Craft, Calm and Care

Projects such as Trunk Hotel Yoyogi Park and various Blue Bottle cafes showcase Japanese architect Keiji Ashizawa's philosophy of honest design

- Luo Jingmei

As I step into the Owner's Suite of Trunk Hotel Yoyogi Park, I am first enraptured by the panoramic view outside the large glass windows. Am I really in Tokyo? The buildings are like distant totems while right in front of me, a green cloud of treetops merges with the white sky.

But once I have absorbed this view, it is the smaller things in the room that hold my attention. The timber floors feel warm to the feet; the speckled, textured walls are unabashedly raw, grooves cut into the door make for subtle handles; and impossibly soft upholstery in earth tones makes me feel immediately at ease. To feel calm in the cacophony that is Tokyo takes much work. But architect Keiji Ashizawa makes it look easy. He collaborated with Copenhagen's Norm Architects for the design of this hotel-the third project from the chic Japanese brand started by Yoshitaka Nojiri.

The hotel, located in the quaint Tomigaya district, is a brutalist structure in-filled with abundant landscaping that mirrors lush Yoyogi Park across the road. Ashizawa, speaking at his office in a quiet street in Asakusabashi, tells me that the client wanted the hotel to capitalise on this, "so people in Tokyo can feel relaxed after a long trip or walking around the city".

HONESTY POLICY