Kubo Tsushima Architects transform a Tokyo wedding hall into Rainbow Chapel, a prismatic space where light and color imbue tradition with contemporary resonance.
Originally built during Japan’s economic bubble era as an annex to an exclusive salon, the building’s ornate excesses mirrored a bygone age of affluence. The architects have now stripped the structure of its anachronistic embellishments, offering a sleek yet deeply symbolic contemporary design centered around light as its primary material.
At the Rainbow Chapel, natural illumination becomes an active participant in the ceremonial proceedings. By employing a palette of stained glass sidelight windows, each in a unique hue, light transforms into a prismatic narrative. The oval geometry of the space, enhanced by rhythmic wall ribs, captures and refracts the multicolored light, casting an ethereal glow across the interior. The result is an ever-shifting interplay of color and shadow that transcends physical ornamentation, evoking the biblical rainbow’s connotations of promise and renewal.
