The Conference Room has 12 seats and video calling equipment that allows the staff and artists of the Artists Village Aso 096k to connect in real time anywhere in the world. The room has hosted online meetings and Q&A sessions with international manga creators, and it is also possible to connect with the ZENON Editorial Department in Kichijoji, Tokyo. This way, manga creators can consult with their editors and discuss their work in real time.
The Art Studio is designed for manga creators who stay at the Artists Village Aso 096k to fully dedicate themselves to their work. Here, manga creators can use the newest digital tools for making manga, as well as traditional ones. In the Art Studio, there is space for 24 creators with each space being divided by a wooden partition, giving privacy to creators and helping them focus.
The Art Studio also holds a collection of COAMIX’s works, translated into various languages, as well as manga works created by international manga creators. In addition, the Art Studio is used by the SMA Editorial Department who work with international manga creators.
Equipped with full-fledged editing equipment and an impressive screen, the Screening Room offers 42 seats. All of the material filmed in the nearby Recording Studio can be checked and edited here in real-time, and there’s also a stage in front of the screen that is used to host workshops or guest lectures.
The Practice Room is used as the training area for the actresses of the all-female “096k Kumamoto Drama Company” theater group. Aside from basic training, the actresses practice singing, dancing, and action scenes here. It’s worth noting that the Practice Room is the birthplace of the theater group’s debut stage play, "Keiji's Kabuki Adventure The Stage Play - Chapter of Kiyomasa Katō: The Tiger of Kumamoto."
(The stage play is performed at Sakuranobaba Johsaien’s Kumamoto Castle Museum Wakuwakuza.)
This multi-purpose room is used to organize events with the local community or to host small-scale events. It also serves as a meeting room, offering an outdoor view of the Japanese Garden and nearby Mt. Neko.
The Japanese Garden is a rock garden that has taken inspiration from Zen gardens. The garden is visible from the Common Room, and can be enjoyed together with Mt. Neko in the background.
The Chinese Daoist Zhuang Zhou’s wisdom teaches us that “If the sunlight shines into the empty room, it will naturally become bright.” Based on the interpretations of these ancient teachings, this place was constructed with the following in mind: “The emptiness is brimming with brightness.”
People who arrive at the Artists Village Aso 096k will first enter into the empty space, but as they stay and learn here, they will become brimming with knowledge. The library is the embodiment of this interpretation.
In the middle of the space there's a five meter tall ceiling, surrounded by shelves that hold all of this knowledge. The library hosts over 6,000 books from various genres and fields, reinforcing the artists with the knowledge written inside. Underneath your feet you’ll find a round carpet in the shape of a clock, representing the Artists Village motto: “Ticking towards your Dreams.”
A bistro for all artists residing at the Artists Village Aso 096k. Operated by Zizoya, a subsidiary of COAMIX, the staff is always available to prepare meals tailored to the artists' health.
The Aso region of Kumamoto is a land known for ancient keyhole-shaped tombs, called “Kofun.” Inspired by the past, the fountain’s design is based on the shape of these tombs. The fountain is surrounded by Aso’s various flowers that bloom in different seasons of the year. The space is also used as a place for visitors and staff alike to relax.
The whole facility is designed to support aspiring manga creators and actresses who come to the Artists Village to follow their dreams. The gallery represents the dividing line between the present and their past environment, with green plants hanging from the ceiling of the hall, overflowing and embodying the passage of time. The wall is dedicated to manga, starting from COAMIX’s own original works. With legendary titles and current smash-hits, this wall boasts over 3,000 volumes of manga.
The upper part of the wall is decorated with a large calligraphy of “Ki-shō-ten-ketsu (奇承天結),” a combination of words created by COAMIX’s CEO, Nobuhiko Horie. He combined the words “Ki-sō-ten-gai (奇想天外),” meaning bizarre, and “Ki-shō-ten-ketsu (起承転結),” which is the foundation of story construction for manga. For Horie, who is also a writer of original works himself, the “Ki-shō-ten-ketsu” structure is the key to storytelling.
The Recording Studio can be used for recording videos or for live-streaming sessions, and is also used to film TV shows or advertisements for the all-female “096k Kumamoto Drama Company” theater group. The room offers equipment to produce various media content that pushes manga beyond its pages.
The design of the residential buildings was carefully crafted in a way that suits the needs of the artists who live here. This environment offers them everything they need in daily life so that they can fully focus on their growth as artists.
Currently, there are 9 residential buildings in total. Each building is separated into two apartments, and in each apartment there are 3 individual rooms, all together offering accommodation for up to 54 people. The two apartments share the corridor and the entrance. The residents of each apartment share a common living room, where they can meet and chat at the end of the day. Additionally, the residents of each apartment share a restroom, a bathroom with a separate shower room, and a washer-dryer combo. The living room is also equipped to withstand the cold winters by having a built-in floor-heating system.
