I have been a huge fan of miniature models ever since I was a little kid. I used to create town models myself using boxes of milk cartons, which eventually led me to create a collection of miniature whatevers beyond that. If space wouldn’t be an issue in my place right now, the size of that collection would have extended by now.
I heard about the Archi Depot from a friend’s Facebook wall a couple of weeks back. Archi Depot is Japan’s first ever museum for Architectural models. It consists of models submitted by several Architectural firms, some of which are responsible for designs of the Uniqlo branch in New York’s 5th avenue as well as Ozone, the highest bar in the world in Ritz Carlton in Hong Kong. I would say this museum is a bit overdue for this country which is one of the powerhouses when in comes to Architecture designs.
As the exhibit hall occupies a small space area the size of your normal office conference room, knapsack owners would need to surrender their bags to the reception area. The museum just opened a month short so there are still room for improvement in their collection. But looking at the still empty racks, which is almost 30% of the entire area, it seems that this collection will grow more. And since it would only take about less than an hour to look at all the models, you can also visit the nearby art store called Pigment, an interesting art supplies store that boasts 4200 colors under its belt.
Overall, the visit was a fun and interesting one, especially if you are a diorama fan as well as Architecture enthusiast. Tilt shift photography hobbyist would also enjoy as photograph of the models are also allowed. Just don’t turn your flash on.
Information:
Address: Warehouse TERRADA Main Storage Center, 1F 2-6-10, Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo
Access:
5-minute walk from Tokyo Monorail “Tennozu Isle Station”
4-minute walk from Rinkai Line “Tennozu Isle Station”
15-minute walk from JR “Shinagawa Station Konan Exit”
Admission: 1000yen (Adult) 500yen (Under 18 years of age)
When you can, travel 