Adventure Travel: 'Kushiro City Marsh Observatory' and 'Kushiro City Museum'

For this month's business trip to Hokkaido, I visited the 'Kushiro City Marsh Observatory' and the 'Kushiro City Museum' in Kushiro City for the filming of the Tsuruga Group's 'Tsuruga Channel'. These are famous buildings designed by Kikou Mozuna, an architectural genius born in Kushiro City. (Mr. Mozuna was also a senior at my high school.)

These two buildings were completed around the same time and are famous as a pair of works that won the Architectural Institute of Japan Prize.
I have visited them many times myself.
Mr. Mozuna was an extremely unique architect who possessed a 'traditional' yet 'heretical' worldview in the Japanese architectural world. He is a renowned figure with high global acclaim.

Architecture as a 'Universe'

The keyword for understanding Mr. Mozuna's architecture is said to be 'cosmology'.
He viewed architecture as 'something that connects the human body to the universe' and left behind many designs that provide a powerful visual impact.
In the 1970s, as an antithesis to modern architecture that prioritized functionality above all else, he became a standard-bearer for 'postmodernism,' which emphasizes memory, narrative, and symbolism.
Many of his representative works are concentrated in my hometown, the foggy city of Kushiro. It seems to me that he incorporated the harsh nature and marshland scenery of Kushiro into his architecture through his own unique interpretation.

Kushiro City Marsh Observatory: A 'Lens of Scenery' Connecting the Marsh and Humans

Standing on the edge of the vast Kushiro Marsh, this observatory looks like a medieval castle.
At its foundation, the unique natural environment of Kushiro is deeply involved.

Exterior: The 'Yachibouzu' (Marsh Fairies)
Its most distinctive feature is said to be inspired by 'Yachibouzu' (valley monks), which are formed when the roots of sedge growing in the marsh are lifted by winter frost heaving.
While it has a heavy brick exterior that seems to rival the scale of the marsh, it also looks like a 'ship floating on a vast sea of marshland'.

Interior: A 'Cave' that Controls Light and Darkness
Contrary to the linear and massive impression of the exterior, the interior is filled with elegant curves, creating a cave-like space.
It feels like a mechanism designed to draw visitors into a dimly lit, enveloping space before they see the vast panorama from the rooftop.

By walking through an interior where vision and light are restricted, one's sense of physical scale is reset, and it seems designed so that the moment you step into the observation room, you can feel the overwhelming 'expanse' of the marsh more intensely.
Unfortunately, yesterday it was wrapped in fog, so I couldn't see the marsh at all.

Kushiro City Museum: A Space Tracing the Memories of Life

Built on a hill overlooking Lake Harutori, the museum is not just a 'vessel' for exhibits, but the entire building seems to be a device that tells a grand story of life.

Exterior: 'A Brooding Red-crowned Crane' and 'Earth's Undulations'
The dynamic, symmetrical exterior is said to represent the red-crowned crane, a symbol of Kushiro, spreading its wings wide to embrace and protect its chicks (or eggs).

Interior: A Circulatory Experience Brought by the 'Double Helix'
The most distinctive feature inside the building is the 'double helix staircase' that connects each floor. I believe this represents the structure of DNA, the foundation of life.

By walking up and down this spiral, visitors experience an architectural flow that simulates the passage of time from ancient times to the present.
Because of the atrium, you can sense the presence (sights and sounds) of other floors.
Rather than just looking at the exhibits, you can enjoy the entire space as a single continuous 'place of experience'.

Adventure Travel (Intellectual Adventure) in Kushiro

These two buildings are not just objects placed in the landscape; they are devices that soak the scale, climate, and ecological presence of Kushiro into the physical senses of those who visit.

When you come to Kushiro, I really want you to experience these two buildings.
Please surrender yourself to the 'spatial narrative' of this architecture, such as the 'change in perspective while walking the spiral' at the museum, or the 'sensation of moving from a cave-like interior into the light' at the observatory.
Adventure travel is not just about moving your body.
Intellectual adventure is also 'adventure travel'.