The oval-shaped roof deck of this playful Tokyo kindergarten allows children to play and run endless laps around it – a feature that has just won it the 2017 Moriyama RAIC International Prize. More about Tokyo kindergarten by Tezuka Architects lets children run free on the roof
Soft hues and dark framework decorate this compact hair salon in Osaka by Japanese studio Hidenori Tsuboi Architects. More about Pastel colours and subtle grids break up open-plan hair salon in Osaka
This family house in Japan's Shiga prefecture was designed by local studio Hearth Architects around an indoor garden, which is planted with a tree that extends towards a skylight. More about Hearth Architects completes family house in Shiga with tree-planted atrium
Interior design studio Sides Core placed a black metal arch in the centre of this flower shop, in Kobe, Japan, and it forms a support for lighting fixtures and plants. More about Minimal Japanese flower shop by Sides Core features a curved black climbing frame for plants
Jun Igarashi Architects found a work-around in Japanese building code to create this house on Hokkaido's southwest coast, which features a larger than average roof to protect a pair of patios from snowfall. More about Jun Igarashi Architects uses loophole in Japanese planning to equip Hokkaido house for snowy winters
Masato Sekiya's firm Planet Creations has completed a concrete weekend house, which cantilevers six metres over a rocky ledge in Japan's Omine mountain range. More about Holiday home by Masato Sekiya cantilevers over a river bank in Nara Prefecture
Sheets of corrugated steel envelop the upper storey of this house and studio for a photographer in Japan's Shiga prefecture, which was designed by Kouichi Kimura to feature an interior that makes dramatic play of light and shadow. More about Kouichi Kimura completes steel-wrapped home and studio for photographer in Shiga
Klein Dytham Architecture has completed a visitor centre and ice rink in Japan's Karuizawa region, featuring a curving, shingle-clad frontage that follows the edge of a landscaped skating pond. More about Shingle-clad clubhouse and visitor centre faces ice rink in a Japanese forest
This house by Japanese office MUU Store Design Studio has a footprint of just 60 square metres. More about Gap House is a Japanese home that makes the most of every inch
SANAA has built a small passenger terminal shaped like a cloud for a port on the Japanese island of Naoshima, which is famed for its contemporary art scene. More about SANAA completes cloud-shaped port terminal building for Naoshima island
Windowless concrete walls obscure the view from one side of this home designed by Shinichi Ogawa & Associates in the Japanese prefecture of Kanagawa, while glazing and a cantilevering infinity pool make the most of sea vistas from the other. More about Windowless facade obscures seaside home in Kanagawa by Shinichi Ogawa & Associates
This captioned movie shows how Japanese art collective TeamLab filled a park in Japan's Saga Prefecture with light-based installations, including a digital waterfall and a school of virtual koi carp swimming in a pond. More one-minute movies ›
More about TeamLab illuminates Japanese forest with digital projections
Japanese architect Tadao Ando has concealed a huge stone statue of the buddha within a hill covered in lavender plants at the Makomanai Takino Cemetery in Sapporo. More about Tadao Ando surrounds huge buddha statue with lavender-covered mound at Sapporo cemetery
The 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan was the first in a series of grave events that prompted Fukushima-based architect Cohta Asano to develop the complex design for his new home. More about Cohta Asano builds his new Fukushima home as a cluster of nine cuboids
A chimney-like tower covered in white tiles rises in the courtyard of this house in Shiga, Japan, which architect Kouichi Kimura has designed for the owner to host yoga classes. More about Japanese house by Kouichi Kimura includes white-tiled courtyard for yoga
Stacked soil walls resemble layers of cake in this chocolate and ice cream shop in Kichijoji, Tokyo, designed by Japanese studio Nendo. More about Nendo designs Tokyo store interior to look like "melted ice cream cake"
Japanese retailer Muji is set to open hotels in Shenzhen, China and Tokyo, Japan, which will be styled with the minimalist brand's furnishings and products. More about Muji to open hotels in China and Japan
Japanese architecture studio Chop + Archi has used a trio of courtyards to make the most of the sharp "dead space" corners of this house, located on an almost triangular plot in Tokyo. More about Chop + Archi cuts triangular lightwells into corners of house in Tokyo
A group of Japanese engineers are aiming to launch the world's smallest flying car, the Skydrive, in time for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. More about Toyota-backed flying car is slated to light the 2020 Olympic flame
Hundreds of thousands of wooden shingles cover the contoured form of this pavilion in the grounds of Japan's Shinshoji Zen Museum and Gardens, which is designed to evoke the shape of a ship's hull. More about Sandwich creates "ship-shaped" art pavilion in Fukuyama to commemorate deaths at sea