Message from the Architect

As the architect of this project, I started drawing up plans in the summer of 2006, and after two years I finished the master plan. We are now moving forward with the initial plan and looking ahead to beginning actual construction.

If you were to consider the West, with its history of worshipping the sun, as a ‘culture of the sun,’ then Asia could be considered a ‘culture of the moon.’ That is to say, it is a culture where lifestyles are woven together in harmony with the waning and waxing rhythms of the moon. In line with this, we have developed a moon motif as the design concept of The Pulan (meaning “the moon”), which will be an unparalleled casino resort surrounded by the awe-inspiring nature of Tinian Island. We have injected the essence of the moon into every area of the design, starting with the landscape design that recalls the image of a full moon and the hotel building that symbolizes a crescent moon. I suppose you could also say that environmentally friendly technology, such as the atrium’s giant solar panels and the “Water Ring” that uses stored rainwater, is another example of how we let the motif of the comforting power of the moon guide us.

Sometimes it seems like there is a kind of magic to The Pulan that befits a project named after the moon. It is as if we have been put under the spell of the moon, and we are invoking its power to help us proceed with the project.

With dreams of creating a new time and space at The Pulan...

Shin Takamatsu
April 1, 2008

design sketch
  • Design sketches for The Pulan project

Profile

1971
Graduated from Kyoto University, Undergraduate School of Engineering, Department of Architecture
1974
Masters Degree from Kyoto University, Graduate School of Engineering, Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering
1980
PhD from Kyoto University, Graduate School of Engineering, Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering
1980
Established Shin Takamatsu Architect & Associates Co., Ltd.
1995
Honorary Fellow, The American Institute of Architects (AIA)
1997
Honorary Member, The Bund Dentscher Architekten (BDA)
1997
Professor, Kyoto University, Faculty of Engineering
2001
Corporate Member, The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)

Representative Works

National Theatre Okinawa
National Theatre Okinawa
Completed: July, 2003
Location: Urasoe City, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan
Type of Building: theatre
Size: 14,700m2
(above ground: 3 stories, basement: 1 level)
Photo:Nacása & Partners Inc.
Tianjin Great Museum
Tianjin Great Museum
Completed: October, 2004
Location: Tianjin City, China
Type of Building: museum
Size: 34,000m2 (3 stories)
Photo:Jeffrey Cheng
Kaohsiung Metro Station
Kaohsiung Metro Station
Completed: June, 2008
Location: Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
Type of Building: subway station
Size: 35,000m2
(above ground: 1 story, basement: 3 levels)
Business Center Tbilisi
Business Center Tbilisi
Completed: March, 2008
Location: Tbilisi, Georgia
Type of Building: business center, residences
Size: 16,800m2
(above ground: 7 stories, basement: 3 levels)
Shin Takamatsu Web site

Outline
Landscape Design
Energy-Saving Measures
Architect Introduction