Asahi Nakauchi (Nagasaki Nihon University High School), a student in the Department of Faculty of Architecture and Civil Engineering Department of Architecture, won the top prize at the "Red Brick Graduation Exhibition 2026".
This exhibition is a contest where architecture students from all over Japan bring their graduation projects, and outstanding works are selected through a public judging process by architects and university researchers. Every year, 100 projects that pass the initial screening are exhibited from a total of approximately 1,000 entries, and then 10 projects are selected to proceed to the public judging. This year, Ms. Nakauchi was selected as one of those 10 projects and received the highest score in the final judging after her presentation. After discussion, she was selected as the winner of the Grand Prize.
The award-winning work, "Traces of the Mountain, Welcoming the Light," is a proposal that fundamentally re-examines the relationship between nature and architecture, set against the backdrop of Mt. Kawara in Kawara-machi, Tagawa-gun, Fukuoka Prefecture. Based on the "traces of erosion" created by years of mining, a structure is built using steel trusses * that trace the contour lines that the mountain once had, and scraps of stone quarried at Mt. Ninodake are filled into the gaps in the trusses, creating a facility where visitors can experience the industrial heritage from the inside while feeling the light filtering in through the gaps in the stone.
The judges highly praised the simplicity and beauty of the work. The proposal to restore the original form of the carved mountain through architecture, the bold reinterpretation of industrial heritage, and the careful consideration of the site and environment while creating the space were all cited as appealing aspects. This combination of originality and persuasiveness was comprehensively evaluated, leading to its selection as the winner of the Grand Prize.
Nakauchi said, "I am truly honored to receive such a wonderful award. I worked on the project for a year, starting in the second semester of my third year. Initially, I started with the desire to 'work with light,' and while considering sites where I could engage with nature, I came across Mt. Kawara. For the past year, I have been exploring how to create a space that reflects the relationship between the traces of the land and light."
The department provides advanced design education and practical training, primarily through Advanced Program, "ABC Architecture Dojo," and has a track record of winning numerous awards in various competitions. This award is a significant culmination of the results of this learning.
* Truss: A structural framework made by combining multiple straight members (steel, wood, etc.) in a triangular shape.
[Department of Architecture]
