The Top 5 Recommended Anime About Architecture

Architecture is a subject focused on the construction and design of buildings, including the planning phase.

There aren’t many anime on the topic but we did our best to find 5 that cover architecture, even indirectly.

This listicle is subjective and based on our experience.

5. Winter Sonata

Winter Sonata is an anime heavily focused on drama and sentiments, divided into 26 episodes released in 2009.

Joon-sang has never known his father, as he was born out of an extramarital relationship.

With only the clue of a tattered old photo, he moves to a provincial town to find his biological father and bring him closer. As a first step, he enrolls in the same school as his alleged half-brother, Sang-Hyuk.

The two don’t get along and they end up resenting each other, and to do so Joon-sang approaches her half-brother’s best friend, Yu-Jin. What was spite becomes real, and the two fall in love.

Everything seems to be turning for the best when a sudden event happens, and we have catapulted 10 years ahead: Yu-jin has become an architect, and she is engaged to Sang-hyuk. But what happened to Joon-sang?

A very dramatic anime that indirectly covers architecture, since it’s just one element to progress the plot.

4. La Maison en Petits Cubes

A true little gem of Japanese animation, which consists of an animated short of only 12 minutes made with a special technique, animating handmade drawings.

In a city submerged by water and now desolate, an elderly gentleman refuses to leave his dwelling, filled with memories dear to him of his past life.

He therefore continually develops his house in height, adding brick upon brick, to prevent it from being submerged. But when he drops his pipe in the water, memories begin to surface.

Full of emotions, and tender and sad moments, this short film deserves to be seen by anyone, even for its short duration.

3. Kino’s Journey

Very light and enjoyable work, adapted from a light novel and composed of multiple series.

The story follows the adventures of Kino, who travels on his talking motorcycle named Hermes. During their travels they visit many different countries, spending three days in each.

On one of his trips, Kino ends up in a country where architects are hard at work building a city, enjoying the construction of a live city.

2. Honey and Clover

From a Josei manga is adapted the anime of Honey & Clover, which in its purely slice-of-life mechanics sees a whole host of love triangles.

The story chronicles the lives of five boys, three boys, and two girls, who go about their daily lives while attending a fine arts academy college while studying painting and architecture.

The highlights of this anime are definitely the characterization of the characters and their realistic relationships.

1. Thermae Romae

A 6-episode anime with a mainly historical and intensely comic bent.

The story is set in ancient Rome at the time of Hadrian and features Lucius, an architect tasked to design baths, as the main character.

One day, he finds himself in a public bathhouse in present-day Japan after being sucked through a hole in the bottom of a large tub, finding great inspiration in modernity.

A very entertaining vision with a very peculiar and unique graphic style. It’s perfect if you want to watch something light and not challenging.