In our July issue (out now), we take you to the tiny fishing village of Nima, in the Shimane prefecture in southern Japan where we pay homage to the Nima Sand Museum, first unveiled in 1991. A phenomenal structure by locally born architect Shin Takamatsu, it was built as a modern monument to the unusual 'singing' sand of nearby Kotogahama beach, which, when walked on, makes a strange, rasping sound.
To see sweeping shots of the building, and read our interview with Takamatsu, now 62, you will have to turn to the magazine.
Here on wallpaper.com however, we give you an insight into the 'singing' sand itself.
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The anatomy of a Celine bag: inside the house’s idyllic Tuscan factoryWallpaper* visits the serene Italian factory where Celine crafts its celebrated ‘Triomphe’ handbags, which is set against an inspiring backdrop of lush Tuscan countryside
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How Tom Dixon turned punk ethos into a product empireEverything you need to know about the British designer who made heavy industry high-end – and built a global lifestyle brand from the ground up.
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How architects are redefining disaster relief through designDisaster relief architecture is a critical component of humanitarian aid across the globe; read our ultimate guide on how architects can make a difference through design
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Campaigners propose reuse to save Kenzo Tange’s modernist ‘Ship Gymnasium’ in JapanThe Pritzker Prize-winning architect’s former Kagawa Prefectural Gymnasium is at risk of demolition; we caught up with the campaigners who hope to save it
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A new photo book explores the symbolic beauty of the Japanese garden‘Modern Japanese Gardens’ from Thames & Hudson traces the 20th-century evolution of these serene spaces, where every element has a purpose
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The Monthly Architecture Edit: Wallpaper’s favourite July housesFrom geometric Japanese cottages to restored modernist masterpieces, these are the best residential projects to have crossed the architecture desk this month
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Mayumi Miyawaki’s Fukumura Cottage puts this lesser-known Japanese modernist in the spotlightDiscover the little-known modernist architect through this private home in Japan’s Tochigi prefecture countryside
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A Karuizawa house is a soothing, work-from-home retreat in JapanTakeshi Hirobe Architects play with scale and space, creating a tranquil residence in which to live and work
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Naoshima New Museum of Art is a home for Asian art, and a lasting legacy, in Seto Inland SeaThe Naoshima New Museum of Art opens, marking a seminal addition to the Japanese island's renowned Benesse Art Site Naoshima; we explore Tadao Ando's design
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Behind a contemporary veil, this Kyoto house has tradition at its coreDesigned by Apollo Architects & Associates, a Kyoto house in Uji City is split into a series of courtyards, adding a sense of wellbeing to its residential environment
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Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa on harmony, nature and their RIBA gongThe SANAA duo are celebrating their RIBA Royal Gold Medal 2025 in London today, and talked to us about self-reflection, the year ahead, and the need to create harmony in our environment
