Sato Issai Learning Plaza

The Sato Issai Learning Square is a facility that commemorates Sato Issai, a great man who represented the Iwamura Domain in Mino Province during the late Edo period, now Iwamura Town in Ena City.
As head of the Shoheizaka Gakuin (the predecessor of the University of Tokyo), Sato Issai produced many disciples, and his teachings (the words he left behind) not only influenced many Meiji Restoration patriots at the end of the Edo period, but are still passed down to the hearts of many people today.
This facility is comprised of a video introducing the life of Sato Issai, an introduction to the many words he left behind, content that speaks to visitors in an interactive format with words that resonate with them, and quiz-style content for children.

The request was to develop a facility that could communicate Ena City's lifelong learning initiative, the "Citizen's Three Learning Movement*", to local residents, the entire city, and visitors, by introducing the words of Sato Issai's book, "Genshi Shiroku". While the words left in "Genshi Shiroku" are widely known, there are almost no items related to Sato Issai himself remaining, so the challenge was how to develop the facility as displays space.

*Ena City's initiative to realize the "Three Learnings Town," based on the philosophy of Sato Issai's "Spirit of Three Learnings," which advocates that "everyone, from children to the elderly, should learn and become happy," is based on three pillars: "Learning from Calligraphy," "Seeking and Learning," and "Learning and Applying."

Our company first created a video that concisely portrays the life of Sato Issai, using it as an introduction to displays to convey his personality to those unfamiliar with him. Following this, displays his representative quotes with explanations, using interchangeable panels so that visitors can encounter different quotes on subsequent visits. In addition, we have made it possible to read numerous quotes that could not be fully presented in displays through a slideshow-style monitor.
Many of the sayings are still relevant today, but we have also developed content that selects and speaks appropriate words to visitors by answering a few questions, so that they can find the words that are most relevant to them. In addition, to cater to a wide range of age groups, we have set up a corner that can be enjoyed by parents and children together.

In addition, the design incorporates the use of local resources, such as using fire-resistant treated timber from Ena City for interiors materials.

Wood was used throughout the entire facility, creating an atmosphere where you can feel the warmth and scent of wood.
By combining not only displays but also technologies such as theater videos and interactive content, the facility has become capable of diverse uses.