NGK/NTK Venture Lab Tokyo
Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan
Located on the 13th floor of an office tower in Shinagawa, Venture Lab Tokyo is a 260㎡facility dedicated to showcasing the clients core technologies utilizing fine ceramics and promoting active engagements with potential partners to co-create products in the field of medicine, environment and next-generation vehicles.
The brief called for a reception, lounge and exhibition space within a typical open plan office space surrounded by meeting rooms and a VIP room. The distinguishing feature of the facility is an exhibition space contained within a multifaceted glass enclosure inserted into a rigid rectilinear space. Several triangular voids generated between the contrasting forms serves as functional corridors and establishes its dynamic identity.
Within the exhibition space, 9 bespoke display tables lined with gravel infused plaster evokes the raw state of ceramic. The clients core technologies are explained and illustrated in detail through AR-capable tablets and large-scale video projection. Level of privacy required for various scenarios are controlled though electrochromic films applied to all glass surfaces within the facility.
The principal proposition of the project is to propose a distinctive spatial composition that attempts to break the rigid image of a conventional working environment. The multifaceted crystalline form of the exhibition space generated voids that possessed great flexibility and make reference to the client’s corporate identity of crystallizing ceramic at a nano scale.
NGK SPARK PLUG
Venture Lab Silicon Valley
Santa Clara, California, USA
Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Venture Lab Santa Clara is a 800㎡ facility that represents the clients forward-looking commitment to the co-creation of new products with emerging start-ups. It sheds light to the possibility of fine ceramics by showcasing the clients core technologies applied in the field of medicine, environment, energy and next generation vehicles.
At the entrance, the company’s history of extensive experimentation with fine ceramics is celebrated in the form of a bespoke feature screen abstractly representing the origins of ceramic as a raw material. As daylight reaches the 11m wide aggregate infused acrylic screen, the entrance lobby floor is filled with an exquisite interplay of light and shadow.
Above the exhibition space, a two-foot square suspended ceiling grid resembling a surveying technique utilized on excavation sites spans the entire space to provide order and act as guides for the visitors to navigate through the open field. 18 purpose-made display tables aligned to the grid showcasesａbroad spectrum of extraordinary technology developed by the company over the course of its history. A tablet is utilized to determine the visitor’s field of interest and programmed lighting seamlessly guides them to the relevant displays.
By marrying high-quality production capability possessed by the client and the innovative ideas proposed by start-ups, Venture Lab Santa Clara is envisioned as a physical platform that forests creative interaction with a focus on solving the challenges society faces.
※Project in collaboration with Katagiri Architecture + Design
Collage of nature and artefact visible through reflections
Subdued material palette complementing the rich greenery outside
Virtual tour of the factory in Japan projected onto a 20 m wide wall
Collage of nature and artefact visible through reflections
Photography © Anna Nagai