Tokyo's Nakagin Tower: A Condemned Utopia Now on Display at MoMA

All architects hope their buildings will stand the test of time, but few anticipate their structures will be replaced within just a few decades. Yet, that was the vision of Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa when he designed Tokyo's Nakagin Tower in the 1970s. Now, the tower stands condemned and a piece of it can be seen on display at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

The Nakagin Tower, located in Tokyo's bustling Ginza district, was a product of its time. Built in 1972, it was a prime example of the Japanese Metabolist movement, which focused on modular, flexible and adaptable architecture. The tower consisted of 140 individual capsules, each measuring 8.2 square meters, stacked on top of one another. The idea was that these capsules could be replaced or updated every 25 years to adapt to changing needs and technology.

However, this vision was never fully realized. The tower was plagued with maintenance and management issues, and the majority of the capsules were never replaced. Today, the Nakagin Tower stands abandoned and condemned, with only a few residents remaining.

But its legacy lives on. One of the tower's capsules is now on display at MoMA as part of an exhibit on Japanese architecture. The capsule, complete with its original furnishings, offers a glimpse into the utopian ideals of the Metabolist movement and the reality of its failure.

"The Nakagin Tower encapsulates both the optimism and the disappointment of the Metabolist movement," says MoMA curator, Pedro Gadanho. "It serves as a