[speech position="左" name="Hikaru" content="Hi, I am Hikaru. I like subcultures such as anime and manga, but one of the things I really care about is the architecture in those works. I have a habit of rewind and seeing the scene some impressive architecture appears, when I see some movie lol
This time, I would like to delve into 3 interesting points about the home of Hitagi Senjogahara, the heroine of anime Bakemonogatari!"]
Bakemonogatari from the architect‘s point of view
Designing a world of high-quality color tones and animation
Bakemonogatari of the series first work developed as a "story series" from the novel of Nishio Isshin original novel.
Summarizing the contents of the story,
A life change after suddenly becoming a vampire
An thorough hero who will help people
Stories of boys liked by girls
First of all, the animation production is "shaft", so you can feel an architectural sense in the fictional buildings and parks that appear in the work, as well as the taste and choice of existing masterpiece architecture, needless to say the animation quality is high.
In addition, including the red piece and black piece used in scene change, the color tone of the whole animation is darkened, and the color design of the building gets us caught, which is one element of the background etc.
Now let's look at the interesting points architecturally in more detail.
Exciting Point 1 : Appearance
Unfinished steel frame and wooden apartment makes me excited
![](http://images.ctfassets.net/5qrq9idphl29/5tDgpN4KRsnhrRKjc8XakE/8a41caadde2378781ab15f3024114eb3/image1.jpg?w=1600&q=70)
The first thing I care about at home scene of Hitagi Senjogahara (below Gahara-san) is the appearance.
The eye-catching thing is a block of steel structure in the back that seems to be under construction, but of course it is the wooden apartment that she lives in. When we look closely at the steel frame frame in the middle stage, it will be expressed precisely, such as a small hardware component coming out of a pillar.
On the other hand, the steel aggregate seen further behind is thin enough to be ineffective as a structure. However, I think that it is neatly integrated as a picture of one scene by expressing the steel extremely thinly, and it is quite effective architectural expression in animation.
The wooden apartment is covered with the old wooden board exterior wall, which is somehow cool to me.
Gahara's house is not wealthy because of some circumstances.
In terms of it, they created a situation that seems to be unreasonably cheap due to the steel frame and block fence in the middle of the construction shown in the scene, and a wooden apartment, and made architectural visuals like ruins in the whole scene. As an architectural lover, I got excited with what they try to do.
Exciting Point 2 : Interior
Detail of wooden structure and mysterious "nested structure"
![](http://images.ctfassets.net/5qrq9idphl29/69huCDyMrl6x7FRWfORuoS/945d78dded2735a5745e94087247b308/image3.jpg?w=1600&q=70)
One scene that people enter the Gahara House from the inhouse stairway in open ceiling space. Although it is indoor, there is a wall with the same clapboard as the outer wall, and the Gahara House (room) is surrounded by this wall. (the area on the left side of the picture.)
There are two major points from this scene that make you architectural lover excited.
![](http://images.ctfassets.net/5qrq9idphl29/46I13LOk0eWkWJtHSCubvK/654862ce21332df07167d10b02a5f23e/image4.jpg?w=1600&q=70)
First of all, a half pillar that you can see in front. A tenon is drawn that connects columns with joints that are often seen on the site of a wooden building,. Even people who are not specialized in architecture can understand that an ordinary house won’t have a teno, so it is a point where a feeling of an incomplete house has come out.
Then, the outer wall of "clapboard" that was not expressed in the exterior scene. It is a clapboard wall which becomes a step wall by using a wood board long sideways and making it piled up. Even in the scene, the details are reproduced by firmly expressing the overlap of the wood board above and below.
In addition, a strange space configuration that contains another small space (Gahara House) in the large corridor space. This is a slightly unusual architectural method called "nested structure", and it is impressive to make this way in animation.
Architectural students get more and more mature in their design tasks in college, but some of the people in sync tried this nesting style.
Why did many people propose design issues in a nested configuration? If you think about it now, you will find it that it's funny and cool in a different space configuration.
※ Personally, I felt a simple sensation of "nesting structure" where you can enjoy the excitement of feeling like you are tenting in a house
Exciting Point 3 : Interior
I cannot help but feel the quoted context from the history of architecture
![](http://images.ctfassets.net/5qrq9idphl29/7AYL3CKMM7JSWHQubgXEsg/ffea081f50ae487dcc0b511ab7cfabc5/image5.jpg?w=1600&q=70)
The last exciting point is the scene seen from the corridor through the Gahara room. In the first place there is no front door ... ... shocking house lol
In this scene, I think the yellow of the door, the red and blue bibit color of the wallpaper (newspaper) in the back and the grid of white shoji are impressive.
![](http://images.ctfassets.net/5qrq9idphl29/3qyqpGXWGOBlyewFQbpjuC/090557b88400834ab34b8b3a50dbea54/image2.jpg?w=1600&q=70)
If you studied architecture, you will remind of Piet Mondrian’s composition, who belonged to the international art and architecture group "De Still". Isn't it similar?
Furthermore, although the wallpaper in the room is a newspaper and enhances the poor atmosphere, the elements of the entire ruin like scenes and the newspaper make it possible for us to remember the deconstructionist movement that existed in the past. (I may be alone, no?)
I cannot stop talking about the architectural movement here when I start touching it, so I'll keep it down this time, but only one point, as an architectural design, if the wallpaper in the room is an English newspaper, the space will be even more cool maybe……
From the architect’s point of view, in the architecture of "Bakemonogatari" it seems to be a visual composition made by those who know the architectural context to some extent.
SUMMURY
![](http://images.ctfassets.net/5qrq9idphl29/5tDgpN4KRsnhrRKjc8XakE/8a41caadde2378781ab15f3024114eb3/image1.jpg?w=1600&q=70)
Could you understand the 3 exciting points?
If there is at least one sympathetic point, you would be familiar with the architectural context, or be a sub-culture-freak architect like me, wouldn’t you?
Although there is a difference between 2D and 3D, the architectural description in the sub culture content depicts the author's ideas and details, and has energy that attracts people and architects.
There are many things that the architects of the main business should also have to learn in the modeling and tone sense of the architecture of the story series, aren’t there?
Architectural Design Division manager / first-class architect
Career: After completing a master's course in Tohoku University Graduate School of Urban and Architectural Studies, he worked at KUME SEKKEI co.ltd and co-founded NoMaDoS First Class Architect Office.
Engaged in architectural design, taking advantage of experience in charge of projects across a wide range of accommodation facilities, commercial facilities and educational facilities in and outside Japan.
Managing architects at Tohoku office from April 2019.