Makuhari Messe, Convention center in Makuhari New City, Japan
Makuhari Messe is a convention complex in Nakase, Chiba, designed by Fumihiko Maki and completed in 1989. Its long exhibition hall, 516 m from end to end, carries a flat roof edged by tall white masts tied back with thin diagonal rods above a grid of dark glass. A white elevated walkway crosses the front on grey concrete piers, with a glazed lower level and ramps beneath. The site holds halls 1-8, the North Hall (9-11), a conference hall and an event hall.
Planned in the early 1980s as part of Chiba Prefecture's Makuhari New City development, the international exhibition hall opened on 9 October 1989. The complex earned the 32nd BCS Award and the IAITA Quaternario Award; the North Hall, completed on 1 October 1997, received the 40th BCS Award and the 5th Chiba Prefecture Architecture Culture Award.
The name comes from Makuhari, the district, and Messe, German for trade fair. The complex hosts events such as the Tokyo Game Show, Jump Festa and Summer Sonic, and its common areas have been used as filming locations for television dramas.
Access is through Kaihinmakuhari station on the Keiyō Line, within walking distance of the center. Express bus lines connect the venue to several regional hubs, making arrival from different directions straightforward.
Rock band Glay set a Guinness World Record here in July 1999 by performing the largest ticketed concert in history before 200,000 attendees. This record demonstrates the exceptional capacity of the facility for large-scale events with massive audiences.
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