Onikuru – Toyo Ito & Associates
Designed by Toyo Ito, the ONIKURU is a public cultural complex that combines a theatre, library, childcare support facilities, civic spaces, and a planetarium within a single interconnected structure. Defined by its raw concrete frame and exposed slabs recalling the modernist Dom-Ino system, the building presents an understated civic presence toward the city. Inside, however, a dramatic circular atrium – the “Vertical Path” – opens through all seven floors, with crossing escalators and layered platforms creating a dynamic spatial experience. Programs and library collections are distributed throughout the building rather than separated by floor, encouraging unexpected encounters and transforming the complex into an active social landscape shaped by everyday public life.
