Case Study: Atsushi Kitagawara Architects achieves streamlined collaboration and complex 3D visualization with VectorWorks

Atsushi Kitagawara Architects - Customer Case Study

Atsushi Kitagawara Architects, founded in Tokyo in 1982 by Atsushi Kitagawara, is known for fusing art, philosophy and architecture to create expressive public and cultural buildings. The firm faced the challenge of delivering highly ambitious, technically complex projects—most notably the large-scale Big Palette Fukushima exhibition center and the sensitive Nakamura Keith Haring Collection museum—requiring bold structural innovation, careful site integration, and close coordination among engineers, landscape and lighting designers.

Kitagawara answered with poetic yet practical design solutions: the sculptural “Mother Roof,” carbon-fiber canopies, hyperbolic-paraboloid shells and a one-story museum form that preserves surrounding trees and choreographs light for the Haring collection. Adopting Vectorworks for 3D modeling and cross-disciplinary CAD collaboration streamlined coordination and delivery. The result: multiple top national and international awards, rapid firm growth (including a Berlin office), and iconic buildings that marry technical excellence with powerful visitor experiences.

Atsushi Kitagawara Architects

Atsushi Kitagawara

Principal