LOG
Onomichi, Hiroshima
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Venue Overview
LOG hotel, located halfway up Mount Senkoji in Onomichi, is a small six-guestroom hotel that opened in 2018 in a newly renovated 1960s apartment building. The renovation was by Indian architect Bijoy Jain’s Studio Mumbai. At Hiroshima Architecture Exhibition 2025, LOG will serve as the stage for an experiential exhibition by Osaka-based design firm UMA/design farm, which will attempt to create a ‘dialogue with architecture’ by bringing together various ‘fragments’ of Bijoy’s design concepts for LOG along with the aspirations of the Onomichi staff who were involved. LOG also features a café (open 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. / last order at 4:30 p.m.), making it an ideal spot to rest during an architectural tour.
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Architectural Highlights
Designed by Studio Mumbai, LOG opened in 2018. The name LOG stands for Lantern Onomichi Garden, and the building is a renovated 1963 apartment complex reborn as a multipurpose facility that now includes a hotel, café, and gallery. The renovation was the work of Mumbai-based Studio Mumbai, led by Indian architect Bijoy Jain. The architects were inspired for their plan by the view from the site, which is at the same elevation as the nearby row house where novelist Naoya Shiga lived when he conceived his famous novel A Dark Night’s Passing. The concept was to recreate the view of Onomichi that Shiga would have seen, as well as the scenery of Onomichi from Yasujiro Ozu’s film Tokyo Story, which is a favourite of Jain. The architects were particularly focused on connecting the land on the seaward side of the building with that of the mountain side. On the first and second floors, the walls of the former residential units were removed entirely to create a pilotis space connecting either side. Cafes and galleries are arranged around the space. The third floor features six guest rooms and a library for the exclusive use of hotel guests. Complete with verandas, the guest rooms feature interiors where even the floors are covered in washi paper—the handiwork of washi maker Wataru Hatano—creating a comforting, cocoon-like space.
※Visitors using the Exhibition Passport can access the first floor and the second floor, excluding the gallery. The second-floor gallery and third floor are for the exclusive use of hotel guests. Your understanding is appreciated.