An environmental video & light exhibition that emphasizes the experience of "seeing, listening, and touching"
We went to Ecoru Togoshi (エコルとごし) the new Shinagawa Ward Environmental Learning Exchange Facility / Community Centre in Togashi Park. I had heard about a really cool video interaction feature thats similar to Team Labs but on a much smaller scale. How I found out about this was a friend messaged me on instagram saying that she loves my blog and suggested some places that I should check out and Ecoru Togoshi was one of them. As Thursdays are my day off I thought it would be perfect to go and have a look at it as I assume the weekends would be busy and I much prefer to avoid crowds if I can. The best part of this centre is it's all free and you can spend as much time as you like in there. This would be the perfect rainy day hangout to entertain your kids, you can bring your own lunch and enjoy it on the bottom level.
When we got there we headed straight up to the 3rd floor for the video exhibition which is in a long room with video projections on the walls and floor. The projections are interactive so when you touch an element and it makes these shapes and sound when you put her hand on the floor or wall, it was really cool to see how it was interactive. One side of the wall was projecting the ocean with marine animals and the other side was a forest with some horses, deer and birds which my daughter loved seeing them move. I believe at certain times of the day they are projecting different things, so have a look at the schedule here.
My daughter spent so much time in this room, at 1st she was a bit nervous because she had never seen anything like it before and wasn't sure what was happening. Once she got comfortable she started walking around, touching the the walls and seeing how it would interact with her. There was a huge whale being projected on the ocean side of the wall and she just loved staring at it seeing it swim in and out.
We moved on to the other rooms to play and explore. There is a sitting area on the 3rd floor with tables and chairs that you can draw and write messages. I did a google translate of the sign at the table and it asked you to write a message of "Where you see Shinagawa ward in 50 to 100 years from now." They would then display the message on the walls like pot plants.
The next room was all about the environment and the impact certain things have on earth. It was all in Japanese so I did not translate everything but a lot you could tell what it was by the pictures or item. My daughter played in here for awhile wondering around and touching everything.
On the bottom floor they have a huge area with tables and chairs that you can sit at and relax, as well as that they have a kids play area with is perfect for littler children too. Outside there is a slide to play on.
The architecture of the building is a gorgeous wooden and glass building surrounded by huge trees and built into the landscape of the park, as their website mentions it's also the first public building in Tokyo to obtain "Nearly ZEB" certification. It is expected to reduce energy consumption by 91% compared to the standard building.
We absolutely loved going to Ecoru Togoshi and would love to go back again and spend more time in there.
Location:
2 Chome-1-30 Yutakacho, Shinagawa City, Tokyo 142-0042
Getter there:
There are a few ways you can get there depending on the direction you are coming from. We got off at Osaki Station and it was about a 20 min walk from there, during the summer heat this walk is not pleasant as its down a lot of back streets and it's up and down hills so if you have a stroller it can be a bit of a struggle due to the heat. My best advice is during summer find the closest bus stop or station to it. I've listed the closest stations below and their distance. On the way home I walked to Shimo-shimmei to get the train back.
Closest stations:
Shimo-shimmei - 7 min walk
Togoshi-kōen Station - 8 min walk