Five Architectural Marvels Of Japan

Published August 15, 2012
Updated August 22, 2025

Reversible Destiny Lofts

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Located in the Tokyo suburb of Mitaka, the Reversible Destiny Lofts were invented by architects Arakawa and Madeleine Gins. The nine-apartment rainbow complex was created to help keep people active and remain young – even live forever – with its innovative design. This innovative design includes a sunken kitchen, eccentric walls, multiple levels, power sockets in the ceilings, weirdly angled windows, and a lack of interior doors.

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Source: Avaxnews, http://pix.avaxnews.com/avaxnews/7a/50/0000507a.jpeg

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Source: Avaxnews, http://pix.avaxnews.com/avaxnews/7e/50/0000507e.jpeg

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Source: Blogspot, http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nZs-srf455A/TfyNiNUDe8I/AAAAAAAAH_M/Kj7SOjqUwCc/s1600/mitaka1.JPG

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Source: Avaxnews, http://pix.avaxnews.com/avaxnews/7b/50/0000507b.jpeg

Stairs House

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Located in Shimane and overlooking the Sea of Japan, the Stairs House is a solar family home. As the name suggests, the exterior bears the form of a huge staircase leading to a lounge area at the top. The interior is environmentally sound with open rooms and unique windows filling the rooms with natural light. Underneath the bank of outdoor stairs there is also a set of windows that allows heat to seep in and stay during winter.

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Source: BestTourism, http://www.bestourism.com/medias/dfp/5675

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Source: DeZeen, http://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2010/11/dzn_Stairs-House-by-y+M-Design-Office-13.jpg

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Source: Toxel, http://www.toxel.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/stairshouse04.jpg

Gate Tower Building

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Source: Wikimedia, http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Gate_Tower_Building_Umeda_Exit.jpg

Completed in 1992, the Gate Tower Building has the distinction of hosting a highway within its walls. Construction of the highway and the office building occurred simultaneously with the fifth and seventh floors of the building set aside for the highway to cut across. Traffic makes no contact with the actual building, and the delicate design blocks out the sound and vibration of the traffic so that office workers are not distracted.

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Source: Blogspot, http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PY_iB2x-2ao/TismenFXZEI/AAAAAAAABUY/2PLRVyRigKE/s1600/25853590.jpg

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Source: BuildingMyBento, http://buildingmybento.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/osaka-gate-tower-building1.jpg

Umeda Sky Building

Architectural Marvels Of Japan

Located in Osaka, the Umeda Sky Building is actually the byproduct of two interconnected skyscrapers. Construction finished in 1993 and the building consists of two 40-story towers that meet at the highest level. The two buildings are connected with bridges and an escalator and the building is the twelfth tallest in Osaka.

Umeda Sky Building

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Source: Asisbiz, http://www.asisbiz.com/Japan/Umeda-Sky-Bldg/images/Umeda-Sky-Bldg-Kuchu-Teien-Tenbodai-Osaka-Japan-Nov-2009-019.JPG

Organic Building

Organic Building

Source: Antinbath, http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_BWeFvHW8_hE/TCus4ccCVXI/AAAAAAAAAeg/dQUpsU05eZA/s1600/antinbath-organic-building-osaka.jpg

Finished in 1993, Osaka’s Organic Building was one of the first to introduce green living. Designed by architect and artist Gaetano Pesce, the exterior is actually a vertical nursery for indigenous plants with concrete panels featuring fiberglass containers.

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Source: Naturoids, http://naturoids.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/5213460665_bc907bf46a_b.jpeg

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Source: Freshome, http://cdn.freshome.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/osaka-organic-building2.jpg

author
Mamta Bhatt
author
editor
Savannah Cox
editor
Savannah Cox holds a Master's in International Affairs from The New School as well as a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Sheffield. Her work as a writer has also appeared on DNAinfo.
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Bhatt, Mamta. "Five Architectural Marvels Of Japan." AllThatsInteresting.com, August 15, 2012, https://allthatsinteresting.com/architectural-marvels-japan. Accessed September 6, 2025.