Where is Tokorozawa Sakura Town?

Tokorozawa Sakura Town, the base of Cool Japan Forest Project, is a brand new cultural complex that aims to promote Japanese pop culture. It is located in Tokorozawa city, Saitama prefecture which is only about an hour from central Tokyo by train. Tokorozawa Sakura Town produced by Kadokawa Corporation, a leading publishing company in Japan, and Tokorozawa city has a musuem, an anime hotel, libraries, offices, restaurants, and a shrine. One of the biggest attractions would be Kadokawa Culture Museum and its magnificent architecture is designed by Kengo Kuma, famous Japanese architect. Due to the spread of COVID-19, the opening date was pushed back to 6th November, 2020 from 17th July. This would be a brief report of Kadokawa Culture Museum’s pre-opening.

Report

Arrived at Tokorozawa Sakura Town after walking about 10 minutes from Higashi-Tokorozawa station.

Beautiful architecture of Kadokawa Culture Museum attracts you!

It looks like a huge rock suddenly appeared from the underground. This architecture designed by the renowned architect, Kengo Kuma, is made of about 20,000 pieces of granite from China. Each piece’s weight is 50~70 kilograms and the whole weight of the rocks is said to be about 1,200 tons.

The entrance of Kadokawa Culture Museum. It is a museum with five floors. ・1st floor：Grand Gallery, Manga & Light Novel Library, and Genyoshi Garden ・2nd floor：Reception, Cafe, and Museum Shop ・3rd floor：EJ (Entertainment Japan) Anime Museum ・4th & 5th floor：Bookshelf Theater and other exhibitions

Once you enter the building, an impressive reception is right there. The entrance and the reception is on the second floor.

During the pre-opening period, the exhibition ‘Kengo Kuma The Birth of Art Space Connected to Nature’ at Grand Gallery and Manga Library can be enjoyed on the first floor.

Mainly based on the architecture of Kadokawa Culture Museum, Kengo Kuma’s beliefs, process, designs, and architectures are introduced.

New National Stadium designed built in 2019 is wood-focused architecture.

Photos of Kadokawa Culture Museum. It was a great and interesting exhibition.

Manga & Light Novel Library is also on the first floor.

Many manga and light novels are lined up and you can read them as long as you want! Manga lovers can stay here for a whole day.

Rock Museum Shop is being prepared on the second floor.

Once you get out the museum, Musashino Reiwa Shrine is located in front of you. This modern shrine is another Kengo Kuma’s work.

Two guardian dogs on both sides are designed by Yoshimasa Tsuchiya, a famous Japanese sculptor. This totally new modern shrine is very artistic!

After 5~6 years, the Torii Gate will be covered with ivy. Tokorozawa Sakura Town must flourish as ivy grows with lots of memories everyday.

Permanent exhibition, teamLab: Resonating Life in the Acorn Forest, is located right next to Tokorozawa Sakura Town. Egg shaped objects are named ‘ovoid’ that they hail each other and light up at night. It expresses while ovoid are independent, they resonate and respond to each other in nature.

I fully enjoyed this new cultural complex in Tokorozawa, Saitama prefecture and will definitely visit again after the grand opening in November. Found this Gundam manhole cover on the way to Higashi-Tokorozawa station.

Summary

Tokorozawa Sakura Town would be a great spot to enjoy Japanese pop culture, artworks, and Kengo Kuma’s magnificent architecture. Fascinating attractions including anime hotel, modern shrine, manga library, and museum at this artistic town are very inspiring. Look forward to the grand opening!

Tokorozawa Sakura Town
https://tokorozawa-sakuratown.jp/

Kadokawa Culture Museum
https://kadcul.com/