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CASA MARIA LUIGIA

Where Massimo Bottura's Table Extends to an 18th Century Guesthouse in the Emilian Countryside

FUMIE SHIBATA

Design Driven By Humility & Humanity | We Visit The Tokyo Studio Of The Leading Japanese Designer

Tokujin Yoshioka

Champ Editor Joanna Kawecki Speaks With The Designer On The Art of Light and Space

OPENFIELD HOUSE BY KESHAW MCARTHUR

The New Zealand-based Architectural Duo Have Designed A Home In Deep Dialogue With Its Surrounding Landscape

PHOTOGRAPHER SERIES: NAOKI ISHIKAWA

We Speak With The Prolific Photographer - The Only Photographer In The World To Have Summited All 14 Of The World’s Highest 8,000m+ Peaks

HOUSE W IN NAKAFURANO

In Hokkaido, A Zero Energy House Designed For Harsh Winters & Beautiful Summers

George Nakashima: Crafted With Soul

We Visit The Late Designer-Craftsman's New Hope Studio Led By Daughter Mira Nakashima

PYRAMID HUT

In Okinawa, A New Modern Concrete Vernacular By IGArchitects

NAIKO RETREAT

In a Private, Secluded Cove with Oceanfront Views, Find An Architectural Gem

KENGO KUMA’S ‘BAMBOO GATE’

We Speak with The Project's Lead Architect On The New Community Centre Clad In Bamboo

Isamu Noguchi: Play Equipment

Artistic Imaginative Playscapes as Sculpture

SATOYAMA JUJO

Architecture, Design & Mountain-Foraged Dining In Japan’s Deep Countryside

ZGC International Innovation Center

MAD Architects' Ma Yansong Crafts A Biophilic, Floating Form In Beijing

SHIGENORI UOYA

Guiding The Evolution of Japanese Architecture

Roden Crater

James Turrell’s Ambitious Project Set In An Extinct Volcano Crater In The Painted Desert

Harmonising Our Built Environment With Nature

Japanese Architect Junya Ishigami Defies Convention Again With A Kilometre-Long Structure Embedded Into Water

Khao Yai Art Forest

In Thailand, An All-Encompassing Open-air Art Museum & Land Art Project

FOOD FOR EVERYONE

A Purpose-Driven Creative Studio Connecting Art & Food

A Quiet Concentration

Norm Architects Designs A Remote Atelier For 'The Right Conditions for Making'

STUDIO HJRK

We Speak With Designer Hye-Jin Ris Kim Leading Seoul's Most Exciting Design Studio

Wulingshan Eye Stone Spring

In China, Vector Architects Designs A Secluded Hot Spring Facility

GOLDEN AVENUE

Smoke, Stone & Levantine-Inspired Cuisine at this Restaurant Defined by Its Design

DUDDELL’S

Interior Design Wunderkind Andre Fu Transforms Hong Kong's Iconic Dining Institution

BROWNHAUS

Fine Jewellery Creations Modernised by Artisan Drew Brown

A Living Museum, The Spirit of Mingei

Step Inside The Late Potter Kawai Kanjirō's House

The Complexity and Wonderment of Astrophotography

Photographer Rami Ammoun Captures The Vastness of the Night Sky Through An Unimaginably Intricate & Layered Process

Hospitality Embedded With Community

A Retreat in Yamanaka Onsen Crafted by Mokkei & Hanamurasaki

KIOI SEIDO

A 'Modern Pantheon' In The Heart of Tokyo

KOFFEE MAMEYA KAKERU

The Art of Coffee Meets The Craft of Cocktails In A Spectacular Interior

Pieces of Japan Store and Workshop

A Mecca for Japanese Craftsmanship, POJ Studio Unveil Their Flagship Store in Kyoto

HOUSE IN TSURUOKA

Nakayama Architects Design A Residence In Consideration of the Region’s Distinctive Sea Breezes

Redefining Luxury At Four Seasons Osaka

The Distinctive Interiors Were Led by SIMPLICITY, CURIOSITY & SPIN

The Okura Tokyo’s Opening Ceremony

The Historic Moment In Images

September, 2019

Four years after the announcement of Hotel Okura’s Main Wing closure, the new adjacent towers under the consolidated title The Okura Tokyo were unveiled in an Opening Ceremony with special honorary guest HIH Princess Takamado, Architect Yoshio Taniguchi and Okura Executives. After an official ribbon cut, the ceremony continued with a noh Performance in the Main Lounge, led by Noh Master Kiyokazu Kanze (the 36th Grand Master of the Kanze School) in a poignant and reflective performance. The moment seemed to symbolise a progression yet an ongoing preservation of Japan’s traditions that continue to shape past, present and future of a cultural identity. Photographer Vien Tran documents the monumental event with Champ Editor In Chief Joanna Kawecki.

Entrance | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
Entrance | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
Preparations | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
Architect Yoshio Taniguchi Looks On | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike arrives | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
Honoured Guest Princess Takamado | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
Making It Official: The Ribbon Cut | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Ribbon Cut | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
From Left; President Hotel Okura Tokyo Masaharu Naruse, Architect Yoshio Taniguchi, Director Taisei Corporation Takashi Yamauchi, Chairman Hotel Okura Yoshihiko Okura, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike, President Hotel Okura Yoshihiro Ogita, President Nippon Steel Kowa Real Estate Yasuhiko Imaizumi, Chairman Hotel Okura Tokyo Masaki Ikeda, General Manager Hotel Okura Tokyo Shinji Uehara | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
Hotel Okura Tokyo President Masaharu Naruse with Architech Yoshio Taniguchi | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
The First Guest Through The Doors, HIH Princess Takamado | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
NOH Performers from the Kanze School | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
NOH Master Kiyokazu Kanze | The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | © Vien Tran
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | © Vien Tran
The Okura Tokyo | © Vien Tran (2019)

The Okura Tokyo
Opening Ceremony
12.09.2019

Photography: Vien Tran
Words: Joanna Kawecki

The Okura Tokyo Main Lounge Details | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
The Okura Tokyo | Opening Ceremony | Photo: © Vien Tran (2019)
September, 2019