Japan-ness in Architecture

Japan-ness in Architecture PDF Author: Arata Isozaki
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 0262516055
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
One of Japan's leading architects examines notions of Japan-ness as exemplified by key events in Japanese architectural history from the seventh to the twentieth century; essays on buildings and their cultural context. Japanese architect Arata Isozaki sees buildings not as dead objects but as events that encompass the social and historical context—not to be defined forever by their "everlasting materiality" but as texts to be interpreted and reread continually. In Japan-ness in Architecture, he identifies what is essentially Japanese in architecture from the seventh to the twentieth century. In the opening essay, Isozaki analyzes the struggles of modern Japanese architects, including himself, to create something uniquely Japanese out of modernity. He then circles back in history to find what he calls Japan-ness in the seventh-century Ise shrine, reconstruction of the twelfth-century Todai-ji Temple, and the seventeenth-century Katsura Imperial Villa. He finds the periodic ritual relocation of Ise's precincts a counter to the West's concept of architectural permanence, and the repetition of the ritual an alternative to modernity's anxious quest for origins. He traces the "constructive power" of the Todai-ji Temple to the vision of the director of its reconstruction, the monk Chogen, whose imaginative power he sees as corresponding to the revolutionary turmoil of the times. The Katsura Imperial Villa, with its chimerical spaces, achieved its own Japan-ness as it reinvented the traditional shoin style. And yet, writes Isozaki, what others consider to be the Japanese aesthetic is often the opposite of that essential Japan-ness born in moments of historic self-definition; the purified stylization—what Isozaki calls "Japanesquization"—lacks the energy of cultural transformation and reflects an island retrenchment in response to the pressure of other cultures. Combining historical survey, critical analysis, theoretical reflection, and autobiographical account, these essays, written over a period of twenty years, demonstrate Isozaki's standing as one of the world's leading architects and preeminent architectural thinkers.

The People's Emperor

The People's Emperor PDF Author: Kenneth James Ruoff
Publisher: Harvard Univ Asia Center
ISBN: 9780674010888
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 364

Book Description
Few institutions are as well suited as the monarchy to provide a window on postwar Japan. The monarchy, which is also a family, has been significant both as a political and as a cultural institution. Ruoff analyzes numerous issues, stressing the monarchy's "postwarness" rather than its traditionality.

Reinventing Japan

Reinventing Japan PDF Author: Martin Fackler
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Highly readable yet deeply researched, this book serves as an essential guide to the many ways in which Japan has risen to become one of the world's most creative and innovative societies. During its so-called Lost Decades, Japan has quietly reinvented itself from a nation with an economy playing catch-up into a global leader in innovation and creativity, one whose "soft power" extends from postmodern architecture to pluripotent stem cells. Written by a dozen experts in their fields, including architect Kengo Kuma, designer of Tokyo's 2020 Olympic stadium, this book describes Japan's contributions to the world in fields ranging from fashion and pop culture to development aid and historical reconciliation. In addition, it demonstrates how Japan has led efforts to contend with several social and economic challenges facing the entire developed world, including demographic aging, rising healthcare costs, and wasteful consumption. Using these accomplishments as evidence, it argues that, in an era of questions surrounding the capability of American leadership, the time has come for Japan to step into a new role as a purveyor of models and values better suited to today's multipolar and diverse world.

Kengo Kuma: My Life as an Architect in Tokyo (My Life as an Architect)

Kengo Kuma: My Life as an Architect in Tokyo (My Life as an Architect) PDF Author: Kengo Kuma
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
ISBN: 0500776644
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 122

Book Description
A personal tour of Tokyo’s architecture, as seen through the eyes of one of the world’s most acclaimed architects who is also designing the primary venue for the Tokyo Olympic games. Tokyo is Japan’s cultural and commercial epicenter, bursting with vibrancy and life. Its buildings, both historical and contemporary, are a direct reflection of its history and its people. Kengo Kuma was only ten years old when he found himself so inspired by Tokyo’s cityscape that he decided to become an architect. Here he tells the story of his career through twenty-five inspirational buildings in the city. Kuma’s passion is evident on every page, as well as his curiosity about construction methods and his wealth of knowledge about buildings around the world, making this a unique commentary on Tokyo’s dynamic architecture. Kengo Kuma: My Life as an Architect is an intimate and truly inspiring book, revealing the beauty that exists in the world’s everyday spaces.

Homes for Our Time 2

Homes for Our Time 2 PDF Author: Philip Jodidio
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Climate, environment, history, and technology are transforming architecture worldwide. The second volume in the Homes for Our Time series documents this housing revolution. It explores new approaches in building and presents resourceful and green private homes. This is a multilingual edition - English, French, German.

The Monocle Book of Japan

The Monocle Book of Japan PDF Author: Tyler Brûlé
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780500971079
Category : Travel
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
The Monocle team celebrates the endlessly fascinating and culturally rich country of Japan.

Freeing Architecture

Freeing Architecture PDF Author: Junya Ishigami
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
ISBN: 9782869251380
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 317

Book Description
Lightness, transparency, simplicity, and communion with nature are Japanese architect Junya Ishigami's watchwords. In his architectural masterworks, which he compares to landscapes, he eliminates the boundaries between exterior and interior space. For the Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Junya Ishigami designed an exhibition that reveals, on an unprecedented scale, his latest research into freedom, fluidity, and the future of architecture. On the occasion of this exhibition, presented from March 30 to September 9, 2018, the Fondation Cartier will publish a book retracing the genesis of the project, including mixed photographs, drawings, models, and all the poetry inherent to Ishigami's work.

Craftland Japan

Craftland Japan PDF Author: Uwe Röttgen
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 0500295344
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
A stunning photographic survey of Japan’s most ingenious contemporary artisans. Generations of artisans in Japan have forged and refined their crafts to become the envy of the world. Each of the country’s regions are renowned for specific traditions relating to local materials and the natural world in which they are produced. While tourists and design enthusiasts have long acknowledged the unique history and quality of Japanese craftsmanship, very few crafts have made their way outside the country, preventing many from witnessing the quality of Japanese workmanship for themselves. With the aim of sharing these unseen treasures with the wider world, designers Uwe Röttgen and Katharina Zettl set out to find the finest examples of Japanese craftsmanship, traveling around the country to document the makers, their workshops, and the landscapes that influence them. Craftland Japan is the result of this extraordinary journey into the heart of Japanese culture. Featuring twenty-five expert artisans, Craftland Japan reveals the techniques and materials that are used to produce a wide variety of beautiful objects, from porcelain bowls to indigo-dyed fabrics to paper. This book is a celebration of how Japan’s union of craft, design, materiality, and landscape continue to flourish in contemporary interpretation, however much the world around them has changed.

The New Urban House

The New Urban House PDF Author: Jonathan Bell
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300237111
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 353

Book Description
A stunning anthology of contemporary houses that showcases the ways that architecture can respond to local urban challenges while enhancing modern city living Architects face many challenges when designing a modern urban house. Environmental performance, aesthetics, technical logistics, material concerns, site constraints--these are all considerations that have the potential to limit what architects can achieve, but that also can inspire creative solutions. In addition, each city's history, obstacles, and opportunities influence local design approaches. Superbly illustrated with 600 color images, this expansive compendium offers fascinating insights into building modern houses on a local level. Jonathan Bell and Ellie Stathaki have selected urban structures from around the world to serve as both exemplary solutions and standout works of art--in Beijing and Mexico City, Athens and Tokyo, Los Angeles and Cape Town. By examining buildings on six continents, from both emerging architects and established studios such as Zaha Hadid Architects, MVRDV, and Johnston Marklee, this stunning volume explores the many ways in which architecture can enhance the experience of dwelling in a modern city by responding to traditional styles and challenges of site and providing a broader understanding of place.

Encounters and Positions

Encounters and Positions PDF Author: Susanne Kohte
Publisher: Birkhäuser
ISBN: 303560715X
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Book Description
Now as before, Japanese architecture is very popular in Europe and the western world. This publication provides an overview of its many design concepts and cross-references. Using design examples and interviews, the book presents thirteen current positions.The publication focuses on young architects who take up extremely independent positions within Japanese architecture, as well as on Pritzker Prize winners Toyo Ito and Fumihiko Maki. Six essays by European specialists on Japan provide supplementary insights into the aesthetics and space concepts of Japanese architecture, making cross-references to Japan’s architectural history, and explaining current lines of development. The book thus combines a self-reflective approach with an outsider’s analytical view.