Atelier Tsuyoshi Tane Architects completed the Hirosaki Museum of Contemporary Art, located in Hirosaki, in the Japanese province of Aomoria. The city, known for the production of apples, hosted since the beginning of the 20th century brick factories used for the production of sake or cider, transformed into warehouses over the years. ATTA started in 2017 the renovation of one of these structures, taking as reference the original function and the historical value: based on the concept of continuous memory, the project recovers the original brick through the removal of old plaster and the reproduction of damaged bricks, while improving anti-seismic performance.
With a titanium roof recalling the color of cider, the museum consists of five exhibition spaces, a civic gallery and three studios, a library, a store and a cafeteria. Spaces are based on the concept of Site-specific, aiming to establish a relationship between works of art and brick structure, and on the concept of Time-specific, leading to the creation of more flexible spaces according to the different times and rhythms of projects.