Minimalissimo

Glass Art Gallery

architecture

Stay up to date

The Minimalissimo newsletter is sponsored by aprile, the hanging chair.
It's also supported by Dan Dorogoncean and 29 others.
If you enjoy what we’re doing, consider joining this group.

Tucked on the corner of a residential street in Osaka is the Glass Art Gallery by Japanese architect Jun Murata. The space is a renovation of an existing building and includes a small exhibition space and a comfortable dwelling for working and living. The first floor houses the gallery, the second story warehouses the collection, and the third holds the residential rooms.

The main feature of the structure is the many walls of glass blocks. The blocks vary in transparency, allowing a playful flow of natural light in while shielding the space from the busy Osaka streets. Shadows cast by the glass block walls add a further artistic element to the various rooms. Long, narrow windows add another source of natural light and are located along the quieter sides of the building. The gallery looks particularly beautiful from the exterior, at night, when the lights shine through the glass blocks. The light dances on the wall of glass providing an elegant scene to passersby. Overall, Glass Art Gallery brings a refreshing wave of uniqueness to Osaka and to art gallery design in general.

In the shop