Located in Iga, a once-historic city that has now transformed into an industrial area with massive factories dominating its southern side, Gallery/Salon H by Niimori Jamison is a refreshing addition to the urban fabric.
Developed in the 1970s for local factory workers, the residential area where the project is located lacked gathering spaces for the community. Moreover, a nearby high school's craft department had no place to showcase student works. These pressing issues informed the brief for the project, which initially called for a small hair salon.
However, upon closer investigation, the design team discovered that rapid developments had driven up costs and made it difficult for people to find places to connect with one another. To address this, the project was expanded to perform a public function, providing a large tunnel-like room mainly used as a public gallery space. The site, situated on a corner lot, was rotated out of rectilinear alignment to encourage pedestrians to use it as a walkway and resting place.
One of the standout features of Gallery/Salon H is its design. The gallery space widens towards the back of the site, which creates a variety of different exhibits while casting an uneven, filtered light from the curved ceiling above. The salon space is also carefully crafted to provide a different sense of depth throughout the space, achieved by using mirrors that are off-parallel.
The materiality of the building is another aspect worth mentioning. The same cementitious lining used outside is also utilized indoors, but with a hand-polished seal that adds material depth to the indistinct quality of the interior. The subtle shifts in conventional geometries and natural light and reflection offer moments to ponder the places we inhabit.
