Intermediatheque

A place to experience academics and culture in the city center

Japan Post had a vision for the renovation of the former Tokyo Central Post Office building, envisioning a facility that would be both public and contribute to society through the dissemination and promotion of academic knowledge. As our company had long been conducting industry-academia collaboration with The University Museum, on research into next-generation museums, we leveraged our experience and collaboration with the museum to participate in this collaborative project between Japan Post and The University Museum.

The facility aims to create opportunities for many people to experience academic culture in the prime location of Marunouchi, utilizing the valuable academic and cultural assets, such as academic specimens and research materials, that The University of Tokyo has accumulated since its founding in 1877. The concept is "Intermediatheque," which translates to "Intermedia Experiment Center" in Japanese. Going beyond simply exhibiting academic and cultural assets, the project began with the goal of realizing an experimental space that fuses existing resources and expressive media, using art and science as keywords.

The second floor gallery takes advantage of the 66m depth and the atmosphere of the preserved building

A space created by redesigning existing resources.

In terms of spatial design, original spaces and exhibitions were realized by making maximum use of existing resources and value systems and reconstructing them. By comprehensively "redesigning" even academic specimens, furnishings, and the architecture itself, which have been worn out and possess different memories and histories, a unique world of retro-futurism was created.

The architecture is designed to comply with current regulations while maximizing the rich space, history, and atmosphere of the preserved former post office building. For example, the existing flooring is used in the second-floor gallery, and traces of its time as a postal collection and delivery center remain in some parts. Furthermore, even the necessary new equipment and piping are designed with a highly aesthetic, minimalist aesthetic so as not to detract from the atmosphere. In addition, furniture with historical memories and stories from its use within the University of The University of Tokyo campus is placed throughout the building, creating a unique space imbued with an atmosphere of history, memory, and scholarship.

The view of Tokyo Station spreads out in the background of the whale skeleton exhibit.

Synergistic effects of commercial facilities and museums

Intermediatheque is located next to KITTE, a commercial facility in JP Tower, offering shoppers an easy way to experience academic and cultural culture. This unprecedented space has received high praise from many quarters and has won numerous design awards, including the Good Design Award.

Recently, we've seen an increase in cases where we combine the expertise in space creation that we've cultivated in both Commercial Spaces and Cultural Spaces to provide solutions. This time, too, it was a good example of being involved in creating new spaces that contribute to enhancing the attractiveness of the city.

An open storage facility that provides aesthetic appeal while also allowing for internal work

Project Structure

[Business Owner] Japan Post Co., Ltd.
[General Supervision] Yoshiaki Nishino, Director, The University Museum
[Museum Project] The University Museum
[Museum Design] Intermediatheque, The University Museum Endowed Research Division + TANSEISHA Co., Ltd. + SIMPLICITY Co., Ltd.
[Exhibition Design] Intermediatheque, The University Museum Endowed Research Division)
[Technical management] TANSEISHA Co., Ltd.