[The Nakagin Capsule Tower, a famed capsule hotel in the Ginza district, shows its unique architecture of small cubic rooms, as parts of the capsule hotel was being demolished]
[The Nakagin Capsule Tower is wrapped in nets as parts of the hotel were being demolished]
[Capsule units of the Nakagin Capsule Tower, an iconic structure designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa and built in 1972]
[The Nakagin Capsule Tower]
[Demolition teams start to take down the Nakagin Capsule Tower in Tokyo’s Ginza district. It’s now being demolished in a careful process that includes preserving some of its 140 capsules, to be shipped to museums around the world.]
[Capsule A1305 from the Nakagin Capsule Tower, on show at MOMA]
[Window]
[Capsule’s bathroom]
[Electronic equipment]
[Telephone]
Evangelos Kotsioris (interview): “This was a radical experiment in urban living in Tokyo in Japan, and it was part of a building that existed on the ground between 1972 and 2022. What we see is this miniaturized living interior or an inhabitable capsule that is about 100 square feet large. And it was intended for people to be able to spend the night in Tokyo, especially if they were workers or salaryman. Instead of commuting to the suburbs in the evening.”
[Exterior to interior of capsule]
[Desk]
[Built-in television]
[Tap]
[Dial]
[Light]
[Door with pod number printed on it]
Evangelos Kotsioris (interview): “The Nakagin Capsule Tower is the most famous example of the Metabolist architecture, an architectural movement that started in 1960 in Japan, and viewed architecture, buildings and cities as living organisms that could grow and evolve and change over time. In this case, this building was supposed to have multiple lives. The capsules would be replaced every 25 or 30 years. But in the case of this project that didn’t happen. Yet, it was an extremely influential project for architects and the wider audience alike.”
[Exhibition]
[Nakagin Capsule Tower]
Tatsuyuki Maeda (interview): “I dropped by (my capsule) after work, spent some time in it over the weekend, and occasionally stayed over.”
[Maeda showing copy of Nakagin Capsule Tower’s brochure]
Tatsuyuki Maeda (interview): “There were many unique residents, including myself, who were fascinated by the building and gathered there. Some of them were owners, and some were renting. A community was created around this building which had its own charm. Many creative people, of course, some architects as well, were around, and I very much enjoyed the community and my capsule life.”
[Maeda showing the front page of Nakagin Capsule Tower’s brochure]
Tatsuyuki Maeda (interview): “Due to various reasons such as deterioration (of the building) and the pandemic, demolition was inevitable. Considering what we can leave as its legacy, we decided to remove the capsules and restore them.”
[Nakagin Capsule Tower]
[Model after being lit]
This script was provided by The Associated Press.