SKY DESIGN AWARDS 2026 / EDITORIAL REWRITE

SKY DESIGN AWARDS 2026 / EDITORIAL REWRITE EDITORIAL BRIEF CREVA OKUMA / KUMA SUN TERRACE A shared institutional environment uses welcoming terraces and human-scaled interiors to support connection, respite and community Editorial Overview

At Ono Station in Okuma, CREVA OKUMA and KUMA SUN TERRACE occupy ground that was once the town centre, then remained inaccessible after the nuclear accident until restrictions were lifted in 2022. FIELD FOUR DESIGN OFFICE approaches the site as more than a new municipal facility: it is an attempt to restore the ordinary settings in which a community meets, works and remembers.

The architecture is organised around a central plaza open to both station and town square. Its split volumes are rotated against the surrounding roads, a measured adjustment that resolves changes in level and creates barrier-free routes through the site. A long, single-pitch roof recalls the profile of the Abukuma Mountains, while artificial-turf mounds, water, native planting and movable furniture give the plaza enough informality for lunch breaks, festivals or an unplanned conversation.

CREVA OKUMA builds a civic programme vertically around this shared ground. The first-floor hall can open for events; an atrium lounge is anchored by tapestry art; coworking areas, an open pantry and rental offices occupy the second level; and a rooftop garden extends public life above. Photographs and objects from before the disaster are placed within these contemporary rooms, allowing memory to remain present without turning the building into a memorial.

The material choices reinforce that balance. Chestnut, ash and larch sourced locally support regional forestry and reduce environmental impact, while the wider development forms part of Okuma's ambition for a zero-carbon town powered by local renewable energy. Here, reconstruction is expressed through access, shade, workspaces and places to sit—the modest but essential apparatus of daily life.

PEGGY'S EDITOR'S NOTE

The project's strength lies in its understanding that recovery cannot be delivered by an emblem alone. FIELD FOUR DESIGN OFFICE gives Okuma a piece of social infrastructure whose civic purpose is carried by everyday use: crossing the plaza, sharing a kitchen, working beside a neighbour or returning for a seasonal event.

Its references to landscape and collective memory are restrained, while the rotated plan, barrier-free ground and locally sourced timber make the larger ambitions tangible. This is architecture for a town moving forward without asking it to forget what preceded it. Excerpt CREVA OKUMA / KUMA SUN TERRACE uses daylight, approachable materials and varied shared spaces to support community and everyday comfort.

Digital Publishing SEO TITLE CREVA OKUMA / KUMA SUN TERRACE SEO DESCRIPTION FIELD FOUR DESIGN OFFICE creates CREVA OKUMA / KUMA SUN TERRACE as a welcoming institutional environment for connection and respite. Project Metadata Project type Interior Design — Institution

Location Okuma, Japan

Award Sky Design Awards 2026 — Finalist

Designer / company FIELD FOUR DESIGN OFFICE

Client / collaborators Private institutional client

Completion date 2025 Editorial Notes Key themes: spatial identity; material strategy; user experience; adaptable design; contemporary architecture and interiors. Designer/company: FIELD FOUR DESIGN OFFICE. Editorial authorization confirmed by subsequent email. ESDA •

The project's strength lies in its understanding that recovery cannot be delivered by an emblem alone. FIELD FOUR DESIGN OFFICE gives Okuma a piece of social infrastructure whose civic purpose is carried by everyday use: crossing the plaza, sharing a kitchen, working beside a neighbour or returning for a seasonal event.

Its references to landscape and collective memory are restrained, while the rotated plan, barrier-free ground and locally sourced timber make the larger ambitions tangible. This is architecture for a town moving forward without asking it to forget what preceded it.