With the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympic Games underway, the eyes of the world are once again drawn to Japan. Tokyo last hosted the games in 1964, the first time the Summer Olympics were held in Asia. Propelled by dizzying growth that had set the country on the path to becoming an economic superpower, Japan was then thrilled to welcome a global audience. This year’s Olympics, of course, are transpiring under very different circumstances. Thanks to COVID-19, all spectators are currently banned from the games, and Japan remains closed to tourist travel.
Still, the Tokyo Olympics are likely to renew interest in a country that witnessed significant growth in tourism before the pandemic, from under 5 million visitors per year in 2000 to over 30 million in 2019. That growth is due in part to the country’s captivating legacy of design, which includes some of the world’s most influential architecture. Perfect timing, then, for the new book Contemporary Japanese Architecture, which Taschen is releasing at the end of July. Edited by Philip Jodidio, this collection of notable works refocuses attention on Japan after a period of pandemic-inspired seclusion. It’s a tantalizing reminder of the marvels that lie in store for visitors once safe travel fully resumes.
A coffee-table style book that weighs in at 448 pages, Contemporary Japanese Architecture depicts 55 recent projects, designed by living Japanese architects, in vivid photographs and drawings. The works are organized alphabetically by architect and include prominent buildings such as Kengo Kuma, Hon. FAIA’s Japan National Stadium, and lesser-known projects like Yosuke Inoue’s Stone Villa in the Yamanashi Prefecture. Jodidio provides historical context in an introductory essay titled “Japan Metabolizing,” referencing the consequential yet short-lived Metabolist movement of 1960-1970. Printed in three languages, this essay offers a concise yet extensive history of Japanese modern and contemporary architecture that includes several decades preceding and following Metabolism.
For those unfamiliar with this history, the essay provides a good overview of the significant moments in the development of a distinctive modern architectural identity in Japan—from Bruno Taut’s 1935 visit to the Katsura Detached Palace to Takashi Suo’s inventive and more recent use of corrugated aluminum and plywood. Jodidio makes bold claims about the significance of contemporary Japanese architecture, writing that it “has long been one of the most inventive in the world.” But he does not define contemporary architecture or how it differs from modern. Nor does he explain why the book settled on its timeline of projects. Based on the included works, readers might infer that contemporary architecture consists of structures built in the last decade, even though the contemporary period arguably began during the latter half of the 20th century. A more appropriate title would have been Recent Contemporary Japanese Architecture or Japanese Architecture: 2010-2020. Nevertheless, the diversity of the selected projects is striking and highlights innovative developments in the genre, including more active engagement with the natural environment, the interpretation of traditional forms and details, and the shift toward more resource-conscious construction.
A clear example of environmental engagement is Shigeru Ban’s La Seine Musicale. Located in Boulogne-Billancourt, France, the 2017 concert hall features an expansive glass “sail” consisting of 470 photovoltaic panels that harness renewable power for the complex. The semi-spherical glass shell rotates throughout the day to capture the optimal amount of solar rays—a captivating marriage of technological performance and large-scale energy infrastructure. On the other hand, Junya Ishigami’s Water Garden, located in the Botanical Garden Art Biotop in Nasu, Tochigi Prefecture, takes a different approach. Constructed in 2018 as part of an agricultural eco-resort, the project is composed of a forest populated by countless tiny lakes and streams crossed over by stone paths. The Water Garden is a landscape rather than a building, but Ishigami’s architectural sensibilities are apparent in the depth of the manipulation of the garden’s individual elements, which he designed to create “a new nature never before seen.”
Then there’s Kuma, one of the leading architectural innovators of material systems. He derives inspiration from past building traditions for his contemporary works. Consider the Yusuhara Wooden Bridge Museum in Kochi Prefecture. Built in 2010, the museum and bridge makes optimal use of tokyo, a structural bracketing system composed of supporting blocks seen throughout traditional Japanese and Chinese architecture. Kuma’s use of crisp, rectilinear laminated beams introduces a contemporary sensibility to this homage to historic structures. Or consider Hiroshi Sambuichi’s Naoshima Hall on Naoshima Island. Built in 2015, this community center exhibits a sizable hipped roof clad in hinoki (Japanese cypress). A voluminous aperture at the roof’s peak, oriented in the direction of the prevailing wind, functions to ensure optimal ventilation throughout the structure. The immense scale of this opening, in combination with taut corner detailing and a minimal material palette, highlight this modern take on traditional approaches.
Whatever the time period, Japanese architecture represents the precise use of compatible materials, often of similar age, combined in a refined manner. But some of the more memorable works in Contemporary Japanese Architecture defy this model, exploring the expressive and resource-saving potential of adaptive reuse. The 2017 Tokyo-based House in Sangenjaya designed by Jo Nagasaka is one such example. The architect retained and gutted a 50-year-old building, thoughtfully adding new fixtures and materials while leaving a significant portion of the existing surfaces exposed. The outcome is a jarring yet beautiful collision of old and new, raw and refined. Meanwhile, Hiroshi Nakamura’s 2015 Kamikatz Public House on Tokushima Island consists of a new building composed of salvaged materials. A 26-foot-tall façade of the project’s single-story micro-brewery consists of windows collected from local abandoned houses. “We utilized abandoned items from a tile factory for the floor, empty bottles to create a chandelier, antlers produced in the town for the draft tower, and newspapers as wallpaper,” explains the architect. “The space is full of improvisation and discoveries with this creative combination of waste material.”
Contemporary Japanese Architecture may exhibit a diversity of approaches within Japanese architecture, but the book lacks diversity in other ways. Few women architects appear, apart from prominent firm partners like SANAA’s Kayuzo Sejima or Tezuka Architect’s Yui Tezuka. Conspicuously absent are well-respected architects like Itsugo Hasegawa, Yuko Nagayama, and Kumiko Inui. Furthermore, the featured firms are all presumably led by individuals who were born in Japan and/or received citizenship from Japanese parents. It is unclear if any architects are naturalized Japanese citizens, or if any foreigners are featured in the book. This may seem like a strange point to raise about a collection of Japanese architecture. But as Japan’s birthrate continues to plummet (the country currently ranks 223rd in the world) and immigration increases—albeit slowly—what constitutes Japanese architecture may start to shift from a strict test of citizenship to other factors, such as context and conceptual principles. I agree with Jodidio that Japanese architecture is among the most inventive in the world. But this future diversification might bring even greater levels of innovation to the built environment.
