Building Obituary · B1–B2 · 5-minute read
1972 – 2022
- Where
- Ginza, Tokyo
- Architect
- Kisho Kurokawa
- The idea
- Swap the capsules every 25 years
- Survived by
- 23 capsules, some now in museums
Kisho Kurokawa designed a building that could be updated like a machine. A gap the length of a school ruler stopped it.
The story
The promise · 1972
In 1972, a new kind of building was finished in Ginza, Tokyo. Architect Kisho Kurokawa had designed two concrete towers, 11 and 13 floors tall, and 140 steel capsules were attached to them. Each capsule was built in a factory, fitted with built-in furniture, and lifted into place by crane. Each one was held by only four bolts, because it was meant to be replaced. The towers would last, and every 25 years or so the old capsules would be swapped for new ones.
The problem
The problem was hidden in the details. Each capsule rested on brackets that came out of the core, and the gap between one capsule and the next was only about 30 centimeters. A capsule could not slide out sideways, and there was no room to lift it. To remove one, workers would first have to take off the capsules above it.
The water connections between the capsules and the core were hidden, too, so maintenance was difficult. Water began to leak, and after a pipe burst, the capsules had no hot water for more than ten years.
The ending · 2022
Because of the gap, no owner could replace a capsule alone. The capsules above had to come off first, so the owners would all have to agree, and swapping one cost about ten million yen. They never did. In 50 years, not one capsule was replaced. In 2022 the tower was dismantled from the top down, and the capsules were lifted out by crane, just as they had been lifted in. Twenty-three were saved, and some of them now sit in museums, including MoMA in New York.
Michael’s take
It’s amazing how the smallest details can make a great idea unravel. The Nakagin tower shows the challenge every architect faces: have a vision, but make it buildable and maintainable. Still, I don’t call it a failure. It started conversations, inspired other people to improve the idea, and was a cultural landmark for decades. Our economic and legal systems today make that kind of experiment very hard, but there are still ways to make our mark on a smaller scale.
What do you think?
Was the Nakagin Capsule Tower still a worthwhile experiment?
Say your answer out loud, or tell a colleague. You could start: “I think it was, because…” or “I don’t think it was, because…”
Explore the English
Optional. About five more minutes.
Words from the story
One pattern: the past passive
was / were + past participle
Use it when the thing matters more than the person who did it.
Active · about the workers
↓ The thing moves to the front. It becomes the subject.
Passive · about the capsules
Who did it? Often we don’t know or don’t care, so we leave it out.
More from the story:
- Each capsule was built in a factory.
- Each one was held by only four bolts.
- Not one capsule was replaced.
- The tower was dismantled in 2022.
Pattern practice
1. “The tower was dismantled in 2022.” What is this sentence about?
- the workers
- the tower
- the crane
Check answer
B. The tower comes first, so it is the subject. The sentence doesn’t even say who dismantled it.
2. You are telling the story of the capsules, not the factory workers. Which sentence fits better?
- Factory workers built each capsule.
- Each capsule was built in a factory.
Check answer
B. It starts with the capsule, the thing your story is about.
3. Complete the sentence.
Twenty-three capsules ______ . (save)
Check answer
were saved. “Capsules” is plural, so were, not was.
Read more
- Maeda & Yoshida, “The real reason why Nakagin Capsule Tower was never metabolized,” docomomo Journal 65 (2021)
- MoMA — The Many Lives of the Nakagin Capsule Tower
- The Architect’s Newspaper — Remembering the Nakagin Capsule Tower (2022)
- Artscape Japan — Farewell to the Nakagin Capsule Tower
- The Japan Times — Nakagin Tower at MoMA
Images: photo by yusunkwon, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Diagram by Construction English.
Source ledger — one line per fact; editor only
- Finished 1972, Ginza, Tokyo; designed by Kisho Kurokawa — MoMA; Wikipedia
- Two concrete towers, 11 and 13 floors; 140 capsules — Wikipedia; designboom
- Capsules built in a factory, with built-in furniture, lifted by crane — Wikipedia; Hyperallergic
- Four high-tension bolts per capsule; designed to be replaceable — Wikipedia; Maeda & Yoshida
- Meant to be replaced about every 25 years — Wikipedia; Architect’s Newspaper (2021)
- Capsules sit on brackets from the core; gap about 30 cm; cannot slide out sideways — Maeda & Yoshida (primary source; another writer says about 15 cm)
- Removing one capsule means removing those above — Maeda & Yoshida; ABC News; Artscape
- Water connections hidden; maintenance difficult — Architect’s Newspaper (2022); Architect’s Newspaper (2021)
- Leaks; no hot water for more than ten years after a pipe burst — designboom; Architizer; Architect’s Newspaper (2021)
- Many separate owners; about ¥10 million to swap one; all owners had to agree — Maeda & Yoshida (2007 prices); Architect’s Newspaper (2021) for the cost
- No capsule replaced in 50 years; dismantled from April 2022, capsules lifted out by crane; 23 saved; some in museums including MoMA — Wikipedia; MoMA labels; Japan Times
Editorial reading, not a sourced fact: “Because of the gap, no owner could replace a capsule alone” follows from lines 7 and 10. Unsourced: “from the top down”.
