Renzo Piano | Hermès Ginza: A Tower of Glass Bricks

Renzo Piano | Hermès Ginza: A Tower Built of Glass Bricks
A slender tall tower, its entire skin constructed from tens of thousands of specially custom-made square glass bricks, each slightly uneven with a handmade quality. Thus, the entire facade resembles a huge, soft fabric rather than a rigid wall. During the day, the glass bricks filter sunlight into a soft milky white, with no distinct windows indoors; at night, the internal lighting transforms the entire tower into a glowing lantern, standing out in the neon glow of Ginza precisely through its 'softness'. Between the glass bricks is an extremely fine metal support system, with seismic design allowing the entire facade to subtly deform. Night view shot from a low angle on the street, contrasting the glowing tower body with the strong lights of surrounding signs. Avoid: perfectly flat and uniform glass bricks, opening regular windows, adding external signs, not glowing at night.

Translated from Chinese by AI.

一棟細長的高塔,整個外皮由數萬塊特別訂製的方形玻璃磚砌成,每一塊都略帶手工的不平整,因此整面立面像一塊巨大而柔軟的織品而非硬質的牆。白天,玻璃磚把日光濾成柔和的乳白,室內沒有明確的窗;夜間,內部的燈光讓整棟塔成為一盞發光的燈籠,在銀座的霓虹中反而以「柔和」勝出。玻璃磚之間為極細的金屬支撐系統,抗震設計使整面立面能夠微幅變形。夜景從街道低角度仰拍,塔身的發光與周圍招牌的強光對比。避免:玻璃磚完全平整均一、開設一般窗戶、外加招牌、夜間不發光。