Alum Kiyokazu Arai (M.Arch '83), principal of Japan-based Arai Architects, recently won a 2-stage international competition for the concept development of an International Business Center in the city of Yerevan, Armenia. His proposal was among 275 competition entries.

Resting on a unique hilltop with panoramic views of Yerevan and of Mt. Ararat, the 300,000 sq. ft. project comprises a hotel, business center, residential and commercial zones, and a parking structure.

The scheme by Arai Architects employs ordering principles such as Rhythm/Gradation/Flow, together with compositional methods for the spatial sequence between outside and inside, and landscape and architecture. Within this design composition, a number of framed scenes in the center's outdoor plaza become spaces that unify the site with Mt. Ararat and the city context.

Arai is a professor at Kyoto Seika University.

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