Gregg International College enrolls students from across the globe, providing them with the business and communication skills requisite for success on an international scale. The new campus is located in Shin-Okubo, a highly diverse and multinational district in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The site is immediately adjacent to a railway line, with trains passing in close proximity. In response, the new school building, designed to accommodate 600 students, carefully addresses both acoustic insulation and the challenges of constructing alongside an operational railway.
The overall design strategy sets the underground structure back from the railway line in response to proximity-related construction constraints, while the upper floors are overhung toward the tracks, bringing them closer without compromising structural or regulatory requirements. Furthermore, as noise mitigation necessitated a reinforced concrete structure with minimal openings, the facade is articulated as a series of slender, light, and dispersed walls, ensuring that the building does not present a monolithic or uninviting presence within the urban fabric.
To achieve the required capacity, the building’s form follows a reverse shadow-line envelope, creating a “forest” of walls that maximizes above-ground volume while maintaining a visually intricate and engaging composition.
Designed as a “rhythmic cluster of walls,” the new building functions as a sailing ship for students embarking on their educational journey. Its form also embodies the diversity of the students and their pursuit of aspirations. It is our hope that, together with the new school building, a fresh breeze will enliven the Shin-Okubo townscape, setting it confidently on a course toward the future.