Kisho Kurokawa’s Nakagin Capsule Tower recently came down in Tokyo’s Ginza district, and will be replaced with a bougie hotel. Since its dismantling, capsules have been preserved and shipped off to locales around the world. One pod went to SFMOMA, another was restored and is on view at Hong Kong’s M+. Soon, a sliver of Nakagin Capsule Tower, formally known as Capsule A1305, will be on display at MoMA for New Yorkers to step foot within. The Many Lives of the Nakagin Capsule Tower displays Capsule A1305 and 45 pieces of contextual material that speak to the building’s multifaceted existence between 1972 and 2022. The capsule is one of only 14 restored in their original condition, according to MoMA. This ephemera includes Nakagin Capsule Tower’s only surviving architectural model, made sometime between 1970–1972. There’s also original drawings, photographs, archival film, audio recordings, interviews with former tenants, and promotional materials. “A twenty-first century home that thoroughly pursues functionality: Nakagin Capsule Manshon (Ginza)”, cover of promotional brochure for the Nakagin Company, 1971. (Courtesy Tatsuyuki Maeda / The Nakagin Capsule Tower Preservation and Restoration Project, Tokyo, Japan) How the space functioned as both a living and working environment was something fala atelier touched on in 2022 in a piece written for AN. The objects on view at MoMA will delve into the history of Metabolism’s post child, as well as how these cubes became second homes, offices, student rooms, tea rooms, libraries, galleries, and even DJ booths. Those looking for an experiential feeling will enjoy interactive virtual tours of the entire building MoMA has planned as part of the exhibition. Evangelos Kotsioris, MoMA assistant curator, organized the show with Paula Vilaplana de Miguel, a curatorial associate in MoMA’s Department of Architecture and Design. Kotsioris has likewise written a new text about Nakagin Capsule Tower as part of the MoMA One on One series, Kisho Kurokawa: Nakagin Capsule Tower. Images from Nakagin Capsule Style (Tokyo: Soshisha, 2020), showing Wakana Nitta (aka Cosplay Koe-chan) in her capsule, which she uses as a DJ-booth. (Courtesy Tatsuyuki Maeda/The Nakagin Capsule Tower Preservation and Restoration Project, Tokyo, Japan) Noritaka Minami. A503 I, from the series 1972 (2010–22). 2022. (© Noritaka Minami) The 48-page book chronicles the building’s history from its construction to its demolition. The text will include unpublished material and testimonies from individuals who resided in the building until its very end, MoMA said. Accompanying the text will be 45 color illustrations. These will be available for purchase at MoMA Design Stores, including the one PRO is now overhauling in Soho. The exhibition opens on July 10, 2025 in MoMA’s street-level galleries and will run through July 12, 2026.  The Japan Society in New York will also host public programming related to the exhibition.