Press Release
YN International School Educational Facility by Nobuaki Miyashita Is Granted the Silver A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
Nobuaki Miyashita of Mr Studio acknowledged for architecture, building and structure design by the international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 22, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that YN International School Educational Facility by Nobuaki Miyashita of Mr Studio, designed for Jones Lang LaSalle K.K., has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Architecture, Building and Structure Design category. The award was conferred within the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
The Silver A' Design Award Explained
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
Regarding YN International School Educational Facility
YN International School is a planned international school campus in Yokohama, Japan. The design interprets Japanese rice terraces as a spatial system for learning. A stepped mass rises from north to south to satisfy strict shadow control, while planted roof terraces are stacked as daily outdoor learning landscapes. A central skylight and an open atrium bring daylight deep into the elongated plan and help students keep orientation. Glass classroom fronts keep learning visible, supporting curiosity and cross-cultural exchange. The site covers about 11,300 square meters.
About Mr Studio
An architectural firm based in Japan that designs various types of buildings, including residential homes, commercial facilities, hotels, offices, factories, and schools.
Award Record
Nobuaki Miyashita of Mr Studio is a winner of 14 A' Design Awards, including this recognition. The awards span the editions from 2023 - 2024 to 2025 - 2026 of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' Architecture, Building and Structure Design Award
The A' Architecture Design Award is an international architectural design competition recognizing good architectural designs by best architects worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to architectural design studios, building contractors, structural engineering firms and architecture and design consultants from all countries. Entries typically include skyscrapers, museums, residential buildings, commercial complexes, educational institutions and religious structures. Awarded architectural projects are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/architecture
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/181294
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/181294
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!181294
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/353711
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://www.mrstudio.biz
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- YN International School Educational Facility
- Function
- Educational Facility
- Category
- Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture
- Colors
- Dark Slate Gray, Black, Dark Gray, Dark Olive Green and Light Blue
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Jones Lang LaSalle K.K.
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Nobuaki Miyashita
- Country
- Japan
- Brand
- Mr Studio
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #181294
Credits
- Image Credits
- Nobuaki Miyashita (MR STUDIO Co.,Ltd.)
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Planned international school campus in Yokohama, Kanagawa (design 2023-2025, unbuilt). A rice-terrace-inspired section steps upward from north to south to satisfy strict shadow control, while stacking green roof terraces as everyday learning landscapes. A central skylight and atrium bring daylight deep into the long plan, and transparent classroom fronts promote curiosity and cross-cultural interaction. Site approx. 11,300 sqm; total construction floor area approx. 29,000 sqm.
- Inspiration
- Inspired by rice terraces, a Japanese landscape shaped by slope, water, and time. The campus translates this heritage into an urban school: overlapping green roof terraces form a daily outdoor learning terrain, while the stepped section rising north to south responds rationally to strict shadow control. The concept lets international students sense Japanese culture through routine movement, light, and landscape, not as decoration.
- Research
- Type: design research. Objective: translate rice-terrace heritage into an educational campus that meets strict shadow control while providing biophilic learning space. Method: iterative north-to-south sectional studies; stacking green roof terraces; daylight strategy using a central skylight and atrium across an elongated plan; transparency via glass classroom fronts. Tools/Data: compliance and daylight checks. Result: a campus where cultural identity is experienced as daily landscape and light, supported by bright shared interiors and accessible terraces.
- Challenge
- Challenge: create an internationally open learning environment while conveying Japanese culture without turning tradition into decoration, and also satisfy strict shadow control. The solution turns compliance into identity: a rice-terrace-inspired mass steps upward from north to south and layers green roof terraces as everyday learning landscapes. Inside, a large skylight and atrium secure daylight and orientation, while transparent classroom fronts keep learning visible and interactive.
- Realization and Technology
- Realized through section, not a decorative skin. Terraces and roofs are layered as planted open spaces, forming a continuous learning landscape. A large skylight spans the center of the elongated volume, and an open atrium increases daylight penetration and visual connection between floors. Classroom fronts use glass partitions to keep learning visible and inviting while maintaining controlled separation.
- Operation and Interaction
- The campus works as a vertical landscape. Students move along layered terraces and corridors around a central atrium, keeping orientation in the long plan. The skylight and atrium make shared spaces bright and legible, while green roof terraces support daily outdoor learning and rest. Glass-partitioned classrooms keep activities visible, encouraging curiosity, spontaneous encounters, and cross-cultural exchange.
- Project Duration and Location
- Location: Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Design period: 2023-2025. Project status: unbuilt, construction not scheduled. The proposal forms a stepped, rice-terrace-like campus mass shaped by strict shadow control, with layered green roof terraces and a central skylight/atrium for daylight quality. Site approx. 11,300 sqm; total construction floor area approx. 29,000 sqm.
- Specifications
- Planned campus: B2F + 5F; building height approx. 19.5 m. Typical floor height 3.9 m (1F-5F); ceiling height 3.0 m (1F-5F, B1) and 4.0 m (B2); floor height 4.4 m (B1) and 6.1 m (B2). Total construction floor area approx. 29,000 sqm on a site approx. 11,300 sqm. Key devices: stepped massing for shadow control, green roof terraces, central skylight and atrium, transparent classroom fronts.
- Keywords
- Architecture, International school, Educational facility, Rice terraces, Green roof terraces, Atrium, Skylight, Daylight, Shadow control, Japanese culture
