Tracing Japan's Traditional Design In
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THINKING INSIDE THE BOX: TRACING JAPAN’S TRADITIONAL DESIGN IN MODERN JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE A DARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I AT MĀNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF ARCHITECTURE DECEMBER 2016 By Matthew T. Kubota DArch Committee: Pu Miao, Chairperson William Chapman Elaine Wong Keywords: Modernism, Japan, Nature, Space, Materiality Dedications This dissertation is dedicated to my family for believing in me since day one. Through all the ups and downs, I cannot express in words how much it means to me for supporting me and being there when I needed help the most. Mom, Dad and Timmy, this is for you. i Acknowledgements I would like to thank my entire committee for their help along my academic journey through the D Arch program. Pu Miao, thank you for aiding me in my final semester of graduate school as well as serving as my chair. Professor William Chapman, thank you for believing in me since I first had you as a professor for an American Studies class; the help and support that you’ve given me has helped me grow as a student as well as learned more about myself along my academic journey. Elaine Wong, thank you for aiding me along the professional world as well as taking time out of your busy schedule to help me. Lastly, Clark Llewellyn, thank you for believing me and helping me accomplish so much during my time with you. Your help and guidance from the start served as an incredible foundation for which I built my work and research upon. I cannot thank all of you enough for all your support through my thesis. To all the people of WATG whom I’ve met along my journey, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to grow and prove myself as a young professional. All the people I’ve met through my time with your firm helped reignite my passion and drive in school and I appreciate every lesson and conversation that I’ve had with all of you. To all of my friends at the University of Hawai‘i School of Architecture whom I’ve spent countless hours together with; through all the ups and downs, all-nighters, and adventures throughout school, I thank you all for the precious memories you’ve left me with and only wish you the best in all that you do in the future. Lastly, I would like to thank my family for all their love and support. Words cannot express how grateful I am for believing in me from day one. Mom, Dad, and Timmy, thank you for everything. ii Abstract With the world advancing at such a fast pace, often culture and identity are lost to the global trend. Through each pass of global iterations, a little more of the base culture is lost, resulting in a design that is more and more part of the global identity. This is occurring more often across the globe where countries are losing their own rich cultural identity and submitting to the global trend. Specifically looking at Japan and the modernist trend that swept the nation, I analyzed the elements of Japanese designs stood the test of time and global trends. By studying Japan during its modernist era, I could identify these elements due to the minimalist and pure nature of the trend. What this resulted in were the bases of Japanese design that always maintains and thrives upon, creating their own architectural identity that will always be a part of whatever trend may affect the nation. Through this research methodology, I was able to grasp what the roots of Japanese design are and what ultimately goes into each iteration of design that goes through the nation. In turn, a similar methodology can be used when identifying other nations’ cultural base and seeing how another nation’s culture is preserved through each iteration of global design. iii Table of Contents Dedications ....................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... ii Abstract .......................................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents ........................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ................................................................................................................ vi 0.0 Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 1 1.0 Platonic Shapes and Origins ................................................................................................... 4 1.1 From Bauhaus to International Style ..........................................................................6 1.2 Adaptation to Each Location; Modernism’s Birth .....................................................9 1.3 Modernism in Asia ...................................................................................................12 1.4 Japan, Land of the Rising Sun Born From Shadows ................................................13 1.5 Iterations of Japan and Maintaining Identity ............................................................16 1.6 Japanese Modernism Today .....................................................................................18 1.6.1 Tadao Ando .......................................................................................................19 1.6.2 Shigeru Ban .......................................................................................................20 1.6.3 Kengo Kuma ......................................................................................................20 1.6.4 Kenzo Tange ......................................................................................................21 2.0 Space or “Ma” ........................................................................................................................ 23 2.1 The Spatial Dimensions of Japanese Voids .............................................................23 2.1.1 One-Dimensional Realm ...................................................................................24 2.1.2 Two-Dimensional Realm ...................................................................................25 2.1.3 Three-Dimensional Realm .................................................................................25 2.1.4 Fourth-Dimensional Realm ...............................................................................28 2.2 Experimental Space, Breaking Time Up ..................................................................29 2.3 Space in Art, Balancing A Composition ..................................................................30 2.4 Space in Drama, Noh, A Synthesis of “Ma” ............................................................31 2.5 Western Modernism’s Box, A Singular Space .........................................................32 2.6 The Box In Japan ......................................................................................................33 iv 2.7 Engawa, The Space of Circulation ...........................................................................34 2.8 The Shoji Screen, Dividing Light and Space ...........................................................36 2.9 The Modern Shoji, An Understanding of the Past ...................................................40 2.10 Glass and Modernism, The Invisible Divide ..........................................................41 2.11 Blending Spaces through Immateriality, Glass ......................................................42 3.0 Nature ..................................................................................................................................... 45 3.1 Western Modernism and Nature, Divided Space .....................................................45 3.1.1 Nature in Japan, An Integrated Identity ............................................................46 3.2 Integrating Nature in the Built Environment, Tadao Ando ......................................48 3.3 Kengo Kuma, Transparency to Nature .....................................................................51 4.0 Materiality .............................................................................................................................. 58 4.1 Ando’s Muse: Concrete ............................................................................................61 4.2 The Timeless Material: Wood ..................................................................................63 4.3 Light as a Design Element .......................................................................................67 4.3.1 Light and Darkness as a Material ......................................................................71 4.4 Paralleling Materials: West is to Steel as East is to Wood .......................................85 4.5 Today’s Japan: Experimental and Unique Materials ...............................................88 4.5.1 Shigeru Ban’s Paper Tubes ...............................................................................88 4.5.2 Materiality Through Kengo Kuma’s Mind ........................................................92 4.5.3 Engaging Another Sense as a Material ..............................................................95 4.6 New Dawn of Materials, Carbon Fiber ....................................................................97 5.0 Conclusion ...........................................................................................................................