GUNMA INSECT WORLD INSECT OBSERVATION HALL
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| Ecology greenhouse covered with a glass dome |
| The "INSECT OBSERVATION HALL" is the main
facility at the GUNMA INSECT WORLD, which is operated by Gunma Prefecture
and opened in August 2005. This building, which was constructed on land
with a gentle slope, has its entrance on the third floor with a large
stairway over the entire roof of the observation area, and the interior
has a large space covered with a sloping ceiling. There is a video hall
on the first floor, and display rooms for the ecology of insects and specimens
on the second and third floors. With the 1,100-square-meter ecology greenhouse, a subtropical zone modeled after Iriomote Island in Okinawa has been reproduced, enabling people to pass through and observe butterflies and other insects in their natural habitat throughout the year. Designer Tadao Ando explained, "The building structures will disappear in the greenery of the hills as the trees grow while the glass dome will glisten among the treetops. The aim of this project was to exceed the framework of 'a simple museum,' and to create a facility with actual close-to-home natural thickets where children could touch insects and the natural environment where they are being nurtured using their five senses." The novel design features a glass dome roof for the building, curved interior and exterior walls with exposed concrete, and a large pond. With the complicated design of the dome roof, 1,287 triangular panes of tempered glass with 2.5-meter sides are being used. Because 200 types of glass panes with slightly different shapes are being used, accurately installing these in the curved roof was one of the main points of this construction. |
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| Client | Gunma Prefecture |
| Location | 460-1 Tsurugaya, Niisato-cho, Kiryu City, Gunma Prefecture |
| Design | TADAO ANDO ARCHITECT & ASSOCIATES |
| Construction | Takenaka Corporation and 3 other companies (JV) |
| Structure | Reinforced concrete, Steel and Steel-framed reinforced concrete |
| Number of floors | 3 floors above and 1 fl. below ground |
| Total floor space | 5,084 m² |
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Copyright 2007, Takenaka Corporation