On 23rd December, we held the Kakura Stone Wall Seminar’s year-end party! With new lab members joining us this year and third-year undergraduates also attending, it became our largest year-end gathering ever!
It’s heartwarming. Next year too, we intend to enjoy university life together, faculty and students alike, working hand in hand.
2026 is just around the corner. Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!!
We enjoyed delicious meat and vegetables while spending a lively and fun time together. This time, we also got to use the pizza oven and tried our hand at various dishes like roasted sweet potatoes!
Additionally, the filmmaker who has been supporting the Yano Minami Elementary School project joined us. We had the opportunity to hear fascinating stories not only about furniture but also about the world of filmmaking.
Gathering around the bonfire, we had many conversations. This not only deepened our connections with the people involved in the Yano Minami Elementary School project but also allowed us to thoroughly discuss how to proceed with future projects. It was an extremely fruitful day.
This project began in 2022, and last fiscal year marked the completion of renovations to the former police officers’ quarters. This fiscal year, under the theme “A Place to Make Your Dreams Come True,” we are conducting trial operations, including holding events and workshops approximately once or twice a month!
As part of these efforts, we held an exterior wall painting workshop in September and an interior wall plastering workshop in October, further transforming the building beyond its original state!
Additionally, at the event held in December, we hosted a collaborative exhibition by emerging artists and food sales, welcoming our highest number of visitors to date. Throughout this past year, we are truly delighted to have felt a strong connection with so many people. ✨
12月 一階の様子12月 二階コラボ展の様子
今後とも本活動へのご理解と応援を、どうぞよろしくお願いいたします！
We sincerely appreciate your continued understanding and support for our activities!
On 16 December, we held the third workshop for Chugoku Electric Power’s Energia Research Institute ABW Implementation Project! This time, we held it at Hiroshima University’s Higashi-Senda Campus for a change of scenery. It was a calm, warm space – a place that really sparked ideas.
Building on ideas from previous workshops, participants formed three mixed teams of employees and students. They discussed specific concepts, zoning, functions, and circulation plans, culminating in presentations by each team.
In this project, the implementation of ABW itself is not the objective; rather, it must serve as a means to foster the unique innovation that arises from bringing together specialists from diverse fields within this institute. To this end, we engaged in vigorous discussions involving both staff and students, translating abstract concepts into concrete plans while anticipating actual usage scenarios.
Some teams focused on comprehensive ideas, while others centred on employee development, with each group producing distinctive outputs. During the latter part of the workshop, all teams freely brainstormed points of interest and ideas they wished to explore using models. The key sticking point for future discussions remains how to utilise the large central void…
At last, the full picture of our renovated office is coming into view! Keep an eye out for what happens next!!
On December 12th, we held a workshop with elementary school students from Yano Minami Elementary School to disassemble school desks and chairs! This was the first joint class for our furniture upcycling project, and while it was the students’ first time disassembling furniture, they all participated in the dismantling work with great enthusiasm!
In the first period, sakurasaku gave a lecture on furniture-making techniques, the cycle of wood, and the work of carpenters, architects, and graphic designers.
During the second and third periods, we actually dismantled desks and chairs from unused classrooms. Since dismantling requires some skill, some elementary school students struggled at first. However, with advice from the sakurasaku staff on how to apply force and use the tools, the students gradually got the hang of it and managed to dismantle nearly all the target number of desks and chairs!
Additionally, although this was a dismantling workshop held within a limited timeframe, elementary school students actively participated, and some children asked questions and chatted with sakurasaku and the university students. This makes me think the upcoming workshop where we’ll create crafts using the dismantled furniture will be a lot of fun too.
