ART TOWER MITO - Concept & Appeal

Fundamental Concepts of ATM

ATM creating new art and culture

Art Tower Mito shall base its activities on its own points of view, independent of established evaluations, and it will strive to create new art and culture for the future.

ATM promoting exchanges of art and culture, based on international perspectives

Art Tower Mito shall contribute to the improvement of the citizens' cultural awareness and the promotion of the art and culture of Japan, through exchanges of art and culture based on not only internal but alseo international perspectives.

ATM is a place to find pleasure and think

Art Tower Mito shall be the place where every one, old and young, can stop at any time to acquire a closer acquaintance with art and culture, while thinking of their meanings and feeling an easy familiarity with them.

ATM as a base for art and culture activities

Art Tower Mito shall be a base for activities related to art and culture, by giving citizens opportunities for creativity and exhibitions.

ATM to contribute to the revitalization of Mito city

Art Tower Mito shall contribute to revitalization of Mito city, by developing activities in connection with various city functions and restructuring, not only as a center for cultural creativity but also as the very core of the city.

Characteristics of ATM's Management

Independent Planning

Each event at ATM is managed independently for the effective use of the specific spaces of the art, theater and music divisions. Planning is guided by Hidekazu Yoshida, ATM's Director-General.

Orchestras and a dramatic company

Symbolic of ATM's mission in promoting cultural and artistic activities, it has its own exclusive orchestras and theater repertory:the Mito Chamber Orchestra, Mito Quartet, ATM Ensemble and Acting Company Mito(ACM).

In order to achieve the ideals of Art Tower Mito, the Mito city government established the Mito Arts Foundation and decided to apportion 1% of the city's budget for the management of ATM, with a guarantee of its freedom in operations.

Art Tower Mito

Art Tower Mito
1-6-8, Goken-cho, Mito-shi, Ibaraki
Opened : March 22, 1990
Founder : Mito-shi, Ibaraki, Japan
Grounds : 13,941m^2
Structure : ferro-concrete, steel frame
	    and ferro-concrete, and steel frame;
	    four stories above ground plus two underground
Building space : 6,873.91m^2
Floor space : 22,432.10m^2

Tower
Hight : 100 meters
Observatory : 86.4 meters

Art Tower Mito (ATM) was conceived and designed with the aim of stimulating Mito's urban development, which had so far centered on the national highway.

Art Tower Mito is located in the center of the city, and its plaza, with an open lawn encircled by keyaki (zelkova) trees, the cascade and the corridor, is always open to visitors.

The complex, with this plaza in the center, is composed of the 100-meter high helix tower on the east, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the city's modern form of gevernment; Concert Hall ATM, ACM (Acting Company Mito) Theatre, and the Entrance Hall on the west, and Contemporary Art Gallery on the north.

At Art Tower Mito, each facility, with its respective focus on music, drama and art, has been made spatially independent, but, on the other hand, connected by common areas.

Art Tower Mito has been planned and constructed as the headquarters of artistic activities in Mito, and the place for sending them out to the rest of the world.

ENTRANCE HALL

The Entrance Hall is a common lobby for visitors to Concert Hall ATM, ACM Theatre and Contemporary Art Gallery. The Hall measures 11 meters high, with a frontage of 7 meters and a depth of 22 meters. This space, equipped with a pipe organ, is designed to provide an appropriate long vibration time for that instrument. The pipe organ, with 46 stops and 3,283 pipes in all, was designed and manufactured by the Japanese company MaNa Orgelbau AG.

CONCERT HALL ATM (620-680 seats)

Concert Hall ATM is a six-sided, arena-type hall; its plan resembles an open hand, with the stage where the palm would be. The hall is intended for medium-sized ensembles. The central part of the ceiling is a movable sound-reflecting disk. This can be used to adjust the delay of initial reflected sound to suit the scale of the performance, producing a more comfortable, intimate and graceful feeling.

ACM THEATRE (472-636 seats)

ACM Theatre is a twelve-sided theater with the stage circled by three levels of balcony seats, arranged in a curve. The balcony levels are low enough so that the audience can see each actor's every expression from any seat. With no barrier between the stage and the seats, the audience and the actors can enjoy a sense of unity.

CONTEMPORARY ART GALLERY (9 rooms)

Contemporary Art Gallery consists of a block of nine exhibit rooms, each different in size, light conditions and dimensions. Passing through the sequence of rooms, with a diverse atmosphere illuminated by both natural light and artificial light, visitors will sense a spatial rhythm. Floor, wall, and ceiling details are as unobstrusive as possible, so that the interior decorations of the gallery do not interfere with the exhibition of artworks.

For information on performances and exhibitions,

please call (0292)27-8118 (concerts); (0292)27-8123 (plays); or (0292)27-8120 (art)

For ticket reservations, call

(0292)31-8000 (concerts) or (0292)25-3555 (plays)

Hours : Tuesday through Sunday, 9:30-18:00.

Closed on Monday or Tuesday if Monday is a national holiday.