Over the years I’ve photographed the likes of abandoned villages, resort towns and terribly poignant former homes. These and other outings have allowed me to build up a nice collection of old telephone and TV shots, as ultimately it’s time along with what gets left behind that makes each and every place special. That said, the mansion complex below is something else altogether.
When I first saw photos of it several years ago, it obviously piqued my interest, but its then completely intact nature and shiny-floored appearance made it look more like a bizarre museum of the kitsch than an abandoned building worth seeking out and photographing. Unfortunately there still hasn’t been enough time for nature to make any real inroads, but plenty of people have passed through, which has taken the sheen of those polished surfaces and given the whole place a sort of post-revolution, or even post-capitalism vibe.
The real story behind it (or at least its owner) isn’t quite so dramatic, but perhaps predictably it does involve money — lots and lots of money. Known as the Ginza Property King, Genshiro Kawamoto is a real estate tycoon supposedly fond of saying, “I don’t care about taxes. Only fools would pay them.” Words he clearly lived by, as in 2013 he was arrested on suspicion of evading over 800 million yen in payments — a charge that in 2018 eventually resulted in the then 86-year-old receiving a 4-year prison sentence along with a 240 million yen fine. Needless to say Kawamoto challenged the decision, but in January last year a final appeal was dismissed by the Supreme Court and both the sentence and fine were upheld.
What all that means for one of his former homes is hard to say, but considering what has already happened, it’s more than likely the sprawling structure will simply be allowed to fall apart and slowly cease to be of interest. A fate similar to the one that will very likely befall Mr. Kawamoto himself.
Sean says
Wow just WOW! This is awesome. I keep looking at the photos and I still can’t believe what I’m seeing!
Lee says
Cheers. Yeah, it’s certainly unique. Without a doubt like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Likely something I’ll never see again as well.
Carl says
Just amazing. What a place. Really love the photos too. The head and the phone is a favourite. Must have been great place to photograph.
Lee says
Thanks a lot. And yeah, it really is special.
It was. But must admit, initially it was quite overwhelming. With so much to see, and all of it incredibly unfamiliar, it took a while to know what to shoot, and how I wanted to shoot it.
Shannon says
Great location, great photos. Where is this place located?
Lee says
Cheers. I never give locations out here, but with the info in the write-up, it’s easily found.
Halemaumau says
Most of these images were of his Hawaii properties which was eventually sold to Alexander & Baldwin in a bulk sale at basement prices. Most artwork, sculptures, etc were shipped back to Japan and the remaining items were sold at auction in Hawaii.
Deborah says
Location in Japan. The vandalism breaks my heart. How can anyone destroy such beauty.
Ken C says
What a beautiful place…apart from the dead tigers! It’s amazing that no-one has taken ownership, even if the government could sell it to pay the fine.
Lee says
Yeah, the dead big cats were a bit of a shocker to say the least. I know eh, although it’s hard to know what they could do with something on such a scale, or who they could possibly try and sell it to.
Dave says
This place was torned down… I saw some great pictures years ago when this mansion was clean… I cant believe why people destroy places like this?! Why are they tagging the furniture, broke the sculptures?! I hope somebody will save this place…
Melissa says
Dave, I hear you. What is the purpose of destroying beautiful objects, for the sole purpose of being malicious? And tagging anything on this property seems completely unobjective. Who is going to see the tags? What audience are they aiming for anyway?
That said, while it is a beautiful landscape and setting, the fact that those sculptures were maliciously broken and disturbed is upsetting. I question humanity and its existence in these situations.
Günter says
Amazing. Where I live all this would be taken. I would like to sit in that chair and enjoy the view.
Lee says
Where I’m from too. Things have been smashed up a bit though. But yeah, there are definitely worst spots to sit and relax.
LAObserver says
It is interesting to see this phenomena occurring in Nippon. It is at least once each year that some ultra-rich mansion located in a very high end location in Southern California is in bad shape with no one apparently willing to take on the challenge that a large expensive project requires to remedy its situation.
Lee says
Yeah, this is definitely a first for me in Japan. Nothing at all like the other abandoned buildings I’ve photographed. There must be others of course, but I imagine nowhere near the numbers in the US. Very likely not on the same scale either.
Solveig says
I notice something new everytime I look at the photos. I can only imagine what it looked like when it was occupied – it’s possibly the most opulent abandoned building I’ve ever seen.
The view is great, not sure about that clock though!
Lee says
It really must have been quite a place. Still is of course, but in its pomp it must have been truly remarkable. There again, it would still have been in truly awful taste!
But yeah, I have never seen anything even remotely like this before. Suspect I never will again as well.
Rob says
Whenever I see your pics from these abandoned homes it never ceases to amaze me that A: people would just leave all their stuff like that and, B: no one is squatting there and/or pawning all those items.
Even though it’s all kitsch, it’s gotta be worth something?
Looks like there has been some vandalism, but I think if that would have been in a Western country the place would have been absolutely trashed by now.
Awesome pics. Love it.
Solveig says
I’ve wondered about this too!
Lee says
Thank you.
The leaving of stuff never fails to surprise me as well. When it’s somewhere out in the middle of nowhere, heavier items make sense I suppose. As do unwanted things, dated tech etc, but a lot of it is often personal which is always a weird one. Squatting on the other hand just doesn’t seem to be a thing in Japan, although occasionally I have seen signs of people once staying in such properties. As for the taking of items — yeah, amazing really things don’t get taken and sold. And like you said, kitsch as almost all of this is, it has to be worth something. Some of it presumably quite a lot.
Definitely some vandalism gone on, but yeah, not that much really. Or at least not in comparison to its likely state if it were somewhere else…
Paul says
Something is sure : money doesn’t make good tastes 😉
Lee says
Yes, that is very visibly very true!
Scruffy says
Exactly what I was thinking as I looked at these! Someone should have told him to stop after the first 5 or 10 statues, really.
Took me a while here this morning to decide if that was a mirrored or glass ceiling. Someone said something about the clock. Out of everything there, I think I like the clock the best, though I wouldn’t want to have it in my home.
This was certainly different, Lee.
Lee says
“Someone should have told him to stop after the first 5 or 10 statues, really.”
Cheers. That genuinely made me chuckle. Does make you wonder what on earth he was thinking, doesn’t it?
Agree about the clock. An incredible thing, but not something I’d want. Or indeed have room for.
It really was. Old homes, villages and the like are much more my thing, but always good to try and see something different, and it certainly was different.
cdilla says
What an interesting place. Not as appealing as the “normal life” ones you cover, but beautifully photographed. I especially liked the mirrored room photograph.
I really couldn’t live in such a place. The view is fantastic, but almost nothing in the actual property is.
I saw on another site someone identified and put a remarkable price on some of the items.
A common question was why don’t people have away with the stuff. To which one single word response summed it up nicely “Respect”.
The highlight of one nighttime video excursion around the property was a huge spider which looked all the world like a huntsman to me – are they found in Japan? Damn thing could have taken down that tiger 🙂
Lee says
Cheers. Yes, so different from the usual abandoned buildings I photograph. Took. me a while to know how to shoot it at first. It just felt like too much.
It really did feel more like a museum than a home. So much stuff yet utterly sterile. To add to that it must have been freezing with all those windows.
Not at all surprised a lot of it is incredibly pricey. What he lacked in taste he made up for in incredible wealth, so he wouldn’t have been skimping on the spending that’s for sure.
I think they are, but not dangerous — apparently. Don’t know if they were huntsman or not, but one abandoned place in Kanagawa I went to had a lot of what for me were absolutely massive spiders. It wasn’t a comfortable exploration to say the least…
Devin M Mack says
I want to buy it. How much US$?