More than ten years in the making, Hiroshi Sugimoto's new hilltop center for the arts is finally ready to open its doors. Situated amid picturesque citrus groves in the tiny hamlet of Enoura, and offering breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean, the multidisciplinary complex will welcome its first public visitors on 9 October. The structures, all personally designed by Sugimoto, include an exhibition space, two outdoor stages, a teahouse, and the offices of his Odawara Art Foundation. more...

Since World War II, Japanese culture has gone through numerous transformations, not least in the realm of architecture. In particular, as Japanese people's basic modes of working, living and communicating with each have other changed, so have the houses they live in. The Japanese House: Architecture and Life after 1945, showing until 29 October at The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, posits 13 different concepts as reflective of the postwar situation, and looks at 75 different houses to illustrate them, through photographs, plan drawings and sometimes maquettes (small 3-D models). more...