The Copper

The design intent is to introduce a workshop-and-museum on a mountainside by Lake Chuzenji at the city of Nikko, that responds to the humid continental climate. This is achieved through traditional and present-day building techniques that include the use of copper, among other materials.

Using copper in roof making, particularly for shrines, is synonymous with the city—it being the locale of the historical Ashio Copper Mine, one of the largest copper mines in Japan. Thus, the project is proposed to foster knowledge exchange on age-old technical skills for the maintenance and repairs of shrines; as well as experimental applications of copper slag, a waste by-product of mining that had polluted the site, in an effort to alleviate its environmental effects.

The project is sited on a mountainside by a lake

A DEMONSTRATION OF HISTORIC CRAFTMANSHIP
A copper-clad roof, together with precast wall cladding made of discarded slag mixed into concrete, are expected to help improve the thermal properties of the structural elements—contributing to passive solar heating and thermal comfort in winter.

Three linear modules of the same roof datum (level reference point) constitute the wooden frame system of the project, with the respective modules extending progressively by 1 metre each as the site slopes down to a lake. The extension creates a double-height atrium to enhance visual connectivity, in addition to meeting the substantial spatial requirements for the fabrication of the copper roof and concrete cladding.

An elevation view of the workshop-and-museum with three linear modules

HARMONISING WITH NATURAL ELEMENTS
While the workshop is designed with a south orientation to maximise exposure to winter sunlight, the double-height module has low-emissivity glazing on its glass façade, offering a view of the lake, with a picturesque backdrop, in the west. The atrium also features operable skylights to enable stack ventilation in the summer and direct heat gain in the winter.

PROJECT DATA
Project Name
The Copper
Project Year
2023
Location
Okunikko, Japan
Gross Floor Area
1,800 square metres (approximate)
Building Height
2 storeys
Student
Wong Ying, Percy
School
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Programme
Bachelor of Social Science (Architectural Studies)
Supervisor
Hiroyuki Shinohara
Images
Wong Ying, Percy

This is an excerpt. The original article is published in
Construction+ Q1 2024 Issue: Construction Technologies Now.
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