Kengo Kuma Completes Timber-Transformed Public Library in Chikujō, Japan

Kengo Kuma and Associates have finished the Chikujō Town Public Library, a renovation of a former public hall in rural Fukuoka, Japan. Completed in November 2025, the 2,846-square-meter facility, named 'Kizuki no Mori,' features extensive use of hinoki (Japanese cypress) louvres that define both its exterior and interior. The design employs vertical wooden slats along the facade and entrance canopy, creating a porous threshold that filters light and softens the building's scale. Inside, the same timber elements form angled arrays from floor to ceiling in the central atrium, organizing circulation and creating a layered interior. The project retains the original concrete frame of the hall but transforms the atmosphere with warm wood tones. The ground level includes circular platforms and integrated bookshelves for informal gathering and children's activities, while the second floor offers more regular stacks and seating for extended study. The library is located in Chikujō, Kyushu, and represents a civic space that blends architectural intervention with community function, using timber to mediate between the existing structure and new programmatic needs.