kazuyo sejima frames POLA GINZA flagship as a temporal landscape
POLA GINZA, designed by renowned Japanese architect Kazuyo Sejima, co-founder of SANAA, reimagines the concept of a beauty flagship as an environment rooted in perception. Created as POLA’s global flagship in Tokyo, the space harmonizes architecture, sound, lighting, and fragrance to investigate how beauty is experienced, internalized, and brought to life in both mind and body. Guided by the brand’s Science. Art. Love. philosophy, the flagship emphasizes atmosphere and multisensory experience above all else.
Envisioned as a place that evokes what POLA describes as the ‘latent sense of beauty’ within, the project is structured as an immersive journey through light, sound, scent, and tactile materiality—a spatial narrative foregrounding perception, self-awareness, and the passage of time. The renovation is the result of collaboration among leading Japanese creatives, including Kazuyo Sejima, composer Keiichiro Shibuya, lighting designer Shozo Toyohisa, and olfactory artist Kan Izumi, each adding a unique sensory dimension to the overall experience.
Sejima conceptualizes the project as a garden-like space with its own unique sense of time. As she describes, visitors are momentarily transported out of daily routines and rhythms, entering a distinct temporal space that encourages reflection and mindful observation of oneself.
all images by Kenshu Shintsubo
a flora forest at street level in tokyo
On the ground floor, guests step into what Japanese architect Kazuyo Sejima calls the Flora Forest—an animated internal landscape defined by subtly irregular heptagonal columns. These vertical forms guide movement and perception, connecting interior and exterior, and gently balancing motion with stillness. Softly glowing walls and delicately shifting light create an atmosphere that feels organic and dynamic rather than staged. The space also features a permanent generative sound installation by Keiichiro Shibuya. His piece, Abstract Music, POLA version, continuously evolves in real time, using a vast archive of sound data that is algorithmically layered and transformed to produce a living soundscape.
The sensory journey continues below ground. From the vibrant forest above, visitors descend to the first basement level, where the ambiance becomes even more tranquil. This lower floor houses POLA’s esthetic and treatment rooms, each designed as a private retreat. Here, materials, lighting, and scent shift to evoke a more grounded, earthy feeling: warm light, fragrances reminiscent of soil and filtered sunlight, and a purposeful, calming quietude fill the space.
Treatments are based on the Resense Scan, a diagnostic system developed with POLA Chemical Industries’ proprietary technology. Advanced facial video analysis reveals the current condition of the skin, providing a foundation for personalized consultations. The treatment experience includes specialized facial masks, gentle radio-frequency body care introducing soothing warmth, and private foot baths integrated into each treatment suite.
Kazuyo Sejima rethinks the beauty flagship as a space of perception
light behaves like matter
Lighting designer Shozo Toyohisa takes a distinctive approach by forgoing spotlights and dramatic contrasts. Instead, he uses overlapping wavelengths and inverse-phase illumination, creating subtle pulses and dissolving transitions. The result is an atmospheric blur where light feels almost physical, resembling mist more than conventional illumination. The ever-changing environment prevents the space from settling, inviting visitors to notice subtle shifts rather than static scenes.
Throughout the building, light, sound, and scent intentionally avoid perfect synchronization. This orchestrated dissonance sharpens sensory awareness. Kan Izumi’s olfactory design follows this philosophy, introducing two complementary scents: one expresses POLA’s contemporary spirit and the interplay of science and craftsmanship; the other draws from vegetal warmth and memory, grounding the senses and encouraging mindful focus. Rather than dominating the space, fragrance acts as a subtle guide, anchoring the visitor’s experience without directing their emotions.
the project brings together architecture, sound, light, and scent to explore how beauty is
