Tokoha University Kusanagi Campus

Shizuoka, Japan

Photo © STGK Inc.

Photo © SS

Photo © STGK Inc.

Photo © SS

Photo © STGK Inc.

Landscape Architects: STGK Inc. | studio gen kumagai

Location: Shizuoka, Japan
Year: 2018
Architect: Takenaka Corporation

Four terraces that interact with campus activities and create communication

For the Tokoha University landscaping project, we planned four terraces for the main locations. In order to link the way the inside and outside of the buildings are used, we set on a theme for each terrace based on a facility within the university. We also designed furniture to match these four themes of "nurture," "eat," "move," and "know." For example, the "eat" terrace adjacent to the food hall is an area where students can converse with each other while eating the food they have purchased from the food hall, while the "know" terrace next to the library features single seats where students can read books they have borrowed from the library or study and think by themselves. In the same vein, the "nurture" terrace that faces the department of education features long single benches that can be used for outdoor lectures, while the outlines of major sports' courts and pitches are represented on the surface of "move" terrace by the sports hall so that it can be used for various sporting activities. In this way, we aimed to create environments in which students can communicate with each other and enrich their lives, whether it be by just talking casually with friends, by taking part in group activities, or by attending talks and seminars.