JR SAPPORO STATION (SAPPORO)

Bright lights, artwork dazzle citizens

Photos by Yomiuri Shimbun Photographer Naoki Haranaka

By Shin Usami

Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

Sapporo, a city of 1.86 million people, looks like a small town when viewed from a skyscraper standing 160 meters high over the south exit of JR Sapporo Station.

The 38-story JR Tower, completed in March last year, is a giant commercial complex with a floor space six times the size of Tokyo Dome. It houses a department store, hotel, spa and cineplex along with other amenities.

At the top of the tower is an observation gallery that offers unparalleled views of the city.

Even the men's restroom, found in a corner of the gallery, has glass walls that promise an almost unobstructed view as long as weather permits. This toilet in the sky is the daring concept of a female architect living in Tokyo.

"I tried to make men feel as if they were floating in the air while relieving themselves. I finally arrived at this uncompromising design," said Junko Kobayashi, also director of the Japan Toilet Association. The association is a nonprofit organization backed by the local and central governments.

The observation gallery is not the only place worth visiting at or near the station. The JR Tower Art Guide illustrates more than 50 works of art displayed in and around the station.

One of them is located in the western concourse of the tower. Named "Myomu," the artwork features an egg-shaped hole gouged out of the center of a 2-1/2-meter-high white stone.

One evening, a woman sat in the hole and put on makeup. Asked what she thought it was, she said: "Oh my goodness! Isn't this a bench?"

"I think it's difficult to discover everything in this building, no matter how long you spend here," said Kiyoko Miyagawa, 65, from Wakkanai, Hokkaido.