With the evolution of digital and material technologies, Japanese designers and architects are seeking ways to reverse the wholesale destruction of traditional public space in Japan brought about by industrialisation, automobiles, and Western-style concrete and steel interventions. Japanese public spaces (‘hiroba’, or “wide open areas”), human-scale spaces traditionally fashioned of “warm” and renewable materials, are making a comeback thanks to technological breakthroughs in glass and non-flammable woods that allow the expression of highly refined and delicate qualities. Includes an essay by Kengo Kuma and numerous exemplary projects.