KidsMAT2012 MATfukuoka

For the past four years, MATfukuoka has been introducing Fukuoka's extraordinary contemporary architecture to residents through a series of easy-to-engage-with summer tours. This year the organization introduces an even more accessible set of tours aimed at kids.

Tour Overview
Dates: August 25 (Saturday) and 26 (Sunday) (event postponed in case of rain)
Two tours will take place each day. Attendance at each tour is limited to 40 people.
Morning tour: 10:00-12:00
Afternoon tour: 13:00-15:00

Tour Details
Step 1
The tour begins at American architect John Jerde's Canal City Hakata, a building complex that changed the face of commercial architecture in Asia. We'll think about why the architect chose to use a canal in this way, as well as learning about and experiencing the relationship between Canal City and the surrounding neighborhood.

Step 2
From Canal City we'll move on to a different kind of commercial space, passing through the Kawabata shopping area to the Hakata River, where we'll stroll along the water amenity area. After that we'll board a boat at a wharf along the Naka River and get a rare view of Fukuoka as seen from the ocean - learning about the urban landscape in the process.

Step3
Our last leg of the tour will be a trip up the urban mountain. We'll climb the step garden of Acros Fukuoka, whose design was inspired by the theme of "coexistence between city, architecture, and nature," finally gaining a view of Fukuoka from the top - a very different, more dynamic one than we discovered earlier from the ocean.

How to Register
Eligibility: One parent and one child (elementary student, age 6-12)
Cost: 3,000 yen per parent-child pair. Additional children are 1,000 yen each.
Registration period: August 1-17
Please register by sending an email to [email protected] Payment details will be sent to applicants after registration.

Contact Info:
MATfukuoka Office (please feel free to get in touch with any questions)
Phone: 092-732-3191 Fax: 092-711-9551
Email: [email protected]