want to see it in person. Again, lighting is so important in this design.
I'm going to save interiors for another day as they deserve a full post. The amount of creativity, detail & uniqueness is incredible. I say this as an American though where everything is plastic, boring and cheap. It's a design that I love in the Hikarie building in Shibuya. Every time I see it is thought provoking. Broken asymmetry, like life.
Thanks for reading!
No building looks boring there. They sure know how to create something that is interesting to the eye and also use every small place to their advantage.
I'd like to recommend Architecture+Design community for this type of posts or even Photography Lovers, two niche communities you can use next time.
Indeed the buildings are interesting, but sometimes it can feel overwhelming, like you need to see something natural or familiar. Yes, space is at a premium so every bit of it is used to the fullest extent.
Thank you for the community recommendations. I still have the interior design portion of Tokyo to write about so I'll be sure to post in those communities.
Very nice photos! Amazing creativity in design and creation in physical world.
Thanks Kamin. I know you guys in Thailand have your own contributions too. I think the Asian countries have taken the lead on creativity in their building architecture & design.
Yup! There are more new genres of designers in Bangkok. But these younger generations are dominated by a few big teachers in their areas! So, the renaissance period had produced more free minded designers. Too much fear, authority and power in institutions.
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