Kids Academy Taiyo-ga-oka Hoikuen | Kengo Kuma and associates

We wanted to build a nursery school close to the ground. The building is wood-structured, single-story, and its exterior wall is covered with trees and plants. The floor is sloped to follow the landscape underneath, so that the structure can be further lowered, nearer to the ground. We wanted to assimilate the architecture with the earth, as if they have merged into each other. To fit the size and action of the children, we also designed the building to stand as low as we could. Inside, there are lots of small niche-like “caves.” We are sure that the kids have found a place of their own.