Living Tradition or Panda’s Cage?

RIITTA ‘ RI’ SALASTIE Living Tradition or Panda’s Cage?

AN ANALYSIS OF THE URBAN CONSERVATION IN KYOTO. CASE STUDY: 35 YAMAHAKO NEIGHBOURHOODS

Academic Dissertation for the Degree of Doctor of Technology to be presented with due permission for public examination and debate, in Helsinki University of Technology, Faculty of Architecture on the 21st of August, 1999, at 12 noon.

HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, FINLAND 1999 Copyright © 1999 Teknillisen korkeakoulun arkkitehtiosaston tutkimuksia Helsinki 1999/16

Salastie Riitta ‘RI’, Living Tradition or Panda's Cage? An Analysis of Urban Conservation in Kyoto. Case Study: 35 Yamahoko Neighbourhoods.

Book design by Reetta Kyttä Printed by Gummerus Kirjapaino Oy, Jyväskylä 1999 ISBN 951-22-4575-2 ISSN 1236-6013

Helsinki University of Technology Department of Architecture Otakaari 1, 02150 Espoo, Finland Arkkitehtuurin historia. Väitöskirja. Manuscript received 16. 2. 1997 Accepted 18. 5. 1999

Communicated by Professor Masafumi Yamasaki and Professor Fred Thompson

HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Architecture To Mr. and Mrs. Sugiura

“Hmm, it’s excellent. The color harmony...fine. You’ve never drawn anything so novel before; nevertheless, it’s restrained. Weaving it will be difficult. But, we’ll put our hearts into it and give it a try. The design shows your daughter’s respect for her parents and her parents’ affection for their daughter.” “Thank you. Nowadays, people would be quick to use an English word like ‘idea’ or ‘sense’. Even colors are now referred to in faddish Western terms.” “Those aren’t high-quality goods”. “I hate it that Western words have come into use. Haven’t there been splendidly elegant colors in Japan since ancient times?” “Even black has various subtle shadows,” Sosuke nodded. “Yes, I was just thinking about that today. There are some obi makers like Izukura. They have a modern factory in a four-story Western-style building. Nishijin will probably go the same way. They make five hundred obis a day and soon the employees will be taking part in the company’s management. The average age of the employees is in the twenties and thirties. Small house business like mine with hand looms will probably disappear within twenty or thirty years.” “That’s ridiculous.” “If one survived, wouldn’t it have to be under government sponsorship as an ‘Intangible Cultural Treasure’? ...Why, even a person like you, Sada, with your Klee or whatever...”

Yasunari Kawabata, The Old Capital. San Fransisco: North Point Press 1987 (1962).

9 Abstract

Salastie Riitta ‘RI’, Living Tradition or Panda's Cage? An Analysis of Urban Conservation in Kyoto. Case Study: 35 Yamahoko Neighbourhoods. Gummerus Kirjapaino Oy, Jyväskylä 1999. 306 Pages. Teknillisen korkeakoulun arkkitehtiosaston tutkimuksia Helsinki 1999/16 ISBN 951-22-4575-2, ISSN 1236-6013

The focus of the research is the city centre of Kyoto and there, the group of thirty-five hoko neighbourhoods known for the organisation of the Gion Festival. At the present moment the wooden town heritage in the area is threatened in a number of ways. Such threats are both the threatening effects of town planning as well as the lack of appropriate urban conservation policies. Focusing on a few, selected landmarks and areas has led to the compartmentalising of the city and to the failure of municipal authorities to identify culturally dependent and place-oriented value-categories. In the process the heritage evaluation methods in use have played more than a minor role. The methodological approach taken in the thesis aims to an approach where the dwelling patterns and cultural patterns are identified as an inseparable entity. Such an approach is especially important in Kyoto where traditional townhouses were never just residential spaces but had important production and cultural functions as well. Cultural values are analysed through the tradition of the Screen Festival. The wooden townhouse context plays an important role as the scenic stage of the festival. The interpretation of the Japanese context and its implications for urban conservation work are an essential part of the research. The inter-relationship between the urban dwelling and the street and the importance of place are defined as major cultural values to be focused on. The heritage argumentation methods are seen as an important tool how to enhance cultural values and continuous use. On-site recording is used as an important evaluation tool. The author measured for the thesis approximately one hundred wooden facades of traditional townhouses in the survey area. Furthermore, as a member of the Kyoto University research team the author participated in an extensive field research during the Gion Festival in three following years, where all screen displays and their urban settings were documented including more than 160 antique screens. The conclusions of the thesis suggest that the wooden town heritage cannot be assessed through selected (expert) values alone, but also other values and meanings must be taken into consideration. The wooden town heritage is appreciated, not only because of its visual and historical characteristics but also because of its capacity to hold cultural values and ways of life. Individual interpretations and cultural readings add to 10 the significance of place. The traditional display patterns are identified as key cultural values that should be an essential part of heritage assessment work. The conclusions of the research do not apply only to Kyoto but are closely related to the urban conservation problems of wooden towns in general. Because of the fragility of the wooden town tradition and the authenticity problems involved, the methodological approach should be paid special attention. The wooden town heritage cannot be evaluated using same criteria as towns built in stone or brick. Changes and alterations must be tolerated if any of the wooden town heritage is to be preserved. Social values, cultural practices and individual interpretations should be added as an important element in the evaluation practices of heritage.

Keywords: Japanese architecture, Kyoto, urban conservation, wooden town heritage, Gion Festival, Screen Festival 11 Contents

Preface ...... 17

PART I GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK

Chapter 1 THE CONTENT OF THE THESIS

Chapter 2 THE YAMAHOKO PROGRAMME General Outline of the Programme ...... 27 Content and Objectives of the Programme ...... 28 Key Results of the Programme ...... 29 Key Persons Met through the Programme ...... 31 Author’s Contribution to the Programme...... 31 The Cultural Heritage Documentation Programme and the Current Research ...... 32

Chapter 3 THE GION FESTIVAL History and General Outline of the Gion Festival ...... 33 The Gion Festival and Thirty-five Hoko Neighbourhoods ...... 34 The Screen Festival ...... 35 List of the Main Festival Events...... 36 Cultural Protection and the Gion Festival ...... 37 Cultural Protection and the Screen Festival...... 40

Chapter 4 THE CITY CENTRE AND THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS Historical Outline and Character of the Grid-Plan Area ...... 43 Kyo¯-Machiya, the Kyoto Townhouse ...... 45 City Centre with Multiple Cores ...... 45 Description of the Survey Area and the Hoko Neighbourhoods ...... 47

Chapter 5 THE LATTICE KO¯SHI FACADE AND EVOLUTION OF THE UNIFIED TOWNSCAPE The Evolution of Kyoto’s Townscape and the Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai Paintings ...... 49 The City and its Outskirts - One Entity...... 50 Evolution of the 16th and Early 17th Century Townscape ...... 51 The Kaleidoscopic Edo Period Townscape...... 52 Towards a Unified Townscape since the Latter Half of the 18th Century ...... 52 City Fires in the 19th Century and the Evolution of the Modern Townhouse ...... 54

PART II DESCRIPTION OF THE FIELD OF THE RESEARCH

Chapter 6 THE INTERPRETATIVE ENVIRONMENT OF THE WORK Japanism and Interpretations of Japanese Architecture ...... 59 12 The Problematic ‘Otherness’...... 60 The Values of a Traditional Artisan ...... 61 The Academic World and the Kimono Artisan ...... 62 The Cultural Background of the Urban Festival ...... 65 The Temporary Character of the Festival Space ...... 66 Urban Festival that Favours Accidental Meeting...... 67

Chapter 7 CITY PLANNING POLICIES AND THE HISTORIC GRID-PLAN AREA The Legislative Structure versus Local Context ...... 69 Attitudes towards Heritage versus Modern Life ...... 72 Perception of Place and Changing Meanings ...... 73 City Planning Directives and the Historic Grid-Plan Area ...... 74 The Master Plan 1983 ...... 74

Chapter 8 THE PROFILE OF CURRENT CITY DEVELOPMENT The Grid-Plan Area after the Second World War ...... 77 The Profile of Housing Production in the Late 1980s ...... 78 The Disintegration of the Built Environment ...... 79 The Profile of Traditional Townhouses Today...... 80

Chapter 9 HISTORIC PRESERVATION IN KYOTO UP TO THE PRESENT DAY Kyoto as a Pioneer of Historic Preservation ...... 83 From Conservation of Historic Monuments to Preservation of Landscape ...... 84 Preservation of Historic Townscape ...... 84 Critical Evaluation of Townscape Regulations ...... 86 New Building Code and the Kyoto Hotel Project ...... 87 Selective View of Heritage and the Conservation of Everyday Buildings...... 89 Urban Preservation and the Kyoto Townhouse...... 89 Shifting the Focus: Conserving the Urban Heritage ...... 90

PART III THE OBJECTIVES OF THE RESEARCH

Chapter 10 THE OBJECTIVES OF THE RESEARCH The Cultural Significance of the Kyoto Townhouse and Urban Heritage...... 95 Living Tradition versus ‘Living History’ ...... 96 Definition of Urban Conservation ...... 97 The Objectives of the Research ...... 97

PART IV THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK

Chapter 11 THE METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH IN THIS RESEARCH New Areas of Interpretation ...... 103 The Importance of Place ...... 104 Expert Values versus the Preservation of the Whole...... 104 13 The Character of the Japanese Indoor/Outdoor Relationship ...... 105 The Inter-Relationship between the Urban Dwelling and Street as a Cultural Value ...... 106 Critical Evaluation of Heritage Arguments ...... 106

Chapter 12 RECORDING AS A MEANS OF EVALUATION Definition of Recording in International Standards ...... 109 Recording as a Method in the Current Work ...... 109 The Use of Terminology ...... 110 Sources and Related Research ...... 111 Perceptions of the Past ...... 112

PART V DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF HERITAGE

Chapter 13 THE CONCEPT OF HERITAGE IN JAPAN Preservation in the Japanese Context ...... 117 Universal Values versus the Context ...... 118 Authenticity of Design versus Authenticity of Material...... 119 Cultural Adaptation and the Japanese Preservation Methodologies ...... 119

Chapter 14 THE CONCEPT OF HERITAGE IN THE CURRENT WORK International Charters and Standards ...... 121 The Wooden Town Heritage and the World Heritage Listing...... 122 The Importance of Everyday Buildings ...... 122 The Value of Continued Everyday Use...... 123 The Needs of Local People versus Visitors ...... 124 Social Value as a Measure of Cultural Significance ...... 124

PART VI URBAN CULTURE OF THE HOKO AREA

Chapter 15 STREETS AS COMMUNAL SPACE AND THE SELF-GOVERNING TOWNSHIP COMMUNITIES The Pre-Modern Township System and the Concept of Ryo¯gawacho¯ ...... 129 The Self-Governing Township Communities ...... 130 Street as Communal Space ...... 131 The Pre-Modern Common Facility ...... 132 The Heritage Value of Common Facilities...... 132 Questioning the Heritage Criteria of the Common Facilities ...... 133

Chapter 16 DWELLING PATTERNS Unagi no Nedoko – ‘Sleeping Places of an Eel’ ...... 137 The Tokugawa Era Dwelling Plan ...... 137 Dwelling Patterns in Yatacho¯ ...... 139 14 Chapter 17 THE SCREEN FESTIVAL Screens and the Japanese Dwelling Space ...... 143 History of the Screen Festival ...... 143 The Inter-Relationship between the Urban Dwelling and the Street ...... 144 The Picture Window Effect and the Visual Significance of the Screen Festival ...... 146

Chapter 18 THE CURRENT PROFILE OF THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS Introduction ...... 147 Population Trend ...... 147 Age of Population and Number of Households ...... 148 Profile of the Built Environment ...... 149 Use of Buildings ...... 149 The Current Profile of the Hoko Neighbourhoods and the Future of its Heritage ...... 149

PART VII FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS

Chapter 19 INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELDWORK ON ARCHITECTURAL PATTERNS OF THREE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS Description of the Survey Area ...... 155 History of the Neighbourhoods...... 155 The Built Environment ...... 157 The Survey Area and Urban Conservation...... 158 Description of the Recording ...... 158

Fieldwork No. 1 BUILDING INVENTORY The Content of the Fieldwork...... 161 Survey Results ...... 165

Fieldwork No. 2 USE OF BUILDINGS The Aim of the Fieldwork ...... 168 Survey Results ...... 168

Fieldwork No. 3 THE ARCHITECTURE The Aim of the Fieldwork ...... 170 The Method of the Survey and the Major Results...... 170 Conclusions of the Architectural Vocabulary Fieldwork ...... 174

Chapter 20 INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELD SURVEY ON TRADITIONAL DWELLING PATTERNS The Aim of the Fieldwork ...... 177

Fieldwork No. 4 FIELD SURVEY ON SEVEN HSTORIC URBAN DWELLINGS The Aim of the Fieldwork ...... 179 Description of the Seven Documented Houses ...... 179 The Future of the Houses...... 188 15 Fieldwork No. 5 FIELD SURVEY OF AN URBAN TENANTED HOUSE, NAGAYA Description of the Survey ...... 190 History of the Sugiura Family ...... 191 The Floor Plan Before ...... 192 The Floor Plan Now ...... 193 The Future of the House ...... 194 Conclusions of the Dwelling Pattern Fieldwork ...... 195

Chapter 21 INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELDWORK ON CULTURAL AND URBAN PATTERNS OF THE SCREEN FESTIVAL General Outline of the Fieldwork ...... 197 The Hayakawa Survey in 1977 ...... 197 Content of the Fieldwork ...... 198

Fieldwork No.6 THE PROFILE OF THE DISPLAYED ARTICLES The Aim of the Fieldwork ...... 199 General Description of the Screens ...... 199 The Age and Topics of the Screens ...... 200 The Profile of the Displayed Articles Today ...... 202

Fieldwork No. 7 THE CURRENT PROFILE OF THE SCREEN FESTIVAL Introduction to the Fieldwork ...... 205 The Profile of Displays in 1991-92 ...... 205 The Profile of the Exhibition ...... 205 The Profile of the Display Facility ...... 206 Summary...... 206

Fieldwork No. 8 INVESTIGATION OF THE STAGING PATTERNS Introduction to the Fieldwork ...... 208 Description and Classification of the Display Patterns...... 208 Name and Location of the Display Room...... 209 Viewing Pattern and the Route Taken by Public ...... 210 Partition between the Outdoor and Indoor Space ...... 212 Summary...... 213

Fieldwork No. 9 THE PROFILE OF ONE KIMONO HOME DISPLAY Introduction to the Fieldwork ...... 217 Description of the Content of the Display ...... 218 The Sugiura Display in 1991-1992 ...... 219 Summary...... 220

Fieldwork No. 10 SEVENTEEN SCREEN DISPLAYS Introduction to the Fieldwork ...... 222 Description of the Seventeen Screen Displays ...... 224 Conclusions of the Screen Display Fieldwork ...... 232 1

16 PART VIII CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK

Chapter 22 CONCLUSIONS OF THE RESEARCH Questioning the Current Definition of Heritage ...... 239 From Expert Values to the Preservation of the Whole ...... 240 The Screen Festival Tradition and the Meaning of Place...... 241 Revising the System of Protection Priorities...... 241 Questioning the Argument of Age ...... 242 The Need for a Place-Oriented Urban Conservation ...... 243 The Conservation of the Hoko Area as a Cultural Heritage ...... 244 Conservation Plan as an Enhancement of Living Tradition ...... 245 The International Perspective ...... 246

PART IX POSTSCRIPT

Chapter 23 THE CHANGING STAGE OF THE TRADITION -LIVING TRADITION OR PANDA’S CAGE? ...... 251

PART X SUMMARY

Description of the Field of the Research and Urban Conservation. Problems Involved ...... 259 Case Study Area and the Tradition of the Screen Festival ...... 260 Fieldwork as an Evaluation Tool...... 261 Questioning the Heritage Evaluation Methods in Use. The Methodology of the Work...... 261 Conclusions ...... 262

REFERENCES ...... 265 SOURCES ...... 273 ILLUSTRATION SOURCES...... 281 Appendix 1 JAPANESE ENGLISH GLOSSARY ...... 283 Appendix 2 ENGLISH JAPANESE GLOSSARY ...... 292 Appendix 3 THE NAMES OF THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS AND THEIR FESTIVAL FLOATS...... 295 Appendix 4 STATISTICS COLLECTED IN YAMAHOKOCHO¯...... 296 Appendix 5 SURVEY FORM FOR THE SCREEN FESTIVAL ...... 303 Appendix 6 LIST OF THE SCREEN DISPLAYS ...... 304 2 Living Tradition or Panda’s

17 Preface

I became acquainted with the laboratory of Prof. Koji Nishikawa at Kyoto University in 1984 and since that time I have struggled with the problems of urban conservation in Kyoto. My licentiate thesis, which was published by Helsinki University of Technology in 1989, was my first attempt to portray the basic outlines of urban conservation as adopted in Kyoto until now. The laboratory of Prof. Koji Nishikawa is well known, both in Japan and internationally, for its pioneering work in the field of urban preservation. In the 1970s it pioneered the defining and developing of urban preservation methodology in Kyoto, and took the leading role in this field. Large groups of wooden buildings or entire city neighbourhoods, such as the four historic preservation areas, the major urban preservation areas in Kyoto, were preserved as representative of the wooden townhouse tradition and the architectural heritage of Kyoto. Furthermore, the laboratory contributed to the preservation of the historic urban landscape of Sanjo Street which in Kyoto represents fine brick buildings of the Meiji era. I joined Prof. Nishikawa’s research team in 1984 when I worked in the laboratory for a period of six months. Later, I rejoined the laboratory in 1987 for a period of one year, returned for three months in 1989 and for this thesis, I worked there for a period of three years in 1990-1993. Additional information for the purpose of this thesis was collected during a visit of two months in Kyoto in 1996 and shorter visits 1997. In Prof. Nishikawa’s laboratory the research was part of the so called Yamahoko programme, the object of which as its name indicates, was to draw a profile of the thirty-five hoko neighbourhoods, the historical city neighbourhoods known for their responsibility for the Gion Festival. The festival has been the major religious celebration of the city centre for centuries. The Yamahoko programme, which focused on the documentation of the Gion Festival, was one of the key projects of Prof. Nishikawa’s laboratory for more than three years. In the thesis, where I focus on the preservation of everyday buildings and wooden town heritage of Kyoto, the Gion Festival tradition came to play an important role because of its great cultural significance. With its historic assets and traditions, the Gion Festival is among Japan’s priceless cultural possessions and parts of that heritage may be considered even to be of outstanding universal value.The thesis, in particular, concentrates upon the screen displays, which are performed during the festival by kimono merchant and artisan families. During this performance the light wooden lattice partitions, which are the major architectural elements of wooden-frame townhouses, are temporarily removed, and the interior of the house is exposed to the street as if it were a stage. Through the Yamahoko programme, after visiting and surveying many uniquely beautiful everyday structures and their screen displays, I became aware of the urgency of urban conservation in the historic 18 grid-plan area of Kyoto. The area is characterised by one of the world’s most sophisticated wooden townhouse traditions. Or to put it more precisely: perhaps more than ever during my visits to Kyoto I became painfully aware of the entire lack of the concept of urban conservation in this important area of the architectural and urban history of Kyoto. Therefore, when I was given the opportunity to join the Yamahoko programme, I took the formulation of the urban conservation thesis as my major task in Kyoto. It was also my major contribution to the Japanese research programme that I was able to make as an outside observer. In identifying a town’s historical values or indeed any type of environment an international perspective is important and may help to see conservation problems in new and unexpected ways. Professor Koji Nishikawa was my academic advisor during all my stays in Japan. To stay in his laboratory and study, which he generously allowed me to do, deepened my knowledge of Kyoto’s architectural and urban history and its efforts at preservation, and also my knowledge of Japanese culture in general. Without this experience it would have been impossible to accomplish the research. To attempt to thank all those who have helped me over many years in the project would be impossible. While remaining grateful to all of them I shall confine my special thanks and gratitude to Prof. Koji Nishikawa, who’s authority and support opened all the doors necessary for the accomplishment of the work. In Prof. Nishikawa’s laboratory, I owe a special gratitude, both professionally and personally, to Assoc. Professor Masaya Masui in particular, who was the project leader in the Yamahoko programme and who kindly and wholeheartedly sacrificed his time helping to arrange the fieldwork necessary for my research and generally to make the project a reality. Furthermore, in Prof. Nishikawa's laboratory, I owe a special debt to Prof. Masafumi Yamasaki, who provided me with valuable insight on the urban character and heritage of Kyoto and helped me to look critically at present city development. His comments on the principles of urban preservation methodology in Kyoto are very illuminating. They make the Japanese context more easily understandable. Outside Kyoto University I wish to extend my special thanks to Dr. Akira Shintani of the Cultural Heritage Office of the City of Kyoto. I am grateful for his help during my fieldwork and his valuable comments on the system of cultural protection in Kyoto and on the selection criteria for historic buildings. The documentation work of the Yamahoko programme in Prof. Nishikawa’s laboratory was carried out in close cooperation with the municipal heritage authorities. The writing and completion of the research was carried at Helsinki University of Technology under the guidance of Prof. Vilhelm Helander to whom I also acknowledge my life-long gratitude for his support and help, and for his many valuable suggestions. Furthermore, special thanks go to Prof. Masafumi Yamasaki, Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto and to Dr. Tapio Periäinen, Helsinki, as examiners, for their valuable comments and advice of my work. In particular, Dr. Periäinen’s guidance was decisive at the finishing stage of the 19 manuscript. The English language has been kindly corrected by architect Nicholas Mayow. The graphic layout is made by graphic designer student Reetta Kyttä. Sari Yli-Tolppa has assisted in drawing the lay-out of drawings and maps. Last but not least I wish to express my gratitude to the Wihuri Foundation, the Sasakawa Foundation, the Japanese German Centre and the Finnish State Committee of Arts who gave financial support to the project.

Helsinki, March 28th, 1999

Riitta ‘RI’ Salastie

P A T R I

GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK 22

23 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

Chapter 1 The Content of the Thesis

The subject of the thesis is the historic city cen- 2) The conflicting values between the academic tre of Kyoto and the thirty-five hoko neighbour- world and the kimono artisan hoods. The thesis is in ten parts: 3) The cultural background of the urban festival Chapter 7 and 8 describe the profile of current city PART I, the general introduction to the work development. In both these chapters, the author fo- (chapters 1-5) describes the Yamahoko programme, cuses on the symptoms of city development over the academic background for the accomplishment the past 30 years. The failure of city planning of this work. A short outline of the Gion Festival policies to protect the built fabric and the wooden orientates the reader to the cultural background town heritage as larger entities are defined as and the subject of the work, the thirty-five hoko major issues to be focused on. neighbourhoods. Also, a general outline of the sur- Chapter 9 explores historic preservation in Kyoto up vey area, the historic grid-plan area and the hoko to now. In particular the inability of conservation neighbourhoods is given. Chapter 5 explores the policies to protect and conserve everyday build- development of the lattice, ko¯shi, facade and the ings is pointed out. evolution of Kyoto’s unified townscape. PART III (chapter 10) describes the objectives of PART II, description of the field of the research the work. The widening of the concept of herit- consists of four individual chapters (chapters 6-9): age and the critical evaluation of heritage argu- Chapter 6 focuses on the interpretative environment mentation methods are defined as the major ob- of the work. This includes three areas of focus: jectives of this work. The hoko neighbourhoods are 1) The European researcher in the Japanese chosen as the test area because of their continued cultural context cultural practices and traditions. 24 PART IV (chapters 11-12) describes the on. The thesis stresses the importance of context methodology of the work. in the heritage evaluation work. Chapter 11 introduces the basic methodological ap- Chapter 14 focuses on the definition of a heritage. proaches of this work. The inter-relationship be- The emphasis is on the preservation of everyday tween the urban dwelling and the street and the buildings and values. Social value is explored as importance of place are defined as the major cul- a measure of cultural significance. tural values to be focused on. Furthermore, an important part of the methodology is the explor- PART VI explores the cultural and urban testimo- ing of listing priorities. The heritage argumenta- ny of the hoko neighbourhoods (chapters 15-18). tion priorities are examined in a critical light. Chapter 15 describes the role of street as communal Chapter 12 focuses on recording as a method of eval- space and the pre-modern township system, ryo¯gawacho¯. uation. In the thesis on-site recording is used as an The system survives, because of the Gion Festival, important evaluation tool. only in the hoko neighbourhoods. From the pre- modern building stock the work presents the com- PART V discusses the definition of heritage. This mon facilities. In the work they are seen as one includes two areas of focus: exploring the concept potential group for heritage structures and now, of heritage in Japan; and the definition of herit- except a few cases, without proper protection. age in this work (chapters 13-14). Chapter 16 describes traditional Kyoto dwelling Chapter 13 explores preservation in the Japanese plans. As a case area is used Yatacho¯. The work context. Interpretation of universal values and the presents seven townhouses including such classic definition of authenticity in a cultural context dif- dwelling patterns as the ‘sleeping place of an eel’, fering from our own are key areas to be focused unagi no nedoko, and the tenement pattern, nagaya.

FIG.1 LOCATION MAP. THE HOKO AREA WEST OF SHIJO KARASUMA CROSSING. CGM.

FIG.2 (OPPOSITE PAGE) SURVEY MAP. THE LINING OF THE 35 HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS, THE SURVEYED TOWNHOUSES AND THE SCREEN DISPLAYS. RS.

25 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL 26 Chapter 17 describes the tradition of the Screen Fes- thermore, the fieldwork portrays a common, but tival. In the thesis the display tradition represents less-known, vernacular building type, the urban outstanding cultural traditions of the hoko neigh- tenement, nagaya. Through the fieldwork the her- bourhoods. itage argumentation criteria are explored on site. Chapter 18 describes the current profile of the hoko Chapter 21 portrays the open exhibition houses of neighbourhoods. As a main indication the author the Screen Festival. The thesis provides a quantita- uses population trends. The general profile of the tive and qualitative analysis of the display tradi- built environment and the use of buildings are also tion from traditional kimono homes to modern examined. window displays.

PART VII consists of fieldwork in three hoko PART VIII draws the conclusions of the work neighbourhoods. The monitoring includes three (chapter 22). major elements (chapters 19-21): Chapter 22 describes the conclusions of the work. Chapter 19 monitors three, arbitrarily chosen, hoko Most of the conclusions of the work are related neighbourhoods. Instead of focusing on historical to the perception of heritage and to the problems landmarks or individual buildings, the inventory of criteria in the heritage argumentation work. consists of whole streetscapes and historic The conclusions of a work do not apply only to neighbourhoods. Altogether the inventory covers Kyoto, but to the wooden town heritage in gen- almost one hundred buildings, the facades of eral. Everyday values and cultural traditions are which were measured for the survey and then ex- identified as an important factor in the definition amined as to their building categories, building of heritage. styles and building materials. The inventory aims to develop monitoring tools for vernacular, eve- PART IX (chapter 23) is a postscript, where the ryday buildings. author examines the origins of the Japanese aes- Chapter 20 explores seven historic urban dwellings. thetics and our relationship with the past. The sample buildings illustrate the variety and richness of traditional Kyoto dwelling plans. Fur- PART X is the summary of the work.

27 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

Chapter 2 The Yamahoko Programme

General Outline of the Programme research assistance was provided by a highly mo- The Yamahoko programme was organised by the tivated and site-trained group of university stu- laboratory of Prof. Koji Nishikawa and carried out dents throughout every stage of the work. as a multidisciplinary project with the laboratory All the fieldwork had to be carried out over a of Prof. Naoki Tani of Osaka City University. The short period of time during the few days of the project leader in Prof. Nishikawa’s laboratory was festival. Many of the screen displays were ex- an architect, Dr. Masaya Masui, who in 1993 posed for only a few hours during the last two moved to the Nara Women’s University where he nights of the festival. Moreover, all the fieldwork is now Associate Professor. Since then, the pro- had to be carried out in extreme working con- gramme has been continued in Nara. ditions which included both damp and hot In 1993 when the major research topic was the weather that is characteristic for Kyoto in this Screen Festival, participants from a total of five Ja- season as well as the crowds of turists that fill the panese institutions and universities, with alto- streets and festival locales during the festival gether seventeen staff members joined the nights. No less than a half a million people visit programme. The extended research team includ- the Gion Festival every year. The extensive and ed members from Kyoto University, Osaka City laborious fieldwork would not have been possi- University, the Art University of Osaka, the Nara ble without an well-organised and efficient re- Women’s University and Setsunan University, search team. These inventories, which were Osaka. The author worked as a member of the carried out during the festival, provided an in- research team. Besides architects and university dispensable basis for the accomplishment of the students, the research team included a specialist in current research. cultural anthropology, an art historian and a professional photographer. In addition, necessary 28 Content and Objectives of the deriving from pre-modern times, such as the lo- cation of the float in the neighbourhood, differ- Programme ent types of lanterns, decorative clothes and other The major objective of the Yamahoko programme decorations have been investigated and docu- was to study the urban heritage of the Gion Fes- mented down to the smallest detail. The screen tival. The emphasis in the programme, which took displays with their screens and their position in the place in four stages from 1990-93, was on the his- display room are also indicated in the plans. toric documentation work. The extensive field- 3) The documentation of the Screen Festival as one work which took place in the hoko area in the expression of the Gion Festival. In the extensive field- following years, was focused on three major re- work all screen displays in or near the hoko neigh- search topics in the Gion Festival: bourhoods, which had been staged for public display, 1) The documentation of the festival exhibitions, oka- were recorded in the very detail including the ex- zariba, and the common facilities, cho¯ie, thirty-five in cact location of the displays, the name and field of all. In the field surveys all the festival exhibitions displaying person/enterprise and also the content of (every hoko neighbourhood) as well as their man- the displays. The reader can get some idea of the ifold display patterns were investigated and doc- comprehensiveness of the fieldwork from the inves- umented in every detail. This included not only tigation form that is attached in Appendix 5. The the measuring and documentation of the histor- fieldwork provided the author with the opportunity ic structures that serve as exhibition facilities, but to see a large number of historic screens (the total every item that was on display. One example of number of which exceeded more than one hundred) such measurement drawings is shown in Fig. 5. and document many uniquely beautiful traditional The drawing gives the plan and section of the wooden townhouses and historic urban dwellings, festival exhibition in Komusubidanacho¯. This is a task that would otherwise have been impossible. one of the altogether four pre-modern facilities All these three pieces of fieldwork were an im- that has been designated as a cultural asset so far. mense task and provided a fascinating insight into 2) The documentation of the street decorations, which the cultural and urban history of the hoko adorn the streets and other public places during the ur- neighbourhoods. Among the documentation car- ban festival. One such street documentation is ried out by the Yamahoko programme, the major shown in Fig. 26, which shows the street decora- focus of interest for the author was the Screen tions in Ashikariyamacho¯. As can be seen from the Festival. As an integral part of the urban dwelling drawing, all the various types of street decorations culture, the festival is one of the outstanding cul-

FIG.3 INTERIOR VIEW OF THE FESTIVAL EXHIBITION, OKAZARIBA, IN ENNOGYO¯ JACHO¯ . HK.

29 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

FIG.4 THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE DECORATED FOR THE GION FESTIVAL WITH SHIMENAWA, A SACRED ROPE AND MANMAKU, A DECORATIVE CLOTH WITH THE FAMILY CREST. RS.

tural traditions of the hoko neighbourhoods. The As well as a mountain of photographs, site re- author participated in the investigations carried ports, texts and sketches, the Yamahoko pro- out on this festival during two basic field surveys gramme produced a number of papers which were in 1991 and 1992 and later, in 1996 and 1997, to published in the annual meetings of the Architec- complete the total picture of the festival. The in- tural Institute of Japan (AIJ), four Master of En- formation that is provided in the thesis is thus gineering dissertation theses and a book, which based on first-hand knowledge and personal was published in 1994. The Japanese title of the records acquired on site. book, which contributed to the celebration of Kyoto’s 1200th anniversary, is Machi, Gion Matsuri to Sumai (‘The City, the Gion Festival and the Key Results of the Programme Urban Dwelling’). Some of the field material, if An integral part of the Yamahoko programme was not all, presented below was published in the the interviews that were carried out in the hoko book. In the present thesis the material is availa- neighbourhoods. Among the persons interviewed ble in English for the first time. were chairmen of preservation organisations and In 1992 the Master Thesis of Toshihiro Tanaka, hoko neighbourhoods and also, many individual Toshi Sairei ni Okeru Ku¯kan no Riyo¯ to Enshutsu displaying kimono families. Most of those inter- (‘The Urban Space and the Urban Festival’), was viewed lived in the area and they had participated chosen by the Architectural Institute of Japan as in the festival from early childhood. In other words Master’s Thesis of the Year. It also provided valu- they were first-hand living sources of the collec- able material for the current research. The list of tive tradition of the Gion Festival. All these field papers that the Yamahoko programme published surveys, in which the author participated as a mem- is given in the sources including the papers in ber of the Yamahoko team, provided indispensable which the author participated or was directly re- and authentic material for the current research. sponsible for. 30

FIG. 5 FESTIVAL EXHIBITION, OKAZARIBA, IN KOMUSUBIDANACHO¯ . ONE OF THE FOUR PRE-MODERN COMMON FACILITIES THAT HAVE BEEN DESIGNATED AS CULTURAL ASSET. PLAN AND SECTION MEASURED BY THE YAMAHOKO TEAM.

31 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL Key Persons Met through the with other structures in the research, the Sugi- moto house is, therefore, in a category of its own. Programme Besides Yatacho¯, two historic city neighbour- Through the Yamahoko programme the author hoods around Yatacho¯, Shinkamanzacho¯ was introduced to such influential persons in and Kakkyoyamacho¯, were surveyed and docu- the Gion Festival as Mr. Kojiro Yoshida. He is mented as part of our fieldwork (see part VII, an enthusiastic soul who, as one of the coordi- chapter 19). nators for the local float (Kitakannonyama) in Rokkakucho¯, is a living example of the devoted Author’s Contribution to the commitment characteristic of the spirit of the Gion Festival throughout the centuries. In addi- Programme tion to his role in the city community, he has That part of the Yamahoko programme which the painstakingly restored the screen display in his author initiated and was directly responsible for, own house. The display is now a superb exam- was the measurement of the streetscapes of the ple of the historic displays where one can see above-mentioned three hoko neighbourhoods in- through the open facade deep into the house. cluding the facades of approximately one hundred Part of the marvel of such sights is due to the traditional Kyoto townhouses. The Yamahoko elegant Japanese interiors that during the festi- programme provided the author with the tech- val are open to the public. The house is the only nical assistance and the necessary authority to one that has kept the classic pattern in its basic, accomplish the measurement work. The building open form. Its vital role in the display tradition inventory although common in historic preserva- is studied below. tion areas, was the first systematic documentation Furthermore, through the Yamahoko pro- of this kind in the grid-plan area sofar. In gramme the author was introduced to Mr. Sugi- Shinkamanzacho¯, besides the streetscape, the au- moto, a Professor in French literature and the head thor measured one kimono manufacturer house. of an old kimono merchant family. He is the own- The house is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Sugiura, a er of one of the most elaborate traditional town- kimono artisan family that is one of the display- houses or machiya structures in the hoko area today. ing families in the Screen Festival. In 1990 the Sugimoto house was nominated as a The family generously made their house and cultural property by the municipal authorities.The family treasures available to be examined for the Sugimoto house and six other townhouses were research. The author was kindly provided the op- surveyed by the Nishikawa laboratory in 1990 as portunity to participate in staging the screens for part of the municipal heritage documentation the festival with the family twice in 1991 and programme. This was why the Sugimoto house 1992. In fact it was Mrs. Sugiura who first initi- and the neighbourhoods around it became the ated me into the charming tradition of the key areas in this research. screen displays. The house and family play an The Sugimoto house is one of those incred- important role described below. In the thesis the ible structures where the architectural and car- house illustrates the unpretentious everyday penter craft of the Tokugawa era is preserved building stock which at the moment exists in right up to the present day. The house has been large numbers in the city centre, especially in the superbly maintained and is in excellent conditi- inner parts of the urban blocks.Through the on. The understanding and knowledge of the so- Screen Festival the house has gained the status phisticated carpenter and design methods, which of a local landmark. were needed to build the house, were recognised as guidelines for conservation when the house was nominated as a cultural property. Compared 2

32 The Cultural Heritage heritage of Kyoto, which still survives but is se- Documentation Programme and verely threatened by the modernization of the town. All seven houses are described below and the Current Research are used as examples through which the prob- Within the Yamahoko programme the author par- lems of urban conservation and listing are dis- ticipated in a field survey organised by the Cultu- cussed. It is these kind of ordinary everyday ral Heritage Office of Kyoto City to investigate structures and their environments that the author seven historic urban dwellings. The survey was requires to be more adequately protected and part of the municipal documentation programme preserved against unexpected and in most cases, and it was carried out by the heritage authorities a brutal change. Five of the structures have been with the assistance of the Nishikawa laboratory. published by the Cultural Heritage Office but The field survey provided the author with valu- they have not been designated as cultural prop- able information not only on the physical charact- erties.12 er and architectural qualities of the wooden The survey map, which shows the outlining of townhouses but also, on the documentation and the Yamahoko area, the location of the measured evaluation methods of the heritage authorities. three hoko neighbourhoods, the documented ur- All the houses studied are fine examples of ban dwellings and the screen displays, is shown in historic urban dwellings and the architectural Fig. 2. 3 Living Tradition or Panda’s

33 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

Chapter 3 The Gion Festival

History and General Outline of the tsukan, ‘moving art museums’ by Japanese art his- Gion Festival torians, are gorgeously adorned with textile fab- According to legend, in the 9th century (869) a rics, embroideries and other priceless ornaments. disastrous epidemic broke out in Kyoto. In order Alongside the many Chinese heroes, who appear to calm it down, the citizens of Kyoto made sixty- as major symbols of the festival, many exotic mo- six large decorated carriages, hokos, symbolising tives occur which were introduced to Japan for the sixty-six districts of Japan. The carriages were the first time through the Gion Festival. The offerings to the deities of the Yasaka Shrine to pray names of the floats such as the ‘Moon’ float for deliverance from the disease. The head priest (Tsukihoko), ‘Chrysanthemum Water’ float (Kiku- organised a procession of sacred carriages, where suihoko) and ‘Umbrella Shape’ float (Kasahoko) the halberds where enshrined. It is said that as a tell of the legends and rich history of the festival. result the terrible plague disappeared and people Furthermore, there are luxurious brocades and showed their gratitude with the celebration of the tapestries imported to Japan in the 17th and 18th festival. Since 970 the ceremony, Goryo¯e, has been centuries from different parts of the world. continued as an annual ritual of the shrine. The The society of the Tokugawa period and the Yasaka Shrine is one of the oldest shrines of the growing power of the urban merchant class re- central area and also, the ‘mother’ shrine of the flected in the art works that were displayed in the hoko neighbourhoods. festival. The increased industrial output of the Along with the Kanda Festival in Tokyo and period resulted in great advances in all industrial the Tenjin Festival in Osaka, the Gion Festival is arts. Gorgeous silk brocades were produced by the one of the three greatest town festivals in Japan expanding textile industry, and lacquer ware of and the largest and the most splendid of them all. great decorative beauty was made in quantity. In The festival floats, which are called Ugoku Biju- the industrial arts as well as in decorative screens 34 and panels for building, the Japanese showed great After the civil war the parishioners demanded skill in using elements from nature. Sophisticated that the central government, shogunate, revive the design verging on the abstract as is seen even to- festival.3 According to a famous Tokugawa era de- day in many displayed screens during the Screen claration, the Yasaka Shrine was forbidden to con- Festival, gained great popularity together with duct the festival. The citizens of the hoko area, luxurious gold and silver painted screens. however, insisted the procession should take place The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New and took the initiative in the organisation of the York, which in the early 1990s undertook a six- festival. The revival of the festival after the civil year examination of the Gion Festival and its fes- wars was much due to the power and wealth of tival collections, considers the festival float deco- the hoko neighbourhoods. Even today, the thirty- rations to be one of most precious collections in five hoko neighbourhoods take the major respon- the world for their quality, volume and variety.1 sibility for the organisation of the festival. Furthermore, many of the tapestries and other The Gion Festival, as we know it today, with its valuable items found in the Gion Festival have richly decorated festival floats and other elegant been well cared for up to the present, though most works of art, became established in the middle of similar items still existing in the countries where the 17th century. With the growing wealth of the they were originally made have been badly dam- hoko neighbourhoods the floats became more and aged or entirely lost. With its historic assets and more elegant. The floats were given their fixed form traditions, the Gion Festival is among Japan’s much later, however, in the Tokugawa era. Until this priceless cultural possessions. Parts of that herit- time the decorations were changed every year. In age may be considered to be of outstanding uni- the Meiji era, with its radical social reforms, the versal value and as such might qualify even as festival tradition and its institutions went through ‘world heritage’. major changes. In addition, many historic floats were destroyed in the city fires of the period. The Gion Festival and Thirty-Five In the Showa era the festival routes were changed from the narrow dwelling streets to the Hoko Neighbourhoods broad main streets, Oike, Kawaramachi and Shijo Since the 16th century the Gion Festival has been Streets. The atmosphere of the narrow dwelling organised by the thirty-five city neighbourhoods streets can still be experienced in such places as known as Yamahokocho¯. The name of these neigh- Shinmachi Street, through which all the festival bourhoods is derived from the yama (‘mountain’ floats pass in the end of the festival in order to float) and hoko (large float) of the Gion Festival. return to their ‘home’ neighbourhoods. The lo- The fact that the Gion Festival is organised by city cation of the festival floats during the festival neighbourhoods and not by a shrine or temple weeks and the route taken by the floats in the institution as in some other great festivals in Ja- procession is shown in Fig. 7. pan emphasises the historical importance of the The key role of the hoko neighbourhoods as the hoko neighbourhoods. main urban stage for the Gion Festival has been The practice began after the civil wars in the observed, for instance, by the Japanese Nobel early 16th century, when the festival tradition was Prize winning novelist Yasunari Kawabata, who in interrupted for more than ten years because of the his novel The Old Capital (San Francisco: North devastating civil wars. It has been estimated that Point Press 1987) described their role in the fol- in these wars two thousand buildings were de- lowing way: stroyed and the population of the city was reduced from half a million to forty thousand.2 The cen- “... Tourists who came afar were apt to think that the tral areas were devastated and rebuilding of the city Gion Festival consisted of only the parade of floats on after the wars took a long period. the seventeenth of July. Many also came to the Yoiyama

35 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

FIG.6 FESTIVAL DECORATIONS BEFORE THE SECOND WORLD WAR. KB.

festivities on the night of the sixteenth. But the real ceremonies of the Gion Festival continued all through The Screen Festival July. In the various districts of Kyoto, each of which Among the continued cultural traditions charac- had its own Gion float, the festival bands began to teristic of the Gion Festival, one of the most im- perform and the amulet rituals commenced on the first posing is the Screen Festival, Byo¯bu Matsuri, the of July.” 4 display of folding screens. During this perform- ance the light wooden lattice partitions, ko¯shi, The Japanese names of the hoko neighbourhoods which are the major architectural elements of and the names of the festival floats are given in wooden-frame townhouses, are temporarily re- Fig. 13. The figure also shows schematically the moved, and the interior of the house is exposed location of these neighbourhoods. See also Ap- to the street as if it were a stage. The rooms, which pendix 3, which gives the list of their Japanese open to the streets, are decorated with folding names and the names of the floats written in screens and other home treasures owned by ki- romanji-pronounciation. mono families. Dr. Morse, who visited Kyoto at the end of the 19th century, described the Screen Festival tradition in the following way: 36

FIG.7 THE LOCATION OF THE FESTIVAL FLOATS AND THE ROUTE TAKEN BY THE FESTIVAL PROCESSION. GFM.

“…On certain festival days, it is customary for the peo- The leading float in the procession is the Nagi- ple bordering the wider thoroughfares to throw open their natahoko, which is also the float of the living houses and display their screens; and in Kyoto, at such pageboy. times one may walk along the streets and behold July 10 evening: Omukae-cho¯chin, welcoming of wonderful exhibitions of these beautiful objects”. 5 lanterns. Parishioners go in a parade to the Yasaka Shrine to greet the palanquins and welcome them Many of the displaying kimono families were, and into the festival. still are, wholesale dealers of luxurious kimonos July 10: Mikoshi arai, the rite of cleaning the sa- and other kimono textiles adding to the splendour cred carriages, mikoshi. The ritual takes place in the and artistic quality of the displays. There are also Kamo River by the Shijo Bridge. kimono designers and other kimono-related ar- July 10-11: Hokotate; July 13-14: Yamatate, the tisans. In earlier centuries wealthy kimono mer- assembled parts of the festival floats are taken out chant families served as patrons for Kyoto painting from their storage and the floats are assembled schools. Even today there are screens which are using traditional carpentry techniques in the hoko specially designed for the display. The wooden neighbourhoods. town architecture plays a vital role as the scenic July 13-16: Yoiyama, Yoiyoiyama, two last eve- stage of the festival. The history of the area also nings of the festival. When the construction of the explains the excellent quality of the displayed ar- floats begins, the streets around the hoko neigh- ticles and screens. With this background the Scre- bourhoods are changed to pedestrian roads and en Festival is unique, not only in Kyoto but in the decorated for the festival. The festival floats appear whole of Japan. even more splendid after dark when the lanterns decorating the floats are lit. Important elements of the street decorations are the screen displays, List of the Main Festival Events Byo¯bu matsuri, staged by the kimono families dur- July 2: Kujitori-shiki, the order of festival floats in ing the last two festival nights. the procession is decided by drawing lots. Only July 17: Yamahoko junko, the festival procession, the place of the first float in the procession is fixed. which is the climax of the festival. In the proces-

37 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL sion 31 floats are pulled along Shijo, Kawaramachi to secure the continuity of the festival, local and Oike Streets. preservation organisations were established in July 17: Shinkosai, the procession of the sacred every hoko neighbourhood, the first ones in 1923. carriages. Today these organisations, take the main re- July 24: Hanagasa junko, the procession of flower sponsibility for the organisation of the festival and sunshades. the maintenance of the cultural heritage.6 In re- July 24: Kankosai, the procession of the sacred cent years the importance of the preservation carriages. The palanquins are returned to the Ya- organisations has grown with the declining num- saka Shrine. bers of inhabitants and the falling economy of the July 28: Mikoshi arai, the rites of cleaning the hoko neighbourhoods. Only eight floats are di- sacred carriages. This is the ending ceremony of rectly owned by the hoko neighbourhoods. the festival. Following the Second World War Kyoto artists and artisans have attempted to restore many pre- Cultural Protection and the Gion viously destroyed floats to their original grandeur. In addition, proper conservation measures have been Festival taken to preserve and restore the priceless gobelins Originally, each hoko neighbourhood admin- and tapestries, which have deteriorated from their istered the urban festival. In Rokkakucho¯ (neigh- original splendour. In 1983 a special council was es- bourhood of the Kitakannonyama, ‘Northern tablished to advise city communities about the la- Boddhisattava’ float) historical document records borious and difficult restoration work. Many antique all yearly donations that were collected by every tapestries have been restored since then. household in the city community to support the Three of the floats that were destroyed in organisation of the festival. Parts of these dona- the Meiji period city fires, have not been recon- tions were used to acquire new ornaments for the structed.7 Despite the ravages of many city fires local festival float. The ornaments are preserved and having been rebuilt many times, from the thi- and used even today. rty-five floats that existed at the beginning of the After the First World War, the social standing Meiji era, thirty-two still survive. This heritage is of the hoko neighbourhoods weakened and the preserved by law. The main nomination took place management of the festival became endangered. in 1962 when the Gion Festival was nominated To be able to keep the priceless cultural property as an important cultural property of Japan. The such as the historic floats and their ornaments and nomination consists of two parts:

FIG.8 RITUAL OF THE SACRED CARRIAGE, MIKOSHI. FIG.9 A FESTIVAL FLOAT DECORATED WITH LANTERNS THE YASAKA SHRINE. RS. IN ITS ‘HOME’ NEIGHBOURHOOD. RS. 38

39 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL 40 1) the Gion Festival is preserved as an important the above-mentioned law. Among the screens dis- folklore tradition played, besides many more modern or, later 2) twenty-nine floats are preserved as important screens from the end of the 19th and beginning folklore assets8 of the 20th century, there are many fine antique screens from the Tokugawa and Meiji periods. In The concept behind the twofold nomination is other words, the oldest screens are already more that in addition to the material objects, which can than two or three hundred years old. Individual, be designated as cultural properties, an essential historically valuable screens have been listed by art and important element of the system of cultural historians and heritage authorities. In this work protection in Japan is the protection of intangi- they are to be found in part VII, chapter 21, field- ble traditions, such as special skills, attitudes, and work no. 6. Screens owned by private kimono spiritual traditions. In the first group of preserved families are outside the municipal restoration pro- tangible objects are paintings, sculptures, historic grammes, except those that have been brought to documents, and also, historic buildings, groups of public museums. buildings and heritage sites. The Yamahoko programme included, among In the group of intangible objects are not only other things, a comprehensive recording of the folk arts but also artistic or professional compe- screens that are displayed in the current festival. tence. Japan is one of those few countries in the A short description of the screens displayed is world, which acknowledges personal competence given in chapter 21. The scope of this research is as having the value of heritage. Thus, Japan rec- not, however, limited to the protection and con- ognises individuals as ‘living national treasures’ and servation of individual screens, but extends to their Japan has acknowledged such individuals even in urban and cultural context as well. the field of heritage conservation.9 In the Gion Municipal authorities and conservationists have Festival the intangible traditions are represented paid attention to the Screen Festival only when in the folk customs (such as festival dances, mu- it has been able to boost tourism as a clearly sic and other rituals), religious rituals and other measurable tourist asset such as displays of many spiritual traditions related to the festival. The re- years of patronage or of special historic and aes- ligious rituals include time honoured purification thetic value. In other words, the focus has been ceremonies that take place at the beginning and on the few, carefully selected landmarks.The more end of the festival. The author observed a number ordinary home displays, as well as the whole ur- of such ceremonies in the hoko neighbourhoods. ban context, have been given less if any attention. Besides the historic floats, the hoko neigh- There is an acute lack of appreciation of such bourhoods own numerous old documents and socio-cultural values as the inter-relationship be- other valuables. Many of them are designated as tween the house and the street and their cultural cultural properties. The national list includes, among expressions during the urban festival. City plan- other things, one piece of kimono from the Mom- ning having failed to enhance such values has not oyama era, a 16th century gobelin in three pieces only caused deserted spaces to be created in the from Belgium and old armour.10 In addition, the city but has also resulted in the disappearance of municipal list includes approximately nine hundred cultural patterns and local landmarks vital for the old documents or other historic assets. city. Moreover, a set of cultural values, the special Japanese comprehension of space, has been sacri- Cultural Protection and the Screen ficed for more practical and material values. Among the ‘forgotten’ heritage is the wooden Festival townhouse context as the indispensable ‘stage’ for The Screen Festival tradition, although an impor- the festival. tant part of the Gion Festival, is not included in

41 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

FIG.10 (PREVIOUS PAGE) INTERIOR VIEW OF THE BAN DISPLAY, HONEYACHO¯ . HK.

FIG.11 THE LIVING PAGE BOY WITH ITS ATTENDANTS. THE GION FESTIVAL IN NAGINATAHOKOCHO¯ AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR. IN THE BACKGROUND THE COMMON FACILITY, CHO¯ IE. TS. 42

43 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

Chapter 4 The City Centre and the Hoko Neighbourhoods

Historical Outline and Character of entity. Unlike most Western cities, the fact that in the Grid-Plan Area Kyoto the major temples and shrines were locat- The thesis deals with the historic city centre of ed on the outskirts of the city contributed to the Kyoto, the basis of which is the grid-plan area cultural significance of the sub-urban land. By the adapted according to Chinese city planning mod- middle of the 13th century, there was a concept els in the 8th century. From its founding in 794 of actually manipulating the landscape outside the Kyoto was the capital of Japan for more than one city centre for aesthetic or cultural effect.13 thousand years until 1868, when in the Meiji res- When considering the development and make- toration, the capital was moved to Tokyo. The pres- up of the natural landscapes on the outskirts of ent day city centre corresponds very closely to the Kyoto, there was a well-known compositional city area as it was rebuilt after the civil wars in the system, which was adopted in Zen temples and 15th and 16th centuries. This area is known in influenced by the Zen philosophical thought. The Kyoto as Rakuchu¯ , literally: inside the capital. The system was made up of a number of landscape area outside the city centre, Rakugai, was suburban elements, jikkyo¯, (literally: ‘ten stages’) as they were farmland almost until the late 19th century. Only called. They were landmarks attached with a sym- in the past few decades has the urbanisation proc- bolic and spiritual meaning. The jikkyo¯, meaning- ess reached the outer edges of the suburban land. ful landmarks such as mountain tops, rivers, The Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai relationship has had an bridges were part of a culturally appointed envi- important cultural and spiritual significance in the ronment with specific (Zen related) meanings history of Kyoto up to the present day. Since early attached to them. In protecting and preserving times, the city centre, the historic grid-plan area, these landscape areas, they were acknowledged and its environs, were spiritually regarded as one to own a value of an important, culturally ap- 44 45

pointed environmental heritage. How important duction and distribution of high-class consumer GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL a similar kind of concept of an architectural her- goods. They served not only people associated itage layered in history would have been in the with the imperial court but also numerous head- historic grid-plan area, is one of the key questions quarters temples of Buddhist schools and sects, as of this work. well as the headquarters of art schools for tea The cultural relationship between the city and ceremony and flower arrangement, and other ar- its environs was interpreted in paintings known tistic activities in the service of the court and as Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai-e, paintings which depict religious institutions. When the central govern- scenes and landscapes inside and outside the cap- ment was moved to Edo (the present day Tokyo) ital. Prof. Yamasaki, for instance, has remarked in 1603, the wealth of Kyoto became dependent how the real distance between the outskirts and on the Nishijin silk textile industry. The growth the central areas of the city were distorted in all of the Nishijin silk textile industry and Yu¯zen dye- Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai paintings and how one can ing industries created the basis for the wealth of therefore interpret this to mean that as far as peo- Kyoto and allowed Kyoto to continue to flour- ple in those days were concerned, they were con- ish as a national centre of production for fine scious of their surrounding areas as being close to handicrafts. the main parts of the city. This hinterland now constitute part of the heritage, the ‘garden land- scape’ as Prof. Yamasaki called it, that exists on the City Centre with Multiple Cores outskirts of Kyoto today. The cultural significance The city centre of Kyoto, which consists of the of the city centre, on the other hand, culminated historic grid-plan area and some historic urban- in such traditions as the Gion Festival. ised areas outside it, is characterised by small and medium sized traditional industries such as the Nishijin silk textile industry, Yu¯zen silk dyeing Kyo¯-Machiya, the Kyoto Townhouse industry, Kiyomizu pottery industry and the dis- In the Kamakura era, with the withering power tribution function of the Muromachi kimono of the emperor and imperial court, the social stand wholesale district. In these areas there is a con- of urban merchants in Kyoto began to grow al- centration of people engaged in similar industries though their social status in the social hierarchy who live and work in certain geographically lim- was low. By the 13th century city areas between ited city areas taking different roles in the produc- Muromachi and Nishi no To¯in Street had devel- tion process from design to manufacturing and oped to a flourishing trade and merchandise cen- wholesale functions. tres. The residents of Kyoto were independently The basis for the decentralised urban pattern working artisans and urban merchants and not was created in the Tokugawa era with its highly bound to the land as peasants in the countryside. developed group-coordination and skills in co- Free trade evolved. Urban blocks and streets that operation, which are not only distinct features of had shops, began to be called as ‘machi’ and the Kyoto’s silk textile industry but for all Tokugawa townhouses along them as ‘machiya’. Kyo¯-machiya, era culture as, for instance, Edwin O. Reischau- a townhouse which combines dwelling and shops, er has noted.14 The group coordination meant became the most common building type in Kyoto that every individual working phase in the pro- and also, one of the urban keys for Kyoto’s duction process was carried out by a different uniqueness. group of specialised people so that each group Traditional industries developed in Kyoto un- focused on a relatively narrow field in the proc- der conditions that were favourable to the pro- ess such as design, weaving, painting, or carry-

FIG.12 (OPPOSITE PAGE) VIEW FROM SHIJO STREET. SHOP SIGNS AS STREET FURNITURE. RS. 46

FIG.13 CITY CENTRE AND THE 35 YAMAHOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS. SCHEMATIC ILLUSTRATION OF THE TRIANGULAR SHAPE OF THE RYO¯GAWACHO¯, ‘ON BOTH SIDES OF THE STREET NEIGHBOURHOOD’, PATTERN. YT.

ing half-finished products from house to house. Edo’s leading economic role, most of the domains There were even different makers for the differ- in western Japan maintained economic agencies ent parts of kimono such as obi designers or in Osaka, which became the major entrepôt for those who were specialised in making kimono trade in that part of the country, while Kyoto re- string. This developed system of production established its position as the religious and cultural process created the basis for Kyoto’s crafts and capital of Japan, a position it still holds today. skills and thus, for the outstanding artistic qual- During the 1860s, Japan’s first decade of for- ity of the kimono craft and other handicraft. In eign trade, a silk blight in Europe created a strong this research the author will present a number of demand for Japanese silk and silkworm eggs. As a such highly specialised kimono artisans and result Japan developed a favourable balance of craftsmen involved in the kimono production trade with West. In the 1870s, Japanese silk entre- such as kimono merchants, wholesale dealers, preneurs adopted the relatively simple process of dyers, gold painters and kimono designers. reeling silk by mechanical power thus producing In the Tokugawa era with its general increase a more uniform silk thread, superior to that of in national productivity and improvement in tech- other Asian countries. This small innovation gave nology, the chief consuming areas were the great Japan the lion’s share of the silk market in the cities such as Osaka and Kyoto, each of which had West, and silk was to remain its largest export until a population of upward of 300 000 people. At the well into the 20th century. 15 In Kyoto, the Nishi- same time, by the early 18th century, Edo had a jin silktextile area played a leading role in adapt- population of at least a million and may have been ing modern weaving machine techniques and the largest city in the world at that time. Despite new technologies that were imported to Japan 47

from Europe creating the basis for new innova- glomeration of banks, financial institutions and GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL tions in design and productivity. department stores, such as the renowned depart- Even today, as Prof. Mimura has noted, the tra- ment store Daimaru and representatives of some ditional urban structure of Kyoto is characterised of the Japan’s largest banks and companies such by multiple urban core districts of a medium scale, as Mitsubishi, Sakura, Sumitomo and Sanwa. The which together constitute the whole inner city.16 location of the survey area in the Shijo-Karasu- In other words, instead of a concentration of cen- ma district adversely affects land prices in the area tral city functions in a single city core, Kyoto has and thus indirectly, efforts to conserve the urban multiple cores and there are many traditional in- heritage. dustries in and around the historic city centre. The 2) The hoko neighbourhoods as part of Muromachi Muromachi area with its concentration of kimo- kimono wholesale district. The area is one of the city’s no trade quarters is a typical example of these. The traditional urban cores and one of the major cen- special feature of these core districts in Kyoto tres for Japan’s kimono merchandise and trade. unlike many other world city is that these core Powerful urban merchants such as the house of districts are based on and continue to concentrate Mitsui became established in the hoko area in the on some special handicraft skills or traditional 17th century. The original site is still owned by activities. the family in Rokkakucho¯. The wealth of the area goes back to the Tokugawa period. It was the Description of the Survey Area and urban merchants who were in many ways the prime movers in Tokugawa culture and the large the Hoko Neighbourhoods cities, Osaka, Kyoto and Edo, which dominated In the city centre the thesis focuses, as described the culture of the period. above, on the thirty-five city neighbourhoods As part of the Muromachi area the hoko neigh- known as Yamahokocho¯ or hoko neighbourhoods. bourhoods take a highly traditional role. The wealth The location of the neighbourhoods is dominat- and sophisticated kimono culture of the area cre- ed by two, partially contradictory characteristics: ated the basis for such cultural traditions as the 1) The hoko neighbourhoods as part of the city’s Gion Festival. In both of these roles the hoko neigh- modern commercial and business district. The core of bourhoods are associated with unique artistic and this area is the crossing of Shijo and Karasuma cultural traditions. Besides the distribution and Streets. The area is characterised by a large con- wholesale function, the hoko area exhibits a varie-

FIG.14 A ROW OF TRADITIONAL TOWNHOUSES IN THE FIG.15 VIEW FROM SHIJO STREET. RS. SURVEY AREA. SHIJO STREET, KAKKYOYAMACHO¯ . RS. 3

48 ty of other kimono manufacturing functions such through the eyes of Kyoto’s traditional kimono as kimono design and dyeing as well as other tra- families. The Gion Festival and the hoko area play ditional industries such as making of traditional an important part in the book. dolls, fans, kimono accessories etc. The survey area was lined by Imadegawa Street In Japanese literature the life of a traditional in the north, Karasuma Street in the east, Hori- kimono artisan has been described, for example, kawa Street in the west and Matsubara Street in by Yasunari Kawabata. In his novel he observes, the south. The general outline of the survey area among other things, the cultural clash that exists in the city structure is shown on the location map, between modernity and traditional craftsmanship Fig. 1. 4 Living Tradition or Panda’s

49 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

Chapter 5 The Lattice Ko¯shi Facade and Evolution of the Unified Townscape

The Evolution of Kyoto’s Townscape class of earlier periods, now moved into the urban and the Rakuchu¯-Rakugai Paintings conglomerations to serve the rising merchant class. The aesthetically sophisticated and homogeneous The carpenters creating the new urban architec- townscape of Kyoto as we know it now developed ture were proud of their professional skills. They rather late, in the late 18th century, but was then wanted to build as if their houses would ‘never all the more sophisticated. The necessary prereq- burn down’.20 An important step in the develop- uisites were created by the long peaceful period ment of the Japanese building code took place in after the civil wars and the growing wealth of the 1633 when the Office of Carpentry was set up. merchant class. The builder-carpenters, who cre- This institution established an unique Japanese ated the sophisticated architecture of the upper building code, the kiwari system. Through this

FIG.16 KAMAKURA PERIOD TOWNHOUSE. WT. 50 system all architectural details, materials and di- Rakugai paintings the Heian period streetscape can mensions were exhaustively standardised through- be found depicted, for example, in such famous out Japan (although there were local differences). illustrations as the Nenchu¯ Gyo¯ji E Maki (‘Scroll The major source of information on the evo- Paintings of the Annual Events’) published in the lution of the wooden facades and townscape be- second half of the 12th century. In general, such fore the Tokugawa era in Kyoto are the Rakuchu¯ - pictures were, however, few. Rakugai paintings mentioned above, in chapter 4. A very good (and probably the most authori- These paintings were done between the middle of tative) analysis in English of the development of the 16th century and the end of the 17th century. Kyoto’s townscape based on the analysis of the These pictures depict, literally, as their name indi- Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai paintings is provided by Prof. cates, landscapes and urban scenes ‘inside and out- Yamasaki in his recent book.21 The description side the capital’. Number of Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai below owes much to his analysis, as well as to the paintings are represented within the Screen Festi- lectures given by him on the subject in the Kyoto val itself. They are among the most valuable his- University. toric screens that are found in the festival and depict, among other topics, the celebration of the The City and its Outskirts - One Gion Festival. Although the Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai pictures are not Entity precisely dated, it is possible to date the events In the Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai paintings the city centre depicted in the paintings on the basis of temple and the suburban areas, in other words the historic diaries, which record major fires etc. The oldest grid-plan area and mountains that surround Kyoto painting is thought to be the so-called Machida and the verdant countryside, were painted as one illustration that probably dates from the first half entity. This symbiotic view of the city and its of the 16th century (1525). There are similar paint- surroundings emphasises, as has been analysed, the ings in the possession of the Uesugi and Takahashi symbolic and spiritual meanings which in Kyoto families. These paintings were done after the were already attached to the landscape and moun- Machida illustration, but they show similar topics tains in the countryside in early times. This sym- and themes. biotic view of the city was dominant during the What is of particular interest to us here, is that following centuries. It was not until after the mid- the Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai paintings were painted in a dle of the 18th century, when illustrations began period when an overall view of the city became to appear where the city and nature are treated as popular as a main painting theme. This is one of individual topics. the first times that systematic illustrations of city- Another noteworthy fact is that the main an- scapes began to be depicted. Before the Rakuchu¯ - nual events and the four seasons were painted

FIG.17 HEIAN PERIOD TOWNHOUSE. WT.

51 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL within one picture and seasonal events were al- urban patterns in Kyoto probably already in the ways depicted in the same places and landscapes. Heian period. Thus such places as Takano were always painted The elegant wooden latticework facades were in winter or autumn with maple trees. Likewise, developed much later, in the Tokugawa period. the city centre was depicted in summer season Many roofs are seen with projecting walls, udat- with the Gion Festival. This is one proof of the su, to isolate the roof of adjoining buildings in cultural significance of the urban festival since case of fire and also, to prevent rain from penetrat- centuries. ing the gap between buildings. Compared to the Heian period townscape there is considerable Evolution of the 16th and Early development in the wall treatment. For the first time there are plastered walls in the cityscape. It 17th Century Townscape is not until the first half of the 17th century, that In the Machida edition ordinary townhouses are the upper floor appears in the townscape, but in plain wooden structures with only one floor. The the beginning it is still very low. One pictorial houses follow a standard pattern: the buildings are illustration from this period records a house with lined up in an orderly way and their ridges are two floors and a terrace, but the house is with- parallel to the streets. The width of the house is out the canopy between the ground and upper from 6.7 to10 metres. The roof is covered with floor that later became one of the elegant char- wooden boards. Narrow bamboo poles have been acteristics of the Kyoto townhouses and town- laid in pairs in a grid, with a rock placed where scape. the poles intersect. The entrance to the house is a Different types of roofing materials appear in simple opening in the wall. The wooden framing the cityscape. Roof tiles, as a result of the pervad- around the opening resembles a torii gate, which ing peace and improvement in the economic cir- is commonly seen in Shinto shrines. cumstances of the citizens, become common. Dif- The shops are open to the street with a mise- ferent styles of roof tiles are used in increasing dana, sales stand. This has been described as the numbers, but wooden boards are also common. origin of the battarishogi, a sales bench that can Later, following the great city fire in the Tokugawa be lifted up, a fixture that is still seen in some of period, the central government prohibited the use the houses studied (such as the Kojiro Yoshida of wood as a roofing material. As a result, roof tiles house in Rokkakucho¯, described in chapter 21). become the dominant roofing material even in the The openings of the townhouses have a thick ordinary townhouses. Thin tiles became common wooden sash and their base is at door level. The in the middle of the Tokugawa period. Today the open wall pattern that plays an important role in elegant tile roofs are one of the distinct features of the Screen Festival, was thus one of the basic the Kyoto townscape.

FIG.18 HEIAN PERIOD TOWNHOUSE. WT. 52 The Kaleidoscopic Edo Period Towards a Unified Townscape Since Townscape the Latter Half of the 18th Century The evolution of individual facade elements can A change towards a more homogeneous and uni- be observed, for example, in the Ikeda illustration fied townscape takes place relatively late, in the in the middle of the 17th century. The design has middle of the 18th century, when linear perspec- evolved and together with the evolution in dye- tive appears in the illustrations of streetscapes. ing techniques, colour appears in the townscape. The first painter to introduce such pictures, Noren, slashed and dyed curtains, which are hung kairo¯keikan, was Uta Maruyama (1760) a famous outside the doors and which in earlier illustra- Kyoto-based painter. Apart from being a new tions were black and white, are yellow and blue. method of drafting technique, which is said to have Manmaku, large decorative cloths with the fam- been introduced to Japan from the West, the new ily crest, which are even today seen in front of method of visualisation opened up an entirely new facades on such festive occasions as the Screen way of looking at the city. Until then a streetscape Festival, become colourful. Canopies appear as was always seen from above and the townscape was new building elements between the ground and depicted using parallel lines as in the Rakuchu¯ - upper floor. The technique is known as hisashi- Rakugai paintings. The new visualisation technique tsukuri: literally the construction of lower eaves brought the viewpoint down to ground level. or canopies. At the end of the Tokugawa period the design Blue, ochre and yellow colours appear in the gains homogeneity and elegance in a way that was townscape. Different wall surfaces are painted with unknown before. From this period onwards, the different colours in the same building. In the town- upper storey is still low, but all townhouses have a scape there are two storied houses but also narrow standard ornamental opening in the upper floor, towers with three floors (which Yamasaki called ‘a mushiko mado, a plastered lattice window (literally: third floor for one person’). Also, some storehouses ‘insect window’). This becomes one of the aes- are three storeys high. In the fire-proof structures thetic foci of the wooden-framed townhouses. the wooden structural frames are completely plas- On the ground floor there is a wooden lattice tered over. work-facade, with its movable and standardised The lively eclecticism of the period gets its ins- lattice ko¯shi partitions. The well-proportioned and piration from such structures and architectural finely crafted lattice facades give elegance and styles as the Katsura Villa, the Hiunkaku pavilion, character to the whole townscape. The streetscape the Manshu-in temple and the elegant sukiya sty- is of great architectural integrity. The design be- le. The design of the famous Kyoto Sumiya, a house comes more and more elaborate. Although the of a lordly entertainment in the western part of lower eaves still have wooden roofing, because the city, mostly dating from the 18th century, is supporting the heavy tiled roof has not yet been highly representative of this playful aesthetic. It is resolved technically, the townscape is very simi- one of the few buildings of the period, which has lar to what we now know as characteristic of been preserved up to the present day. The kaleido- Kyoto and praised for its superb aesthetic quali- scopic Edo period townscape is surprisingly dif- ties. This unified townscape evolved in a very ferent from the images we usually have of Kyoto short period of time, after a creative period of and the aesthetic integrity which is characteristic eclecticism when all kinds of styles and design of later periods. Lattice doors and windows appear motifs flourished. It is this late Tokugawa era in the townscape in the middle of the Tokugawa townscape that we know consider as the typical period, but at the beginning only on the upper flo- Kyoto townscape. or.

53 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

FIG.19 (ABOVE) STREET FACADE OF SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . THE SUGIURA AND OKAO HOUSES AND THE COMMON FACILITY OF KAKKYO¯ YAMACHO¯ ARE INDICATED IN THE DRAWING. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR.

FIG.20 (BELOW) STREET FACADE OF SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . THE SUGIMOTO SITE IS INDICATED IN THE DRAWING. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR. 54 City Fires in the 19th Century and wooden-framed facades begin to undergo major the Evolution of the Modern changes. During the war the ornamental windows in the upper floor, mushiko mado, are prohibited Townhouse because they are regarded as unsafe access ways in The elegant and homogeneous townscape was case of fire. This is one of the reasons why these destroyed in the great city fires in the Meiji era. ornamental openings are today found only in a few In the big city fire which took place at the begin- wooden-frame facades. In our survey area, as we ning of the Meiji period in 1864 almost all wooden will see below, in most facades the ornamental townhouses in the city centre were burned down. openings have been replaced by ordinary glass Only few city quarters were saved. The wooden windows and in many cases, with standard alu- townhouses, which we see today, are virtually all minium frames. built after that period.After the fire, in the Meiji After the war, prefabricated aluminium win- period, a modern townhouse evolves. In these dows and doors, new wall-surface materials and wooden townhouses there is still a continuity of other new architectural materials and details add tradition and the Edo period carpentry techniques to the visual turmoil of the wooden-frame facades. are still much alive. This is illustrated by such struc- In some traditional houses the whole facade is de- tures as the design of the Gion Ichiriki, a famous signed as if it were a large shop sign. Some of the restaurant in the Gion part of the town and also, characteristic features of the traditional carpentry in the design of the Sugimoto house, one of the and craftsmanship are however, still very much key structures in this work. alive. Among them are the elegant tile roofs as well After the Second World War, and at a growing as a number of traditional carpentry elements such pace particularly after the mid-1960s, with radical lattice windows and doors. These are separately changes in the construction industry and city plan- studied and analysed through our field survey in ning standards, the historic townscape and part VII, chapter 19.

55 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK THE TO INTRODUCTION GENERAL

PART II

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIELD OF THE RESEARCH 58

59

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THE FIELD OF THE THE OF FIELD THE RESEARCH

Chapter 6 The Interpretative Environment of the Work

Japanism and Interpretations of architecture. These features, combined with certain Japanese Architecture spiritual attitudes manifested in Japanese culture, are In addition to the scrutiny of the subject of study, however, an essential part of the Japanese view of new cultural research sees the researcher’s own the world and Japanese aesthetics. Architect Chris subjective self as a factor affecting the content of Fawcett has sharply observed the matter when he the work. Culturally conditioned attitudes and analysed the ritual patterns of a Japanese house: values affect the course of study and, thus, its con- tent. The position of a European researcher in “…The Japanese house ... appears monstrous to us, if the Japanese cultural context is not entirely not outright miraculous, for these specimens are presented unproblematic. A concept that needs to be ana- to us in arty volumes which eschew any reference to the lysed is ‘Japanism’ through which Western ideas home culture which succoured them and without which and concepts have influenced our idea of Japanese they could no longer be. That a Japanese house does not culture and architecture. appear grotesque and outlandish to the people who live Western architects have defined Japanese in it, should be enough of a warning - the house does architecture from the beginning of the 20th centu- not exist as something unto itself but engages in a dai- ry and our understanding has by and large been ly exchange of social, economical and ritual gestures, and shaped by those early views. These definitions have any attempt by the Western architect to try to come to been geared towards geometric and abstract aes- terms with the Japanese house must start from this ba- thetic observation and have given less attention to sic anthropological understanding”.22 such values and properties of Japanese architecture as decorative details, spatial properties dependent on Japanese architecture is known in Europe mainly the observer and the meanings attached to Japanese through the pioneers of modern architecture. Yet, 60

FIG.21 THE YAMAMURA RESIDENCE IN ASHIYAKAWA, KOBE. ARCHITECT FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. RS.

as architect Arata Isozaki has pointed out, these Japanese word tsuri-ai equivalent to ‘proportion’ in architects have, in their functional analysis and his analysis of Japanese quality of space. 25 aesthetic interpretation of Japanese architecture, To avoid such basic cultural misunderstandings developed an approach that elevated the actual the author discusses the cultural background of architecture to the realm of myth.23 Above all, the urban festival using those Japanese terms that Isozaki meant that we are inclined to observe the Japanese researchers themselves considered to be Japanese environment through our own Western of importance and through which they described stereotypes and abstract concepts. These inherit- the cultural context of their own work. The ex- ed observation models still burden our view of ploring the concept of heritage in a cultural con- Japanese architecture even though they have been text different from our own is, likewise, an questioned several times. essential part of the analysis of this research. An avowed ‘Japanese’ quality in Wright’s work, for instance, declared to be self-evident, has always been taken for granted as corroborating his infat- The Problematic ‘Otherness’ uation with Japanese art. In fact, this notion has Working in a different culture, not necessarily been carried so far from the mere influence of Japanese, one unavoidably has to face the prints, over the years, as to conclude in a quasi- phenomenon Kristeva called ‘the experience of reconciliation for many between the character of otherness’ - working in a community and yet not Japanese traditional architecture and the revolu- being its fully authorised member. Japan, in par- tionary proposals on which Wright’s own spatial ticular, is known to reject people, who are not organisation is based. David Stewart, for instance, members of their own group. Those who are in his critical analysis of Wright’s position on Ja- outside the group, belong according to Vesterin- pan, has questioned this resemblance as ‘nothing en, who has observed the Japanese group- could be more of a mistake’.24 consciousness, to a special category of human re- Furthermore, Rikiya Koseki has pointed out the lations. Even those who have lived in Japan for difficulties that Bruno Taut experienced when he many generations and speak Japanese as their tried to interpret and explain the characteristics of mother language, are regarded as outsiders and the Japanese house and life in European rational, they might experience difficulties in becoming systematic thinking. The main point of critical accepted as full members of the group.26 argument in Koseki’s analysis is that although Taut Thus, the opinions of a foreigner, if listened to, came very close to the Japanese concept of are rejected or not taken seriously, since they proportion (Beziehung), he actually never used the come from outside the group. To take only one

61 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION example, the answer that the author was given in stead of accepting the diversity and richness of a meeting of the Architectural Institute of Japan many cultures one only recognises one’s own. when the author referred to the problems of ur- Seen in this context, a strong identity, whatever ban conservation in the hoko neighbourhoods, was its nature, is ‘somehow awkward and old-fash- ‘shikata ga nai’; meaning ‘nothing can affect the ioned’, as the Estonian poet Onnepalu put it.28 THE OF FIELD THE way things go’. In the symposium the author acted Regardless of who defines the objectives for as a member of a Japanese research group. The preservation, there is no authority with the power other participants were Japanese architects. to force others to preserve traditions against their

The marginal position of a foreign researcher own will. A set of theses and questions can still be RESEARCH in the research community, on the other hand, is presented, however. It is irrelevant how these not an especially Japanese feature, but is recorded questions are answered. Postulating the theses is and observed in many other places as well. In fact, more important. Put in this way, the questions and Kristeva herself based her book on the experience theses are in fact, much more; they help to iden- of this kind. It is clearly a mistake to try to offer tify who we ourselves are and why we are doing solutions to situations where they are not willingly this work. received. The Japanese are reluctant to receive and tolerate dissenting views because dissidence bre- aks the group’s harmony. This feature is so prom- The Values of a Traditional Artisan inent that it has even been seen as one of the In his work The Unknown Japanese Craftsman reasons why Japan should develop a truly vigor- (1982) Soetsu Yanagi, a Japanese critic of indus- ous scientific culture of its own.27 trial art, has dealt with questions connected to Cultural differences can be defended if they craftsmanship in modern culture and the harm- reveal a hidden or a meaningful side of a traditi- ful aspects of modernisation and industrial capi- on or if they open up new tracks for intercultural talism especially for Japanese traditional crafts.29 dialogue. The world, however, has become small- Yanagi is among those few members of Japanese er and more uniform, communication has in- society who warned of the destruction of Japan's creased and the changing values caused by urban and architectural heritage when the modernisation have spread everywhere. The same transformation process of the urban environments products and brand labels encounter us every- had hardly yet begun. In his book Yanagi provides where. Town planning that leads to the desertion a sharp analysis of the modern sensibilities attract- of historic city centres, commercialisation and ed by machine-made beauty and traditional hand- commodification of cultural heritage and mass icrafts regarded as being out of date. tourism are connected to modern culture, not its According to Yanagi modern values based on Japanese character in particular. individuality are alien to traditional craftsmanship. The neglect of a cultural viewpoint is as lim- The craftsman refuses to submit to contemporary iting as a view of Japan as ‘exotic’. If one wants values and beliefs which would mean an end to to avoid distorting reality with generalisations, the everything he considers valuable. The craftsman historical, cultural and social differences must be operates on his own terms and it would be impos- taken into account, but they must not be observed sible for him to accept contradictory values.30 as separate phenomena. The author opposes an Therefore in the modern world, the artisan is no attitude towards Japanese culture and society that longer an integral part of society and will even- leaves things Japanese completely outside Western tually lose his identity. The artisan is often seen by understanding. More than once I have heard an outsiders as a relic of the past, contrary to the way expression: ‘Great, but it has nothing to do with he sees himself.31 us’. In fact, both East and West obstinately hold Yanagi has named the experience achieved on to the difference between their cultures. In- through the wisdom of generations an aggregate 62 that can lift an individual above the limits cre- traditions unite only small groups of people.33 The ated by his own mind. Poor and illiterate crafts- cultural differences between separate classes in men were powerless alone, but supported by Japanese society are equally large or even larger tradition, they were able to produce wonderful than those between a Japanese and a Finn work- works of art. The breathtaking beauty of these ing in the same profession. Traditional culture and works was not due to ingenuity but tradition. For artisans, which in the thesis are represented by the an artisan, tradition was both a saviour and a Yamahoko kimono families and the academic benefactor. The difference between the talented world, represent two different groups of modern and the less talented was meaningless in a tradi- society. Their values and customs are everything tional society. Anyone could produce a work of but unified. art that fulfilled all expectations. Thus the high Hierarchically orientated town planning which artistic quality of artefacts was not a result of the operates from the top down increases prejudice personal abilities of an artisan, but of the whole between residents and experts such as academic culture and society that surrounded him. researchers and heritage authorities. The research- Tradition, inherited skills and materials protected er may have a distant way of approaching people, a craftsman against mistakes and created the basis motivated by academic interest, rather than an for his professional skills. These traditional values honest interest in his subject of research. This are still the cultural basis for the kimono silk danger was inherently present during the Yama- textile artisans as encountered in Kyoto and in hoko programme. A kimono salesman bored with the hoko neighbourhoods. such a state of affairs said: Furthermore, the objects made by artisans had another important characteristic. They were util- “...Every year there is another group asking the same ity objects made for use. The works made by ar- questions and taking the same photographs, but nobody tisans were (and still are) primarily made for use.32 ever hears of any reasons for the research or what the An outstanding example of such utility objects outcome has been.” 34 apart from screens in the screen display tradition are the colourful and artistic kimonos that have It was characteristic of the efficiently orientated kept their high symbolic value in Japanese socie- research team that photographs seldom showed ty right up to the present day. The commodifica- members of the kimono families, who were of- tion of culture, treating art and antiquity as ten astonishing personalities with their elegant merchandise denies the value of these authentic kimono costumes. Moreover, the photographs works, thereby encouraging their disappearance. were often strictly limited to empty rooms or Later in this work, the author will pay attention festival objects. When the Japanese publisher in- to the significance of continuous everyday use of sisted that people should appear in the photo- buildings and artefacts for the definition of her- graphs, they turned out mainly to be members of itage. the research team wearing traditional costumes. When the subject of research is too complex The Academic World and the or difficult to understand, the researchers frequent aim is to stabilise or justify one alternative as the Kimono Artisan only way of thinking. ‘Truths’ or generally accept- In addition to observing our own methods of ed arguments such as the ideas of modern city perception, it is necessary to discuss the relation- planning are, in the final analysis, products of a ship between the Japanese researcher and his sub- certain discourse. In other words, they are histori- ject of research. Japanese culture or society should cally determined and recognised. One way to not be understood as a homogeneous whole. make the study appear objective and non-com- Moreover, it consists of many subcultures whose mittal is to write ‘a story of the past’. The histor-

63

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THE FIELD OF THE THE OF FIELD THE RESEARCH

FIG.22 MR. SUGIURA, KIMONO ARTISAN. SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . RS. 4

64

FIG.23 FESTIVAL DECORATIONS IN SHINKAMANZACHO¯ BEFORE THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN THE 1940S. SS.

ical facts are stated, but not their connection to no horizontal relationships among groups. Eve- contemporary life or to us. The emphasis is on the ryone works in his or her own field.35 Artisans and past instead of the present. Another way is to give university scholars traditionally represent two an abundance of detailed information. This dan- opposite worlds. The universities were founded ger was also present in the Yamahoko programme during the Meiji era as a part of Japan’s wester- with its excessive focus on historical details com- nisation process. Their purpose was, and still is, to bined with the monolithic Japanese academic produce civil servants for the state bureaucracy system with a minimum of analytical, critical dis- and private sector companies designed according cussion. Historical facts are important, but not to to the European model. the point of being an end in themselves. Hierarchical thinking also prevails in the re- The explanation for the lack of cooperation search world. Group consciousness is a vigorous and communication between social groups has factor and multi-disciplinary projects do not usu- been analysed as lying in the Japanese social stru- ally succeed.36 For example, many small research cture. Japan is known to be a vertical society with groups work in their own special fields like town 5 Living Tradition or Panda’s

65 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION planning or cultural heritage. There is no or ‘clear’. Matsuri, the festival, and everything re- cooperation between separate groups, nor is there lated to it, is an expression of hare space opposed any interest in, or even awareness of, the work of to the everyday space of ke. others. Although this trait was obviously present Recently, for instance, Fred Thompson has an- also in the Yamahoko programme, the programme alysed the matsuri concept and its consequences THE OF FIELD THE was, on the other hand, rather exceptional by Jap- to the Japanese concept of space, based on his own anese standards because of its character as a joint experiences in the Kakunodate festival in the project between several universities and institu- Akita Prefecture. His article which was published

tions. in 1996 in Arkkitehti (‘The Finnish Architectural RESEARCH If the attitude of residents was prejudicial, the Review’; nos. 1; 2/3) and in which he compares position of the academic researcher was not the Japanese and Western concepts of space, is very much better. The traditional houses as rudiments illuminating. of a pre-modern way of life may give rise to In Europe the Japanese concept of space has feelings that the houses and people who live in become known especially through the concept of them are somehow inferior, that our world is so ma. This concept has been a topic of several anal- much better than theirs. But residents were, yses during recent years. According to the ma however, important members of the research concept, that which in the Western spatial con- group. This is because the Japanese evaluate cept is empty, may in the Japanese sense be dense, members of their group on an emotional basis, spiritual space.38 In Japan, space did not exist a rather than a rational one. The researcher, on the priori, but it was seen as identical with things ex- other hand, may lose some of his arrogance when isting in time. In other words, space was recog- facing the simple and refined style of these eve- nisable only in relation to the passage of time and ryday buildings that, superficially, may appear thus as something, which space and function pro- bare and unpretentious. At least, they must see duce together. This Japanese spiritual and nature- the elegance that far surpasses everything that based concept of space is significantly different they can find in their own, commercialised eve- from the modern spatial concept which strictly ryday environment. separates space from nature and time. In a Japanese traditional house, no distinction The Cultural Background of the is made between the ordinary and profane, and the sacred. A room, a part of a room or the whole Urban Festival house can be temporarily sanctified with certain We can recognise the characteristics considered rituals or religious ceremonies. Temporary spir- important and worthy of attention by certain itual symbols such as a Shinto shrine or a Bud- traditions, if we think of the vocabulary used by dha altar may be placed in the room. Ordinary people when describing and analysing the events objects like a paper lantern of a certain shape or objects of an aesthetic experience. When we may be used as symbols. When the decorations get to know the meaning of the words we also are removed and stored away the space returns learn what is considered important in a particu- to its original use. The Japanese concept of space lar culture. Aesthetic and cultural values are thus also explains why a Japanese town may from the transmitted through language.37 outside appear chaotic and complex, and yet, The two Japanese concepts, which were essen- seen from the inside, prove to be a well func- tial in the Yamahoko programme and through tioning stage for social life. Symbols shared and which the Yamahoko team described the cultur- recognised by the community act as guiding al background of the urban festival were hare and signs. ke. Hare expresses something generally beyond perception. It is often translated as ‘clean’, ‘bright’ 66

FIG.24 A MODERN BUILDING DECORATED FOR THE FIG.25 URBAN FESTIVAL THAT FAVOURS ACCIDENTAL FESTIVAL. OLD AND NEW MEET. RS. MEETING BETWEEN PASSERS-BY. RS.

The Temporary Character of the The author observed a religious ritual that was enacted in front of a Shinto altar, temporarily Festival Space erected in a modern banking hall. Likewise, a A space used during the festival is not remarka- modern ground floor flat served as an exhibition ble in itself, merely an ordinary room decorated room for the To¯ro¯yama float. Many of the exhi- - sometimes even quite superficially - to serve a bition buildings owned by the hoko neighbour- ceremonial purpose.39 The basis for everything is hoods are used as ordinary tenant dwellings or the ordinary, everyday space. Thompson, for in- rented for other purposes outside the festival time. stance, has remarked how the route chosen for the Renting the buildings is one way of financing the festival procession usually differs physically from festival. Nor are these cult buildings different in those used everyday. This applies well to the dis- appearance from ordinary townhouses. Moreover, play tradition also, where rooms and spaces oth- they may appear even more unpretentious. When erwise unseen or inaccessible to public view are the town community was small, the cult buildings decorated and thereby given entirely new mean- were also small.41 ings and functions.40 During the festival weeks the Until the Meiji era and the westernization proc- festival exhibitions and festival floats are changed ess that took place at that time, there was seemingly to purified objects trough special decorations and a lack of town squares in Japanese cities. Stone rituals and thus given the status of a religious monuments were also relatively rare. In Japan the object. In other words, the festival exhibitions are closest equivalents of these monumental places are regarded as temporary shrines, not as ordinary art perhaps the successions of public spaces found in exhibitions or museums. the Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples with their Decorating the display rooms during the fes- long, elaborately designed approach routes. But tival can be compared to dressing up in a bright even the monumental places, which are found in and beautifully coloured kimono during the fes- the environment of great temples and other reli- tival nights as a contrast to the more monotonous gious buildings, has to be experienced primarily by and uniform dressing of everyday life. It is popu- walking through these spaces, not only by looking lar in Japan, especially for young people, to wear at them from a fixed point. traditional costumes during the festivals or the The temporary and vernacular character of the New Year season. Colourful combinations of cot- cult buildings is largely different from the Europe- ton kimonos that are seen in the Gion Festival, are an tradition where festivals and ceremonies have in themselves exquisite works of art. usually been located in monumental town squares

67 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION and public spaces specifically designed for the taurants, theatres and museums have largely tak- purpose. The temporary character of urban cult en over the functions earlier performed in private buildings such as the common facilities in the hoko homes. The urban festival, however, is one of the neighbourhoods may also explain why they have occasions where the flexible and temporary only seldom been discussed as special heritage character of a traditional space emerges, not only THE OF FIELD THE structures to be preserved. in old houses and antique structures but in mod- During the last few decades, along with ern spaces and buildings as well adding to the modernisation and changing traditions, the cultural significance of the urban space.

Japanese spatial concept has moved towards the RESEARCH fixed Western spatial concept of ‘one room - one Urban Festival that Favours function’. Rooms with tatami straw mat flooring usually have no specific function and can be used Accidental Meeting equally easily as parlour, study, dining or bedroom Architect Masuhiko Hayakawa, who studied the with the simple arrangement of the few accesso- screen display tradition in the late seventies and ries each use requires. In modern flats, on the whose investigation the author uses below as an other hand, the use of spaces is generally tightly important source of reference, referred to the limited and mixing the functions is considered home display tradition by the Japanese term de- undesirable. The function of a townhouse in the ai no matsuri: a festival that favours accidental city structure has also changed. Nowadays hotels, meeting between the displaying person and a ran- banqueting halls rented for weddings,42 res- dom passer-by.43 In a traditional society where

FIG.26 STREET DECORATIONS IN ASHIKARIYAMACHO¯ . THE THREE SCREEN DISPLAYS IN THIS NEIGHBOURHOOD: YOSHIDA (1), AOKI (2) AND YAMADA (3) ARE INDICATED IN THE MAP. DRAWING BY THE YAMAHOKO TEAM. THE FESTIVAL FLOAT IN FRONT OF THE COMMON FACILITY (OKAZARIBA). YT. 68 human behaviour was regulated by a strict hier- that she did not go outside the house much because archy and etiquette, the possibility of an acciden- of her inability to indulge in social small talk.45 tal meeting had a completely different meaning In the display performance there is an invisi- from that in the modern society. ble gulf between the displaying person and the Traditional Japanese women did not leave the viewer. De-ai means a momentary crossing of this house but resided deep in the inner parts of the gulf. Incidents that hold the possibility of such a house, so that they almost became part of the meeting create a momentary illusion of belong- darkness and shadows of the house. In this world ing to something. Even today we can have that apart, as, for instance, Louis Frederick has noted, experience of the momentary illusion when the screen displays and traditional home interiors sud- “the feminine sex was sometimes kept socially so remote denly appear before us in the midst of a modern from men that brothers could grow up knowing noth- metropolitan town. The unfortunate thing is, ing at all about their sisters”.44 however, that in fear of damage done to the val- uables, more and more kimono homes have be- As famous is the passage in Tanizaki’s novel In gun to close their doors to public view. Also, there Praise of Shadows (1989) where Tanizaki describes is an increasing number of window displays and how a Japanese woman with her blackened teeth the intimate contact between the displaying per- was almost as if she were an organic part of the son and the onlooker is lost. Below, the author will darkness of the house. Even now, during the Yama- investigate the gradual change in the urban and hoko programme, one woman interviewed said cultural patterns of the displays.

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Chapter 7 City Planning Policies and the Historic Grid-Plan Area

The Legislative Structure Versus determined under the city planning law. Buildings Local Context in fire protection districts must, in principle, be of In Japan there is a set of city planning regulations fireproof construction. According to these codes, and laws, which are not specially intended or except for some national monuments and special planned for the historic environment, but which districts, the use of wood as a major construction directly or indirectly affect development and for- material is prohibited. In practice the whole city mation of it. All these laws which are coded un- centre of Kyoto is designated as a fire prevention der the Japanese Building Standard Law, take into zone ( Jun Booka Chiiki) and thus as an area where consideration local circumstances and context the use of wood as a construction material is only to a limited extent.46 Thus there are many largely limited. The consequences of such rules on legal concepts that do not coincide with local the heritage, which was based on and still largely values. Most of these laws emphasise technical or depends on the skilful use of wood, can only be hygienic aspects such as fire protection, earth- guessed at. quake resistance and light angles. There is over In Kyoto every wooden building, which is emphasis on material values and a minimal refer- more than 13 metres high, is illegal according to ence, if any, to heritage or cultural values. the fire-proof standards.47 In the case of repair or One such important group of laws are the reg- restoration work, a building of over 13 metres in ulations concerning fire protection and safety. In height can in principle be demolished as illegal, the urbanised areas, cities and in other regions even if it is of great historic or antique value. where a fire easily causes great damage, there is a According to Japanese law any restoration or ex- zoning system of fire prevention districts so as to tensive repair is equated with new construction. provide extensive safety measures. This zoning is Buildings that are preserved by law are outside 70

FIG.27 PARKING TOWER UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN 1992. IN THE FOREGROUND SHOP FACADES IN KAKKYOYAMACHO¯ , ONE OF THE SURVEYED NEIGHBOURHOODS. RS.

71 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION these regulations. In the case of other wooden In addition to the city planning legislation oth- buildings (and they are numerous), special permis- er legislation also affects the willingness to pre- sion must be obtained from the Ministry of Con- serve and maintain the old building stock. Thus, struction for these buildings to be preserved and close ties exist between planning and regulations not demolished. on the one hand and the taxation system on the THE OF FIELD THE Because of the fire prevention system that other. They both influence the operation of the shows an obsession against wooden buildings, lo- land and housing market. In particular, the inher- cal carpenter skills in wooden construction are itance tax system has a substantial impact on the slowly disappearing. Reinforced concrete and housing market and thereby, influences the atti- RESEARCH steel structures are becoming more and more tudes of the Japanese in the preservation of their common, not only when rebuilding and build- houses. One of the most flagrant examples of the ing new, but also in repair and restoration work. disastrous effects of the inheritance tax on the This trend can be observed even in historic pres- values of land is the Hanamiko¯ji geisha area in ervation areas. In the Gion Shimbashi area there Gion. The tea houses in the Gion area are locat- are now buildings where wooden facades de- ed on tenant land, the surface area of which is ap- signed in a traditional style hide modern steel or proximately seven hectares. The land is owned by reinforced structures inside. Existing townhouses one landowner only. In 1992 the rent of the land and temples with their wooden architectural was 1000 yen/tsubo (one tsubo, 3.78 sq. m.) a details are in these circumstances doomed to be month. However, when the owner of a teahouse mere parodies of their former selves as, for ex- dies, the tax is paid according to the virtual price ample, Prof. Yamasaki has noted.48 The prevail- of the land. In 1992 the virtual price of the land ing perception that modern buildings with steel, was estimated to be 14 000 000 yen/tsubo. Almost concrete and glass represent advanced lifestyle, is all geishas are aged and many of them are over in Japan exceptionally strong. After the Kobe eighty years old. earthquake it might be even more difficult to The high inheritance tax may also be one of promote the construction of wooden buildings. the reasons why residents in the hoko area were Most of the buildings that were ruined in the not very eager to speak for the preservation of catastrophe were ordinary wooden townhouses their houses, even when they had carefully main- while the new high rise buildings were left al- tained and repaired the old house. Because of the most intact. high prices of land, the inheritance tax is especially Only an increasing ecological awareness and a high in the city centre and in the hoko neighbour- revival in the use of traditional materials could hoods. Japanese architect Kan Izue has remarked: change attitudes towards wooden buildings. Many of the existing wooden milieus and narrow lanes, “…It is not reasonable of machiya residents to patiently which are characteristic of the historic city cen- live in such uncomfortable places and be required to pay tre, are actually illegal according to the fire pre- high inheritance taxes. It wouldn’t be unfair for the lo- vention standards because the buildings are too cal government to compensate them because they are near each other. On the other hand, the regula- helping to preserve our tradition”. 49 tion that is applied only to new construction has partially helped to preserve the narrow lanes in Unconscious values and attitudes also play a pow- their old shape. One such well-preserved histor- erful role. The prejudice against the pre-modern ic urban environment (Shinkamanzacho¯) was lifestyle has affected the way people think about measured and surveyed as part of our fieldwork, or esteem their houses and sites. What is consid- (see part VII, chapter 19). It is estimated that the ered of lesser value or even valueless can be more number of such narrow wooden lanes existing in easily destroyed. Diane Durston has estimated that the central area is more than 5000. while half of the population is enthusiastic about 72

FIG.28 THE BUILT FABRIC OF KYOTO AND THE PRE-MODERN URBAN CORES SUCH AS THE MUROMACHI KIMONO WHOLESALE DISTRICT ARE SHOWN IN THE MAP. RS.

preserving the traditional character of Kyoto, the city,” as one resident commented to me.51 In win- other half sees the old wooden dwellings as anom- ter, however, these houses are cold because of the alies that have outlived their time.50 light building technology and the lack of insula- tion. Heating these houses is expensive so that the Attitudes towards Heritage Versus rooms are not heated continuously. In some tra- ditional houses the cold winds blow through the Modern Life open partitions in the upper part of the interior The drawbacks of traditional building technolo- walls. The houses also burn easily. Furthermore, gy and the poor repair of many traditional hous- the lifestyle has changed. Younger people are taller es do not make the preservation question easier. than their parents and the use of Western style Kyoto's wooden townhouses are built of unpaint- furniture has increased the amount of interior fur- ed wood and are usually two storeys high. In the nishing in the house. summer the light wooden partitions with mova- Most of the old townhouses need repair and ble paper panels are a very attractive combinati- even partial rebuilding to suit the needs of the eld- on. “It is like living in nature in the middle of the erly and ageing population. As many old houses

73 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION particularly in the urban tenement type building trayed all the values the pioneers of modern stock lack well-equipped bathrooms and other architecture were searching for. Since those times, modern conveniences, the improvement of hous- things have not changed much.

ing standards will be one of the major tasks facing THE FIELD OF THE THE OF FIELD THE the owners in the future. Furthermore, a real prob- Perception of Place and Changing lem is the reluctance of the owners to rent out their properties, fearing the traditional power of tenants, Meanings whose rights increase with the years until it is of- Compared with Japan’s traditional image abroad, ten virtually impossible to evict them. As a conse- general attitudes within Japanese society towards RESEARCH quence, many old houses stay abandoned or empty. the traditional culture are contradictory, especially The amount of traditional architecture in ba- concerning the way of living. Particularly after the sic university courses is minimal.52 The younger Meiji restoration handicrafts and traditional in- generation seems to find it almost impossible to dustrial arts declined and there was a sharp loss understand why anyone coming from outside Ja- of beauty in all crafts. Traditional wooden houses pan could be interested in Japanese traditions. This are generally considered unfit for modern lifestyle. phenomenon is well known and it has been called The life span of a house is generally considered the Japanese version of the ‘not-invented-here- to be 40 years even in the case of reinforced con- syndrome’. Nothing invented in Japan can be crete buildings, after which the house will usual- good53 - at least until Western approval has vali- ly be rebuilt regardless of its technical condition dated it. In the 1920s an internationally acclaimed or the values it actually represents. authority, the German architect Bruno Taut, was An acquaintance of mine, a young Japanese needed to tell the Japanese how the badly dilap- landscape architect, described the Japanese wood- idated Imperial Villa of Katsura ingeniously por- en townhouses as genki-ga-nai, which means di-

FIG.29 ILLUSTRATION OF THE TOWN PLANNING REGULATIONS, YATACHO¯ . THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE IN THE FOREGROUND. RS. 74 lapidated, whereas old Finnish wooden houses concerned with maintaining the infrastructure seemed to her to be genki, well tended and and the basic features of the gridiron layout. With healthy.54 Most of the Japanese people I knew did the exception of a few areas, continuous main- not consider traditional living to be tempting in tenance and care of the existing environment had any way, apart from those few who had inherited no place in the legislative system and in the city a wooden house. Only very few had deliberately planning procedures. Prof. Yamasaki has com- chosen to live in one. The massive prefabricated mented on this state of affairs in the following housing production industry, with its highly de- way: veloped and industrialised ready-made houses, is a central factor in the Japanese economy, involv- “… It seems that there was very little resistance to those ing nearly all the major Japanese companies. planning procedures from among the more historic cit- Perception of place and historic identity are dy- ies and consequently, the same new set of values per- namic and vary between groups of different so- taining to modern city planning were applied carte cial and cultural backgrounds. This may create blanche over the whole country and in time, even be- problems when changing meanings come into gan to affect Kyoto”.56 conflict with unchanging physical forms. In Kyo- to, the pre-modern concept of neighbourhood is Modern town planning in Japan does not recog- burdened in many ways and seems for many nise or acknowledge the value of the urban her- Japanese to be connected with times when tight itage, which exists in the historic grid-plan area political pressure and control were easily exerted and which, de facto, is regarded as if it did not ex- in closely knit communities. The American ist. This tabula rasa principle is not entirely un- occupation army ended the system after the Sec- known even in European countries and has ond World War, since it was considered to have actually led, for instance, in the late 1960s and ear- fanned the enthusiasm for war. That is partly why ly 1970s to the destruction and degradation of the the pre-modern phase of urban history has been townscapes of many Finnish wooden towns. In widely disliked and it has only rarely become the Japan the idea that new buildings should contin- topic of academic research.55 Modern town plan- ue old wooden building traditions in the spirit of ning lacks the concept entirely. The pre-modern the historic environment was, and still is, an en- concept of neighbourhood is, however, not entire- tirely foreign concept. In Kyoto an obvious fact ly out of use but still operates in a form of coope- is that the present construction policies favour ration between people living, for instance, in the speculative development projects completely un- hoko neighbourhoods. In the hoko area, the system connected with the historic environment they are was not limited to traditional townhouses, but ap- operating in - precisely the kind of development plied to modern blocks of flats as well. that do the most irreparable damage to the place and the cultural identity of the city. City Planning Directives and the Historic Grid-Plan Area The Master Plan 1983 After the Second World War, Japanese society was The key document in defining land use and build- directed towards modernisation and city-planning ing ratios in Kyoto during the past 20 years has legislation was aimed to serve the same purpose. been the master plan that was enacted in 1983. The key principles of urban policy, even in such According to this, city areas around the major historic places as Kyoto, were largely determined streets of the city centre such as those in the Sijo- by modernisation, general legislative structure and Karasuma and Shijo-Kawaramachi areas were accepted standards of modern town planning. designated as a Central Business District (CBD). Historic preservation, if it existed at all, was mostly Central commercial/business districts are areas,

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FIG.30 SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . A NARROW URBAN LANE FIG.31 URBAN TRANSFORMATION PROCESS THAT IS ILLEGAL ACCORDING TO THE FIRE PREVENTION PROGRESSING IN THE CENTRAL AREA. BECAUSE OF THE STANDARDS. ONE OF THE THREE NEIGHBOURHOODS THAT LIGHT ANGLE REGULATIONS, THE HIGH-RISE BUILDING WAS MEASURED BY THE AUTHOR FOR THE SURVEY. RS. MUST BE RECESSED FROM THE STREET LINE. RS.

which concentrate key commercial/business fa- conglomerations of high-rise buildings, it has not cilities such as financial institutions, department prevented a continuous transformation process of stores and the main office functions of all types individual sites. of businesses. In these areas the plan strove to re- The only limiting thing has been the general- tain the street plan of the historic city area but it ly small size of the construction sites and the also accepted replacement of old buildings, par- complicated ownership conditions. According to ticularly buildings bordering the grid layout of a municipal survey 41% of sites in the city centre main streets, with high rise buildings of modern of Kyoto were between 100 and 200 sq. m. and standards. 12.7% of sites were smaller than 50 sq. m.57 Fur- In the plan, the existing wooden building stock thermore, the average size of building sites in Kyo- and everyday buildings were given consideration to (approximately 300 sq. m.) was notably smaller only in the sense that major urban development compared with other Japanese large cities and and land readjustment target areas were planned metropolitan areas such as Osaka and Tokyo in outside the historic city centre. Although the general. However, even the extremely small size policy has been partially successful in preventing of the construction sites has not been able to pre- large-scale urban renewal operations where whole vent a radical reshaping and change of the city- city areas are razed for new developments or scape. As one result of the narrow building sites 76

FIG.32 URBAN TRANSFORMATION PROCESS IN PROGRESS. OLD HOUSES ARE DEMOLISHED TO GIVE WAY TO A PARKING PLACE. TO¯ RO¯ YAMACHO¯ , ONE OF THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS. RS.

are now the absurdly narrow high rise buildings, “…If no effort is made to preserve the building herit- that stick out in the historic neighbourhoods of age (of Kyoto), the transformation process will destroy Kyoto in the midst of the otherwise horizontal the traditional cityscape sooner than we think”.58 wooden town. One example of such narrow high rise towers and the damage caused to the cityscape Durston has recorded an interesting, although in can be seen in Fig. 31. many ways, controversial struggle that took In 1945, in the aerial photographs taken after place in Tokusayamacho¯, another hoko neighbour- the Second World War, 92% of buildings were hood.59 The battle arose when one of Japan’s larg- wooden. Now, in the historic grid-plan area there est real-estate developers announced their plans to are city neighbourhoods that have no wooden construct a massive high-rise apartment building buildings left. In 1989, altogether 6441 wooden amid the wooden frame houses of the neighbour- townhouses were demolished in that year alone. hood. To prevent the company from executing their As the old saying goes, “it only takes a day to plans, the residents made a request to the city gov- demolish an old house”. Since the end of the ernment for a city ordinance that would restrict 1980s whole city quarters have begun to move in- buildings in the Yamahoko area to 20 metres in to the hands of real estate investors. Toroyamacho¯ height. Although the task failed, it was one of the is one such historic hoko neighbourhood, which first occasions when the residents tested the city has been razed for empty parking areas so that government over the restriction of building rights. only a few old buildings remain. According to The residents also demanded that the tenants of the architect Riken Yamamoto: new building to sign an agreement to participate in the Gion Festival. They could not, however, pre- vent the construction of the high rise buildings.

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Chapter 8 The Profile of Current City Development

The Grid-Plan Area after the ning was dominated by prevailing Western ideas.61 Second World War The citizens, however, refused to take this path. During and after the Second World War many Industrial policy was focused around the promo- large Japanese cities experienced dramatic changes tion of traditional industries and small and medi- but Kyoto had a period of relatively stable growth. um-sized enterprises. The measures which were Kyoto was the only large city, which was spared taken for the city centre and its immediate sur- the destruction of the war. During the 1960s in roundings were effective in promoting balanced the period of intensive growth of the national and internally generated growth. Due to these economy, there were many who feared that Kyoto efforts Kyoto has been able to maintain both the would be left behind. They advocated large-scale highest population density and the largest popu- industries and raised expressways even in the im- lation ratio within the central area of all the Jap- mediate vicinity of the historic city centre. His- anese metropolitan cities. toric preservation, if it existed at all, was a far cry Since the 1970s living conditions in the city from the realities of everyday life. In one scheme centre and the historic grid-plan area have dramat- the old buildings were emptied of their inhabit- ically worsened. Large-scale building investments ants so that the historic structures could be fur- by nation-wide companies and investment cor- nished as museums. Karasuma Street was lined porations fleeing the high land prices in Tokyo have with high rise buildings that reached the skyline.60 concentrated in the historic city centre. The in- According to Dr. Tapio Periäinen, who stud- crease in the price of land has driven small and ied in 1962-63 at Kyoto University, Department medium-size enterprises and ordinary residents of Architecture, in this period there was no con- outside the central area. During the construction cept of urban preservation in Kyoto. City plan- boom of the 1980s when the price of land, the 78 ‘crazy land price’, reached its peak in Tokyo, the to move from the suburban areas back to the increase in the value of land in the city centre of centre. During the five-year period 1987-1991 a Kyoto was the highest in the whole of Japan. By total of 963 new multi-storey apartment buildings the beginning of the 1990s the price of land had were built in the city centre of Kyoto.64 In 1990 tripled compared with prices before the boom. the total number of multi-storey residential build- This has influenced the level of inheritance tax, ings in the city centre totalled 1678 buildings. In among other things. Before the construction other words, a significant number of all multi- boom, the Authorised Land Price (ALP) on which storey buildings has been built in recent years. the inheritance tax is calculated, was lower than Exact information about the volume and pro- the real land price. Now, although the land price file of new housing production is available in a re- has come down, the authorised land price, which port published by the Housing Bureau of Kyoto moves more slowly than market prices, is at a City in 1992. The statistics below are based on this higher level than the real land price.62 This has had report. a negative effect on the willingness to keep and maintain the old building stock. It has also in- The Profile of Housing Production creased land speculation. The author accomplished a survey on the de- in the Late 1980s velopment of land ownership in two hoko neigh- The dominant feature of housing production was bourhoods, Yatacho¯ and Shinkamanzacho¯ during the building of ‘one room mansions’. These were an 80-year period 1912-92. According to the sur- small apartments for single persons. In addition, vey the character of land ownership was largely the number of expensive small luxury apartments different now from 80 years ago. The large, pre- grew.65 For the most part, housing production was modern land ownership had collapsed and land carried out in the name of providing badly needed ownership was much more fragmented now. accommodation. In spite of Japan’s high industrial However, particularly in Yatacho¯, inherited land productivity, Japan’s housing market is still in many even today played an important role. Many of the ways characterised by a considerable amount of old landowners continued the kimono trade, housing poverty. Prof. Hayakawa has, for exam- which added to the socio-economic stability of ple, described the general housing conditions in the neighbourhood. In opposition to Yatacho¯, in Japan in terms of ‘overcrowded housing’, ‘long Shinkamanzacho¯ the activity in the sales of land distance commuting’ and ‘environmental destruc- had increased since the 1980s and with it, land tion’.66 speculation had began to play a growing role. Of In Kyoto, land speculation promoted the con- the 18 sites, which changed ownership during the struction of high rise apartment blocks, which survey period, 61% of the land was purchased by were built, as Prof. Yamasaki has ironically noted, real-estate developers who were not living on the with the very scenic land they had been built on sites. In addition, with oscillating land prices, nine giving them extra prestige. This was particularly back-lane sites changed ownership three times in so with regard to sites in close proximity to en- 1990-91. An Osaka-based developer now owns vironments of historic value. Family apartments them.63 were mainly built outside the city centre. In the 1970s the major targets of city planning Furthermore, since the middle of the 1980s were focused outside the historic city centre, in the construction market was dominated by the new town areas which were planned around apartments for rent.67 Before this, in all dwell- the suburban areas of Kyoto. In this period new ing statistics the number of owner occupied housing production took place mainly outside the apartments was larger than the number of ten- city centre. Since the 1980s the focus of new ant apartments. As a result of the land specula- housing production has changed and it has begun tion which has taken place in Kyoto since the

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FIG.33 EXISTING WOODEN TOWNHOUSES OF MACHIYA SHAPE IN THE CITY CENTRE ACCORDING TO THE MIMURA SURVEY (MIMURA ET ALS., 1991.) THE HOKO AREA IS MARKED BY CIRCLE.

era of the ‘bubble economy’, 15% of Kyoto’s formation of the urban fabric have weakened the residential accommodation was unoccupied in traditional inner city structure and have encoura- 1994. There was also plenty of empty office ged the transformation of Kyoto into a city with space.68 Our observations in the sample quarters a single core. The state of equilibrium between coincided with the trend (see part VII, chapter land use and the built environment has begun to 19, fieldwork no. 2). disintegrate. One example of the tragic conse- The rocketing land and property prices, high quences of the current development is the inheritance tax and high rents have become a bur- centrally located hoko neighbourhoods. The new den to those who live in the historic city centre. multi-storey buildings that have been built in the The value of land is on the land, not the houses, area in the past recent years have not only as Barry B. Greenbie has noted.69 Even for those destroyed the traditional townscape but also who want to continue their living in the city weakened social ties and institutions and thereby, centre, it is often too expensive. For those own- the capacity of the area to keep the Gion Festival ing land the sudden rise in the value of land com- as a living tradition. bined with the Japanese taxation system has meant in fact that their heirs have faced the prospect of The Disintegration of the Built having to pay hundreds of millions of yen in in- heritance tax. The inheritance tax was listed in the Environment Mimura survey that is more carefully described Wooden architecture was dominant in Kyoto and below, as being one of the primary causes for the Nara until the beginning of the 20th century. impossibility of passing on traditional structures With the opening up of Japan in the middle of to succeeding generations. 19th century, foreign architectural styles, entirely Public investment policies, changes in the new building types such as post office, church and urban transportation system and the rapid trans- university buildings as well as new building tech- 5

80 nologies were introduced to Japan. This brought been even greater than the damages ever caused a new element to the traditional cityscape. Brick by the war. and stone became common as building materials. The number of these buildings remained, how- The Profile of Traditional ever, low. Moreover, the new buildings were well integrated in the traditional townscape. Their Townhouses Today designs originated with their foreign prototypes, Information about the current profile of the tra- but they were realised by Japanese builders, name- ditional townhouses, machiya, in the historic grid- ly traditional carpenters and house fitters. David plan area is available in a study carried out in Stewart, for example, has given a good analysis of Kyoto University at the laboratory of Prof. Hiro- the Meiji era architecture in Japan. According to shi Mimura in 1991.71 In the questionnaire pr- him oblems and research needs concerning the future of the wooden townhouses were examined from “…What is nowadays known as ‘Meiji-architecture’ a number of perspectives. (and as such, studied for its own sake), was a version The survey area was bordered by Imadegawa, of contemporary post-1850 European practices, but Sembon, Gojo and Kawaramachi Streets, in oth- with certain idiosyncratic differences ongoing to Japa- er words one of the core areas of the historic grid- nese variations in climate, technology (or lack of it), plan area and including the hoko area. The sample and local customs. Many of these Meiji era structures of houses to which the questionnaire was sent was are now important cultural properties and their value carefully chosen to maximise the results. There is generally if not always acknowledged and recog- were altogether 466 wooden townhouses with nised”.70 a well-preserved machiya shape. In addition there were 271 houses with minor architectural changes. The new brick buildings that were built in Japan The selection was made as a facade survey. Str- since the end of the last century were not strong uctures with major changes in the facade were enough to resist earthquakes, as had been hoped. excluded. In the great Tokyo earthquake in 1923 the brick Questionnaires were distributed to 737 hou- buildings that had been built in large numbers in ses and there were 519 (70 %) responses. The the Ginza area of the town collapsed like card responses thus covered a notable part of the houses with only a few exceptions that were saved. existing traditional townhouses. Because the One of these brick buildings was Frank Lloyd questionnaire gives useful information from the Wright’s Imperial Hotel building in Tokyo. The viewpoint of the thesis, it is referred to briefly brick buildings were also impractical in the hot below. and humid climate of Japan. In residential archi- To identify the current profile of the people tecture, wood was the major building material residing in traditional townhouses the question- until the Second World War. naire investigated the occupational category of the After the war a dramatic change in the con- residents. As an area with a large concentration of struction industry took place. Reinforced con- traditional industries72 , there was a high propor- crete, steel and glass replaced traditional building tion of self-employment that is associated with materials. New materials and construction techni- them. This employment model still surpasses all ques removed the obstacles to build earthquake other occupational categories (33%). In addition, resistant structures with practically no limit on the 10% of residents were employed in other indust- number of floors. These new buildings began to ries. As a whole, the self-employment pattern was break down the low silhouette of the townscape. high. Furthermore, the manufacturing function In such historic places as Kyoto the damage was high, particularly in occupations associated caused by these modern high rise buildings has with traditional industries. 6 Living Tradition or Panda’s

81 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION The questionnaire focused on three groups of construction of office buildings for protecting the problems related to the maintenance of traditional traditional cityscape. 219 townhouses: Money should be paid on application to help in the repairs and restoration of excellent, registered 1. Which are the problems in upkeep and town houses. 179 THE OF FIELD THE maintenance of townhouses? It is necessary to support the continuity of the 2. Which are the future problems? (traditional) craftmanship, materials and construc- 3. Which are the necessary measures to be tion methods. 119

taken? Even within the fire prevention districts wooden RESEARCH rebuilding should be allowed in special cases. 97 The answers given were as follows: In any case I want to do as I want. 51 City planning regulations should be eased. 28 Presently, which are the problems in upkeep and main- Do not know. 48 tenance of townhouses ? (answers in more than one class accepted) As can be seen from the answers, the problems Repair and rebuilding costs are too heavy. 272 that residents mentioned when answering the Air conditioning and other household equipment question “What are the gravest problems in the do not work well. 250 maintenance of the wooden townhouse tradi- The plan of the house and the rooms are incon- tion?” were mostly focused on the technical draw- venient. 231 backs and poor repair of the wooden houses. Half, Humidity, and hot or cold temperature make liv- 272, of those interviewed mentioned high repair ing difficult. 142 and renovation costs of their houses. Also, air-con- There is no garage. 119 ditioning and other facilities were old and did not No problem points. 97 work well (250 answers) or, moisture/humidity/ Difficulties in finding repair materials and man- coldness/darkness (142 answers) were a cause for power cause troubles. 78 complaint. When asked what will cause the greatest prob- Future problems were expected as follows: lems to live in traditional townhouses in the futu- (answers in more than one class accepted) re, the worsening of the city’s environment, There is no money to cover the costs of repair unfavourable city development and rise of and upkeep. 300 property tax were most often mentioned. 300 said Worry of not being able to pay the inheritance that that there is no money to cover the costs of tax. 226 repair and upkeep. 199 said that new high rise High-rise office buildings or apartment houses buildings may be built near the old buildings and may be built in vicinity which make the living it will be a great disturbance for the living. As difficult. 199 many as 142 said that the traditional townhouse Rise of property tax. 178 does not fit the modern lifestyle. The house is not suitable for the modern life-style. To the question of what measures should be 142 undertaken to defend the wooden townhouse Too much traffic in the street in front of the tradition, consideration in city planning regula- house. 100 tions for more favourable treatment of wooden buildings was mentioned. Standards and laws re- The necessary measures to be taken: lated to construction activity were also mentioned. (answers in more than one class accepted) As many as 253 respondents said that lower taxes Lower taxes are necessary. 253 are necessary and 179 said that renovation and There should be building regulations to prevent modernisation of listed buildings should be ba- 82 cked by loans and other public subsidies. 219 said residents were attached to their old houses and that there should be building regulations to pre- their quiet way of life. More than half, 62%, said vent construction of (high-rise) office buildings that the wooden townhouse tradition is good or for protecting the traditional cityscape. it should continue. However, as many as 25% of In spite of the environmental changes during residents said that the machiya tradition has no the past recent years and the often poor techni- special significance for them and, 13% of residents cal condition of their houses, a majority of approved high rise buildings.

83

DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION

THE FIELD OF THE THE OF FIELD THE RESEARCH

Chapter 9 Historic Preservation in Kyoto up to the Present Day

Kyoto as a Pioneer of Historic temples and shrines. One of the first antique Bud- Preservation dhist monuments to be conserved in Japan was the Before the collapse of the Tokugawa government Ko¯fuku-ji temple in Nara. The National Museum severe social disturbances had occurred in Japan of Nara was established in 1895 and in the follow- and the persecution of Buddhism had begun ing year a law for the preservation of ancient shrines throughout the country. At the beginning of the and temples was enacted. Meiji era Japan experienced a violent period, In Japan’s first phase of conservation outstand- when Buddhist temples and statues were destroyed ing antique buildings were the major centre of con- by an anti-Buddhist movement.73 In the Hiei cern. The scope of the law was limited to landmarks temples of Kyoto Shinto priests threw out antique in certain ancient Shinto shrines and Buddhist tem- Buddhist statues revered as objects of worship and ples, objects that even today dominate the nation- Buddhist scriptures were destroyed. al and local registers of tangible cultural properties. After the Meiji restoration, at the end of the 19th This law was followed by a law for preserving century, Japan adopted the European value-con- monuments, places of historical interest and histor- cepts and preservation theories related to historic ical landscapes (1919), national treasures (1929) and buildings following similar efforts that had taken objects of art (1933). In 1975 all these national pres- place in Europe. In the United Kingdom the So- ervation laws were replaced by an umbrella law for ciety for the Protection of Ancient Buildings the protection of cultural properties, bunkazai hogo (SPAB) had been established in 1877. In Japan the ho¯. This is a systematic law that covers both tangi- first initiatives to preserve historic monuments took ble and intangible properties. place ten years later, at the end of the 1880s, when On the municipal level, Kyoto was given the the government raised funds to preserve antique right to register cultural properties in 1981. In 84 Kyoto 384 buildings were preserved as cultural as- preservation act. This law was especially aimed at sets in 1987. Of these, 197 buildings were preserved protecting the cultural landscape and the historic by national laws, 129 by prefectural laws and 58 by layers around the three ancient capitals of Japan; in municipal laws. The majority of protected build- other words the cultural landscape around Kyoto, ings were temple and shrine buildings. Five years Nara and Kamakura. As a result of the new law later, in 1992, municipal laws preserved 277 assets areas totalling about 60 sq. km were in Kyoto des- altogether.74 In other words, the number of pre- ignated as historic landscape preservation areas. served assets had increased quite dramatically. 70 The landscape areas included into the act were buildings were under protection, of which 30 were further classified into two major categories: his- found in the historic city centre: 10 in Kamigyo¯, toric landscape preservation areas, rekishiteki fu¯do 14 in Nakagyo¯ and six in Shimogyo¯ districts. In hozon chiku, and special historic landscape preser- addition, the list mentioned eight protected areas, vation areas, rekishiteki fu¯do tokubetsu hozon chiku, which were mainly historic environments and sites according to their environmental heritage value around the listed buildings.75 and the type of interventions that were allowed, or limited. The historic landscape preservation From Conservation of Historic areas included scenic areas of special cultural his- Monuments to Preservation of toric interest such as environs of famous temples and shrines. Landscape At the moment the historic landscape preser- While the focus of conservation was, in the be- vation areas, rekishiteki fu¯do hozon chiku, cover al- ginning, on the protection and preservation of together 4552 hectares. The number of preserved major historic buildings and monuments, the fo- areas is altogether 12, including such famous land- cus has gradually shifted to the protection and scape areas as Saga and Arashiyama in the west- preservation of the historic environment and land- ern outskirts of Kyoto; the environs of the scape. Kamigamo Shrine and Shu¯gaku-in Imperial Villa in the northern part of Kyoto and the The Scenic Zones Designation, Fu¯chi Chiku Daimonji and Amida mountains in the easter hills Efforts to protect the historic landscape that sur- (Higashiyama area). The preservation areas also rounds Kyoto in the north, east and west started cover the historic landscape areas around the Sen- in Kyoto as early as 1930 with a city ordinance nyu¯ -ji, Daigo-ji, Kinkaku-ji and Kiyomizu tem- creating scenic zones. About 34 sq. km were des- ples. ignated as scenic zones forming a horseshoe of The second category preservation areas designat- green space around the city. The scenic zones have ed as special historic preservation districts, rekishiteki been later gradually extended until by 1981 they fu¯do tokubetsu hozon chiku, cover 1473 hectares and covered 145 sq. km, in other words a quarter of include eight cultural landscape areas: the Higashi- the total city area. These key measures which were yama, Ohara, Kurama, Takao, Saga-Arashiyama, Ka- carried out at a relatively early stage have guar- migamo-Matsugasaki areas and the historic anteed the city the beautiful forested backdrop landscape area around the Daigo-ji temple. that the mountains surrounding Kyoto provide.76

The Ancient City Preservation Act, Koto ni Preservation of Historic Townscape Okeru Rekishiteki Fu¯do no Hozon ni Although the ancient city preservation act ack- Kansuru Tokubetsu Sochi Ho¯ nowledged the value of Kyoto’s environmental A new turn in the landscape preservation move- heritage layered in history, what it failed to do, ment took place with a national law that was en- however, was to protect and cover similarly those acted in 1966 and named the ancient city parts of Kyoto, that correspond to the original

85 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION Heian capital, in other words, to the urban fab- Because Kyoto was spared by the destruction ric in the grid-plan area of the town. The change of the Second World War, the preservation of the in the concept of historic preservation has tak- traditional cityscape in Kyoto has taken on a spe- en place only gradually and has been coinciden- cial historical significance. In the grid-plan area tal with the social changes of the recent decades. and in the immediate vicinity of it, the value con- THE OF FIELD THE While at the beginning the historic preservation cept was in the early 1970s widened to include was an exclusive concept that concentrated on such things as the preservation of the historic historic landscapes and some individual build- townscape and also representatives of urban quar- ings, it has become an inclusive concept com- ters and rows of traditional townhouses and their RESEARCH prising groups of buildings, urban fabric and streetscapes. The Kyoto urban landscape ordinance, even whole towns. The new development that Kyoto shi shigaichi keikan jo¯rei, enacted by the city took place first on an international level, has af- government in 1972, was the first Japanese legis- fected preservation efforts in Kyoto, too. lation that brought protection to pieces of the

FIG.34 URBAN CONSERVATION IN KYOTO. THE MAP SHOWS THE LANDSCAPE PRESERVATION AREAS TOGETHER WITH OTHER HISTORIC PRESERVATION AREAS. CPD, REDRAWN BY SARI BERG, ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY THE AUTHOR. 86 built urban fabric. The law protected certain parts of urban quarters or groups of traditional build- of the grid-plan area such as the historic environs ings and streetscapes which are found in the built around the key national monuments in the city fabric. This development followed the general centre. The law restricted building heights and evolution in the international conservation move- authorised the creation of certain areas as histor- ment. Thus, in the United Kingdom the civic ic preservation areas. amenities act of 1967 legalised the ‘group value’ of buildings and acknowledged the importance of The Aesthetic Areas, Bikan Chiku area conservation. In 1972 the Sanneizaka area The regulations were aimed to protect environs (known also as Sannenzaka) at the foot of the around major key national monuments in the cen- eastern hills was nominated as the first historic tral area by limiting the height of new buildings preservation district in Kyoto. This fine group of around them. The aesthetic areas were classified in traditional wooden-frame buildings is part of the two categories depending on the historical traditional pilgrim routes of the Kiyomizu tem- importance of the preserved object. According to ple. It was the first urban area in Japan to be the regulations, the height of new buildings around preserved by law. Sanneizaka was followed by the major monuments such as the imperial palace Gion Shimbashi in 1975, Saga Torii Moto in 1979 and Nijo palace was limited to 15 metres. The pres- and Kamigamo Shakemachi in 1990.77 ervation radius was 100 metres. The law also took In 1975 historic districts or rows of traditional into consideration historical landscapes and views townhouses became eligible for subsidised protec- of the eastern banks of the Kamo River and also, tion under the national law that defined groups the historic townscape at the foot of the eastern of historic buildings as a new type of cultural hills (Higashiyama). In these areas the height of property. These areas are known in Japan as na- buildings was limited to 20 metres. tionally important preservation areas that consist of groups of traditional buildings, kuni no ju¯ yo¯na The Height Restriction Areas, Kyo¯dai dento¯teki kenzo¯butsu gun hozon chiku. Because of its Kosakubutsu Kisei Kuiki active role in urban preservation, in 1979 Kyoto More than half of Kyoto’s built urban core has was granted the award of the Institute of Japanese been designated as areas with special control over Architects for its pioneering work in urban con- building heights. The ordinance limits the maxi- servation. In the beginning of 1990s the historic mum height of buildings in the city centre to 31 preservation areas were further extended to in- metres and in maximum to 45 metres. The main clude a number of new preservation areas such as objective of the ordinance was to prevent the Fushimi outside Kyoto, Honganji-Shimabara in recurrence of such eyesores in the cityscape as the the central area and parts of the Nishijin silk tex- Kyoto Tower, a building of 131 metres height. The tile district. building was built in front of Kyoto station in the early 1970s. The concept behind the ordinance Critical Evaluation of Townscape was to prevent any building in the city silhouette being higher than the pagoda of To¯ji, which is Regulations 56 metres high and for centuries the tallest build- The success of the townscape regulations that ing in the city centre. The area covered by the were created for the preservation of historic height regulations is about 6000 hectares. environments in the grid-plan area has been only partial. In many areas the regulations have not The Historic Preservation Areas, Dento¯teki worked as expected. Examples of this are, for in- Kenzo¯butsu Gun Hozon Chiku stance, the aesthetic areas. Although in its time Since the beginning of the 1970s the value con- progressive and an important step towards preserv- cept has been actively widened to include pieces ing the historic townscape in the built urban area,

87 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION the success of these regulations has been only ceived and created in relation to some distant element partial. The regulation that limits the height of the in nature (often the outline of a far mountain) that buildings to 20 metres is not nearly enough to becomes an integral part of their ‘experience’...” 79 protect the historic townscape where most of the buildings consist of low, one to two storey wooden One such treatened shakkei garden is in the Entsu¯ - THE OF FIELD THE buildings. Thus, many new high-rise buildings ji temple in the northern outskirts of Kyoto with block the traditional views of, for example, the its famous garden views that ’borrows’ the Hiei Daimon-ji hill when the landscape is viewed from mountain as an integral part of its garden lay-out. such famous sightseeing spots in the city centre The new construction projects that are planned RESEARCH as the antique bridges of the Kamo River. Con- in this part of the town represent an immediate struction activity also endangers environments of threat to these views. Only one insensitively great symbolic value such as the historic urban placed and over-scaled building is needed to make landscape around the Yasaka pagoda in the irreparable damage and destroy cultural values that Higashiyama area of the town.78 for centuries have been admired and cared for. Furthermore, the high building policy, while it discusses both immediate and distant visual effects New Building Code and the Kyoto of the over-scaled buildings, nowhere refers to more general conditions of dwelling environment, Hotel Project such as, for instance, privacy, the consequences of In 1988 the city government passed a new build- unexpected shadows and views and the possible ing code for the city centre, that has rather wors- damage caused to historic structures and environ- ened than improved the preservation situation. ments by the construction of new ones. Moreo- The new code relaxed the civic ordinance limit- ver, there are important spiritual and cultural ing the height of buildings in public spaces to a values that are neglected or totally ignored by the maximum height of 60 metres. In addition, the high building policies. building code granted builders a bonus. The gross Traditional Kyoto offered panoramic vistas of cube was increased by nearly a third provided that natural splendour and constant visual contact with 20-30% of the ground floor of the building was the mountains’ moods and seasons, which sensu- used as public area. Public parking, for example, ally enclosed and integrated all elements of the was counted as such area. The height relaxation city. The verdure that surrounds the city and the was applied to sites over 1000 sq. m. in area. When moods of the changing seasons and climate were a typical site in the city centre is usually signifi- thus an essential part of the cultural ‘experience’ cantly smaller, the reform deliberately aims to join of Kyoto in a way that might be unsurpassed in smaller sites together. Because of the small size of other cities of the world. Therefore, the opposi- the construction sites, it is difficult, if not impos- tion to high-rise buildings is not merely a matter sible, to use the gross cube to its full potential.80 of nostalgic principle. It is largely driven by con- On the other hand, the small size of the build- cern for the very survival of Kyoto’s threatened ing sites in Kyoto is one result of the historic land environment and cultural identity. The destructive division system and as such, one of the features effect of the high-rise policy does not apply only that international lists and charters generally con- to the vistas in the built central area but actually sider as one of the essential features, that should effects more distant areas of the town too, as Ital- be preserved. It has until now effectively preserved ian Prof. Giovanni Peternolli has observed: the cityscape from the most radical urban transfor- mation operations and thus indirectly helped to “...High-rises destroy the ambience and meaning of the preserve the architectural and urban heritage of traditional gardens especially those which used shakkei the ancient capital. It is also questionable wheth- (borrowed landscape techniques). These gardens are con- er public parking can serve as successful public 88

FIG.35 KAMIGAMO SHAKEMACHI. ONE OF KYOTO’S HISTORIC PRESERVATION AREAS WITH RESIDENCES FOR SHINTO PRIESTS. RS.

space. The obvious aim of the relaxation of the Hara, who won the first prize in an International height rule can thus only be a radical reshaping architectural competition) might be, its hollow of the town centre to allow free construction of massiveness and dimensions quarantee that the new over-scaled high-rise buildings. result is a vast incongruous wall of dead concrete One of the precedents for the new building in the middle of a city where moderation and re- code was the rebuilding of the Kyoto Hotel at the strained elegance were the ruling principles of crossing of Kawaramachi and Oike Streets in front design even for such monumental buildings as the of the city hall. The hotel project, which is billed imperial palace. The new station building has also as the ‘finest traditional hotel in Kyoto’, drew vi- radically changed the hierarchy and views around olent opposition during its planning and con- such national monuments as the Higashi Hongan- struction. Among the protesting groups of citizens ji temple in front of the Kyoto station. were Buddhist priests, who were worried about The loosening of the height restrictions is the destruction of their landscape views.81 The likely to result in further destruction of the built new hotel building blocks traditional views espe- fabric and at worst, to the disfigurement of the cially around those Buddhist temples and tradi- morphology of the urban quarters that are still tional landmarks that are located in the eastern relatively well preserved. The land development mountains. The massive and ugly hotel building that has taken place, for example, in Shinmachi is not only disproportioned with surrounding Street behind the Sugiura site since the fieldwork structures but through such buildings the town was carried out, is only one example of the un- also gradually loses one of Kyoto’s loveliest aspects: fortunate consequences that may result from the vantage that once allowed everyone views of such proposals. Behind the Sugiura site there is the opposite mountains from any edge of the city. now a new multi-storey building with eight Another, perhaps even more controversial, floors and the neighbourhood building was razed project is the Kyoto station project with its 470 to make way for a parking plot. The result of metres length and 59 metres height. Whatever the such operations is nothing less than a gradual architectural pretensions and qualities of this destruction of the urban morphology of the building (designed by Japanese architect Hiroshi ancient capital.

89 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION Fig. 36 illustrates the hierarchy that existed vernacular buildings and architecture have been among buildings of different heights in the tra- few, if any. In the city planning policies and meth- ditional Kyoto townscape. The Sugimoto house, odologies, the preservation and protection of eve- representative of the height of ordinary, everyday ryday buildings has played a marginal role, if any. building stock, is illustrated on the left. The ma- In spite of the many progressive steps in the sys- THE OF FIELD THE jor religious symbols of the historic townscape, the tem of cultural protection that have been taken Yasaka pagoda and the five-storey pagoda of To¯ji in Kyoto in the protection and preservation of are, with their respective heights, also depicted in historic monuments, there are still a large number the figure. The purpose of the figure is to show of temples and shrines, which are without prop- RESEARCH the consequences that the implementation of the er protection. Among the estimated two thousand new building code and the over-scaled buildings temples and shrines which existed in Kyoto in will bring to the city and the entire townscape. 1986, only 193 buildings had been preserved by The planned 120 metres height for the new Kyo- law. In addition, municipal laws preserved 34 to station building can be seen in the figure left buildings. Thus, the large majority of even these of the Kyoto Tower. Thanks to opposition by the most historically valuable buildings were without citizens, the height of the final project could, proper protection and preservation83 . however, be limited to 59 metres. The building is When resources for heritage evaluation work still three metres higher than the five-storey pa- are limited, the problem of choice becomes very goda of To¯ji, Kyoto’s major historic landmark. concrete. How many and which buildings should be preserved and on what criteria should decisions Selective View of Heritage and the be based? Should the focus be on historical and architectural values or should preservation have a Conservation of Everyday Buildings broader basis? In these circumstances qualitative With the expanding urban conservation activities measures tend to rise to the fore. In particular, the that have taken foothold especially in European preservation of everyday buildings becomes countries, there are critics who have began to problematic. doubt if we are even conserving too much of our heritage. According to Peter J. Larkham there now Urban Preservation and the Kyoto exists a ‘conserver society’ that creates its own landscapes and is particularly manifest in the rapid Townhouse growth of the conservation movement worldwide. In Kyoto the number of everyday buildings pre- 82 Although the ‘conserver society’ is now a much- served is far below that of preserved monuments. discussed concept in the perception of heritage In 1991, in the list of cultural assets of Kyoto, and our attitudes towards past, the concept is, besides temples and other historic monuments, however, most valid in the western cultural cir- altogether seven privately owned buildings were cles. Present day Japan can hardly be described in registered.84 Among them were five ordinary such terms. townhouses.85 Meanwhile it was estimated that in Until now, with the exception of historic mon- the grid-plan area alone there were altogether 80 uments, only very few everyday structures have 000 wooden townhouses left.86 come under protection in Japan and in even those Furthermore, because everyday buildings are cases, the buildings have been mainly preserved as not listed, they have also remained outside any of- museum objects. Even in Kyoto, where the city ficial financing policies. According to Japanese law, government has been sensitive to preserving if the property is not registered as a cultural asset, landscapes and historic neighbourhoods of special it is outside public subsidiaries. In addition, the historic and architectural value, efforts to preserve banks and other financing institutions have fo- less famous and architecturally less distinguished cused mainly on the financing of new construc- 90 tion activities. The failure to preserve traditional listed far exceeds the number of protected envi- Kyoto townhouses and the greatest damage caused ronments. Prof. Yamasaki, who actively contrib- to the historic neighbourhoods is most evident in uted to the development of the current the historic grid-plan area, the representative of preservation strategy for the historic preservation which the hoko area is. As architect Gunther areas, mentions in his book published a few years Nitschke has noted: ago, that in Kyoto altogether 51 such historic en- vironments or groups of buildings and their sur- “…Kyo¯-machiya (typical Kyoto townhouses) have so roundings which were worthy of listing and far received little attention in the preservation movement greater protection but are now outside any preser- to protect historically valuable buildings”.87 vation and protection measures.88 One of these historic environments listed in the book is that of Although the concept of historical neighbourhood the thirty-five hoko neighbourhoods was essential in preserving the historic districts, the concept has been limited to areas with special ar- Shifting the Focus: Conserving the chitectural or historical value. Except the Hongan- ji Shimabara and the Nishijin new preservation Urban Heritage areas all the historic preservation areas are outside At the present moment Kyoto’s urban heritage is the city centre and the historic grid-plan area. Al- faced with various threats which all have delete- though fine representatives of Kyoto’s architectur- rious effects on its character and on its life. al heritage and historic environments, they are all With the overemphasis on material values, the areas which illustrate some specific type of urban city planners have been unable to identify con- environment. Gion Shimbashi is one of the three servation and protection of the urban heritage geisha areas, Saga Torii Moto and Sanneizaka parts as a potential attraction for the city and its life. of the pilgrim routes and Kamigamo preservation This has led to a gradual degradation of living area consists of dwellings for the Shinto priests. traditions and to the deterioration and destruc- The protection of these areas is naturally wel- tion of the dwelling environment. Limiting the come but the protected districts concern most scope of protection to certain carefully selected often outlying parts of the city, which were not areas, the conservationists have been unable to and even now not are, in immediate danger in a create a wider impact that would benefit protec- way the urban quarters in more central areas are. tion of the urban heritage as a whole. The pro- Saga Torii Moto and Kamigamo Shakemachi are tected pilgrim routes and geisha areas, they are located in rural areas in the northern outskirts of all aimed at those who are visiting the ‘foreign Kyoto with no extensive building pressures com- past’, promoting the ‘exotic’ and its market val- pared to those areas that exist in the more cen- ues over living tradition. trally located areas. Moreover, the limitations in City planning clauses and regulations that the protected areas leave too many areas for have dealt entirely with technical controls such boundless damage. From the viewpoint of the as height constraints, floor-area ratios and light ordinary townhouses, which survive in larger angles may have worked effectively from the ra- numbers in the central area, the protection of a tional point of view. What they have failed to do few selected areas is far not enough. To be fully is to identify the role of urban morphology, compatible with city’s history and character, the building typologies, dwelling patterns and their protective measures should thus necessarily be disposition in the urban space, in other words, extended - to include essentially larger entities of the whole character of Kyoto’s urban heritage. urban fabric. The unfortunate conclusion that an outside ob- At the moment the number of well preserved server has to do is that Kyoto seems to suffer but historic everyday environments that are not from an inferiority complex. The authorities

91 DESCRIPTION OF OF DESCRIPTION appear to be convinced that a city without high- than difficult. This should not, however, be re- rise buildings and skyscrapers is not modern and garded as an obstacle to urban conservation but in pace with demands of times. However, what as an inspiring challenge to develop tailored may appear imposing and positive in Tokyo or place-oriented and context-oriented urban con- Osaka, does not necessarily have the same mean- servation methodologies. The problem, evidently, THE OF FIELD THE ing in Kyoto with its own special history and is not to stop the desirable and inevitable mod- beauty. ernisation, but to render it compatible with the The conservation of areas in the city centre city’s cultural heritage and the corresponding

(as is the case with our sample quarters), is com- responsibility it imposes. As Prof. Eugene Benda RESEARCH plicated and difficult. The socio-economic and put it: cultural changes must continue. Time cannot be halted and it even should not. In other words, it “... Many love Kyoto, but love can be blind. Kyoto is a planning situation that renders the assessment deserves more - an open eye and a creative commit- of authenticity and any conservation policy more ment”.89

FIG.36 SCHEMATIC ILLUSTRATION OF THE HEIGHT OF BUILDINGS IN THE CITY CENTRE. LEFT THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE ILLUSTRATING THE SCALE OF THE ORDINARY BUILDING STOCK. THE FIGURE ALSO SHOWS THE HEIGHT OF YASAKA AND TOJI PAGODAS, THE MAJOR LANDMARKS OF THE HISTORIC TOWNSCAPE. DRAWING BY MASAFUMI YAMASAKI, KYOTO UNIVERSITY.

PART III

THE OBJECTIVES OF THE RESEARCH 94

95

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Chapter 10 The Objectives of the Research

The Cultural Significance of the and Their Surroundings, Morse described the archi- Kyoto Townhouse and Urban tectural patterns of a traditional Japanese house in a scientifically exact way which for the most part Heritage is accurate even today. In his book we can also find Kyoto’s wooden townhouse architecture and ur- a description of the art of screens including the ban heritage in the grid-plan area is in many ways artistic mountings, the elegant silk bags in which unique, both as regards the stages of its city the screens are kept when not in use. development and as an architectural phenomenon. The position of Frank Lloyd Wright in inter- Scores of sophisticated analyses have examined the preting Japanese architecture to Westerners and Japanese quality of space and its indigenous build- the influence of Japanese architecture on his own ing types. In these analyses traditional Kyoto architecture is well known, although the charac- townhouse, kyo¯-machiya, has been a superb exam- ter of this influence has also in recent times been ple, which has even affected the concept and de- questioned (as observed in part II, chapter 6, the velopment of modern western architecture. In interpretative environment of the work). In An Japanese architectural history the evolution of the Autobiography, Wright composed what he called “A Kyoto townhouse, the wooden lattice facade and Song to Heaven”, which deals with Japanese re- the multiplicity of its dwelling patterns are regard- ligion, aesthetics and lifestyle. The spiritual lessons ed as superb examples of elegance unknown in the East has the power to teach the West that other Japanese cities. Wright propagated in his writing, turned mainly Among Westerners, one of the earliest and keen- on two themes: the Japanese dwelling house and est observers of the Japanese townhouse and its the lifestyle it engendered, and the print, togeth- architectural qualities was Edward J. Morse who er with the subjects it portrayed. Wright defined went to Japan in 1877. In his book Japanese Homes the native house in Japan “as a supreme study in 6

96 elimination - not only of dirt but the elimination townhouses has been stressed, for instance, by Prof. of the insignificant”. In addition he noted: Atsushi Ueda, who even described the pre-mod- ern, Tokugawa period town culture as a machiya “…I found this ancient Japanese dwelling to be a per- society, in other words, a town culture where the fect example of the modern standardising I had myself individual townhouse played a key role. The back been working out”. 17 rooms of machiya were used for appreciating art objects and holding tea ceremonies – cultural Beside Frank Lloyd Wright, a well-known and practices to in a large extent still take place even respected advocate of Japanese architecture was today.18 the German architect Bruno Taut, who lived and Currently the general public interest, on the travelled in Japan in the early 1930s. In the Ka- other hand, is seen in the growth of ‘living histo- tsura Villa Taut found all the architectural quali- ry’ projects. This has been big business in Ameri- ties that modern architects had been looking for. ca and in Japan as well. This Zeitgeist is for a In his work People and Houses of Japan Taut prais- popular demand for history, as a means of relaxa- es, among other things, the Japanese townhouse tion, history seen as an easy and immediate form for its aesthetic qualities and Kyoto’s prominence of entertainment, as if it were detached from the with regard to delicacy and taste. It would not be reality of the past. This search for the past is hav- an exaggeration to say that the great enthusiasm ing an effect on urban form, on urban landscapes and interest of the modern architects towards Jap- ranging from central areas to high-class residen- anese architecture and aesthetics that has contin- tial suburbs and industrial areas. In some western ued right up to the present day is very much result countries and especially in the United Kingdom, of Bruno Taut’s appraisal of this heritage. the urban conservation itself has become an im- portant tool in our various forms of using and reuse the past. Peter J. Fowley has observed the ‘Living Tradition’ versus ‘Living phenomena: History’ ‘Living Tradition’ versus ‘Living History’ are in this “...Indeed, so great has been the visual impact of such thesis understood as fundamentally different, even (conservation) schemes that the latter 20th century has mutually contradictory concepts. By ‘living tradi- already selectively left his mark on the urban fabric al- tion’ the author means all those cultural practices most as much as in conservation terms as in the com- and skills that still are an integral part of people’s mercial redevelopment widely regarded as its more everyday lives in the hoko neighbourhoods. This characteristic trait“...In so doing, let us not deceive our- includes the wooden town heritage as an integral selves that we have done anything other than create a part of Kyoto’s living testimony. The continuity ‘now’, not recreate a ‘then’…”. and sincere appreciation of these traditions is one of the major concerns in the work. ‘May the past be with you’ could well be today’s The traditional Kyoto townhouses were never thematic intonation as Peter J. Fowler has ironi- just architectural forms but always a living com- cally noted.19 Caring or not, a lot of people are bination of residential and working spaces. This now interested in the past one way or another; was reflected in the dwelling plans of the houses, and whereas it used to be mainly academics, now where the front (omote) of the building served as the interest takes on all forms, consuming various a showroom and workspace and the back (oku) as kinds of pasts which can be used to the point that living quarters for the owner’s family. Townhouses the popular past really is the ‘foreign country’ as were once central components not only of the David Lowenthal called it, with its own curren- cityscape, but of the community life as well. The cy, and not the ‘history’ controlled by academics. cultural and social significance of the traditional Tourism is a great promoter and user of such ec- 7 Living Tradition or Panda’s

97 THE OBJECTIVES OF THE THE OF OBJECTIVES THE lecticism and plays important role in Kyoto too. Such an approach is especially important in The controversial, even contradictory, relationship the central area of Kyoto where most of the between the demands and needs of mass-tourism houses lack distinct or clearly definable architec- and the cultural heritage and the local residents tural or historical values, but are still important on the other hand, ‘the Panda’s cage’ as Japanese examples of traditional dwelling patterns and

architect Arata Isozaki called it, is one of the key lifestyles of the ancient capital. The emphasis in RESEARCH issues that the author will point out and analyse the thesis is thus not only on landmarks, but also in this research. on the protection and preservation of Kyoto’s extraordinary cultural heritage as a whole. The improvement of housing is understood as one of Definition of Urban Conservation the basic and essential objectives of urban con- The author’s major contribution to the Yamahoko servation work. The perception of heritage and programme, and that part, which had a lesser, or the basic approach of this work are explored only supporting role in the Japanese research pro- closer in part IV, where the author focuses on the gramme, was in the formulation of the conserva- methodology of the work. The interpretation of tion thesis, which promotes urban conservation in the Japanese context and its implications for the city centre and in the hoko neighbourhoods. urban conservation work are an essential part of Conservation is in this research understood as this work.

“… an umbrella concept, meaning all the processes of looking after a place so as to retain its cultural signifi- The Objectives of the Research cance. It includes maintenance and may according to In recording and studying the conservation of circumstances include preservation, restoration, reconstruc- everyday buildings and the urban vernacular in tion and adaptation and will commonly be a combina- the hoko neighbourhoods, the author had five tion of several of these”. major objectives: 1) The major objective of the thesis is to raise This definition follows international standards and general awareness of the importance of the city besides preservation, might include other support- centre and of the need for better conservation and ing operations as well.11 protection of the city as a whole. In the thesis The goal of the dissertation is not to make each urban conservation is seen as an important tool and every home in the survey area a protected not only to keep traditional carpentry skills and cultural property, but rather to help citizens and layers of the urban fabric alive, but also to recog- heritage authorities to work together to solve some nise cultural values and properties. By emphasis- of the key problems faced by traditional Kyoto ing the necessity of bringing cultural values to the townhouses and the urban heritage. By emphasis- centre of decision-making to produce a meaning- ing heritage values of everyday buildings and the ful protection of urban heritage, the research at- ordinary building stock the dissertation questions tempts to reinforce city life through urban the selective, monument-oriented evaluation ap- conservation. proach. The protection of individual landmarks or 2) In the field of architectural history the the- narrow stripes of the city is, for sure, extremely sis experiments with ways and means of record- important, but far not enough. The protection and ing everyday buildings and the urban vernacular. urban conservation to be fully compatible with Recording is the preliminary step in the moni- city’s history and character it should not be limit- toring process of historical neighbourhoods. In- ed to a few number of selected groups of architec- stead of focusing on landmarks or individual turally or historically qualified houses but include buildings, the inventory consists of whole street- representative entities of urban fabric. scapes and urban neighbourhoods. 98 3) In the field of urban conservation and herit- implications for the definition of heritage are an age argumentation work, the objective of the the- integral part of this research. sis is to widen the value concept to include 5) Among the cultural testimony of the Gion vernacular everyday buildings. Exploring the con- Festival, the thesis focuses on the tradition of the cept of heritage and new areas of interpretation are Screen Festival. The inter-relationship between the an essential part of this work. The current listing street and the urban dwelling and the importance system and value criteria are critically examined. of place are defined as major cultural values to be The emphasis is on the preservation of the whole focused on. instead of some selected, (expert) valued parts. The hoko neighbourhoods are selected as the 4) Philosophically, the thesis investigates the case study area because of their great cultural sig- changing ‘stage’ of the tradition, including us as nificance. The recording presented in the research observers of the process. The discussion on the is the first systematic architectural inventory in the features of a different cultural context and their city centre and in the hoko neighbourhoods.

99

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PART IV

THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK 102

103 THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK THE OF METHODOLOGY THE

Chapter 11 The Methodological Approach in this Research

New Areas of Interpretation nisms rather than being intrinsic to a set of phys- The post-modern interpretation of contemporary ical characteristics.91 history research has brought forth areas of study A new way of interpretation requires a differ- that purely measurable, empirical research methods ent kind of research. Thus, the aim of the current have left unexamined.90 For example, in the past, research lies not only in the identification of the certain cultural values and attitudes, often even sub- physical urban space: dwelling patterns, streets, conscious ones, may have inhibited research. A interior spaces, verandas and rooms, but also in descriptive research method cannot explain men- identifying their legible images and culturally tal images or aesthetic values. Thus, the value of a dependent inter-relationships, in other words, building is not solely based on its primary signifi- everything that is a result of an evolving social cance or function as a dwelling or a public build- order. A conservation approach that aims to pro- ing, but also on the individual and collective tect such qualities has the advantage over one that readings and value judgements it represents. focuses solely to the architectural qualities and the Philip Hubbard, for instance, has noted that re- physical fabric. liance on formal theories of architectural assess- Ideas of the essence of architecture are ment has largely been replaced by studies of constantly changing and it is important to widen architectural meaning, as it has been realised that the research to areas presently forgotten or offi- a building or townscape cannot be seen without cially underrated. A value-free, ‘objective’ dis- some significance being ascribed to it. Such an ap- course does not exist. Subjective, partial proach to architectural assessment stresses that the viewpoints are always present and they affect meaning of architecture and architectural styles is among other things, the choice of the topic of in the observer and their interpretative mecha- research. Per Kirkeby, for instance, has argued: 104 “…Immaculate, objective observation does not exist. There Local Shinto shrines and Buddhist altars are is no objective observation in that naive sense of the mean- an important group of structures, which are ex- ing that it would be a thing or an object in itself. Theory amples of continued religious traditions and now is, instead, a prerequisite for observation, as observation among the ‘forgotten’ heritage. Traditionally is for theory. We live in the whirl of the stream”.92 every family in the community was committed to take shared responsibility for the care of them. The Sugiura display (described in part VII, chap- This habit is still followed, for instance, in ter 21, fieldwork no. 9), for instance, is instructive Shinkamanzacho¯, where bringing rice cakes, in exploring the meanings and interpretations an green tea and other offerings to the local shrine individual person and/or community may have is one of the daily routines, for instance, of Mrs. for the festival. Such meanings are in addition to Sugiura.93 The urban transformation process that other values, such as the evidence of valued (ex- is progressing in the area and the consequent pert) aspects of art history or architectural beau- move of the street altars back to their mother ty. These meanings may not always be obvious in temples far away from the area and their ‘home’ the fabric of place, and may not be apparent to threats and degrades the value of the original the disinterested observer. Thus, even the observer place. himself, consciously or unconsciously, adds to the A different example of the continued tradi- value of a place or to its absence of value. tion is, for instance, the rule allowing only the It is also essential to recognise that each group male members of the community to participate or community chooses its own symbols and ref- in the rituals of the Gion Festival as is still prac- erence points and these may not accord with oth- tised in Rokkakucho¯ even today. This is also an er reference categories. To take one example: the example of the conflicting values within the attitudes towards the urban festival of a tenant community. The traditionalists hold on to the old family in a hoko community may essentially dif- habit as a religious tradition, which cannot be fer from those of the house and landowners, who violated; others blame the tradition for the sex- traditionally were considered the privileged class ist attitudes and demand free participation of in the organisation of the festival. This social clash female members in the religious rituals of the between different classes and social groups is, to community. Even the values are thus not some- a certain degree, still observable in the hoko area thing fixed or homogeneous, but depend on who as the author noticed during the fieldwork. Ac- is the observer and whose value it represents tually, a special festival evolved in the central area within the community. (the so-called Jizo Bon) as a substitute for the Gion Festival for the tenant families. Expert Values Versus the Preservation of the Whole The Importance of Place The usual pre-occupation of architects and con- An important and essential part of the approach servationists with physical shapes and determina- is acknowledging the importance of place. A tion to build and protect masterpieces of art have special attachment to place may include a long- forced them to preserve conserved buildings as standing spiritual or religious attachment or oth- ‘such’ or to restore them, in both cases placing er long-standing categories such as a continuous priorities with the physical fabric in order to use. The Gion Festival tradition, which has con- present it at the cost of its life. The preoccupation tinued for centuries, is itself already such a val- with the physical space has been so dominant that ue-category. Within the major tradition there the ‘preservation’ itself has almost become a syn- might also be minor traditions, such as, in our onym implying ‘no change’. Harsha Munasinghe, case, the Screen Festival. for instance, argues how

105 THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK THE OF METHODOLOGY THE “...The present consciousness of urban space has limited contrasting with them, the public and semi-pub- its focus to the outdoor space, neglecting the indoor urban lic spaces depicted as if they were carved out from space and the inter-relation between these two”. 94 the solid physical space. Such a picture, although highly illuminating in the urban context of Rome, The Oaxaca Declaration (1994) has, for exam- is however, not valid in the Japanese cultural con- ple, expressed its concern about the limited range text and does not truly reveal the relationship of places identified as heritage, noting that many between the two. elements in the historic environment are not val- In Japan, the indoor and the outdoor space can- ued as ‘heritage’.95 Many of the elements that not be approached through dualistic concepts, but make up the ‘whole place’ remain unidentified, they have to be regarded as one entity. A well- despite the fact that it is the whole rather than known expression of such a non-dualistic ‘in-be- the parts that will have social value and mean- tween’ space is the Japanese veranda, engawa, ing. Studies and analyses on historic places tend which is space under the eaves. It is a transmit- to focus on physical structures and architectural ting space between the indoor and outdoor space. properties. This applies to the Screen Festival tra- In other words, it is a space which has the quali- dition as well: focusing on individual, historically ty of both of these spaces. Bruno Taut, for instance, valuable screens or individual buildings, for ex- has with great sensitivity observed this distinctive ample, leaves a whole range of value categories quality of Japanese space. For him the most inter- outside. esting feature of a Japanese house was not its In Kyoto in the city planning level among the material appearance but its life. In his analysis, Taut ‘forgotten heritage’ are, for instance, such elements compared the Japanese dwelling space to a stage as pre-modern land use subdivision patterns and in an open-air theatre, the background of which street furniture. Although the town plan of Kyo- visible through the open wall, is nature. to was adapted from the classic Chinese town plan In his analysis of the Katsura Villa, Taut saw the models in the 8th century, one of the main points quintessence of Japanese architecture as lying not and characteristic features of the town plan of in its material values, but in the relationships (in Kyoto even today, appears to lie in the almost German: Beziehungen; emphasis by the author) exclusive use of the separate one-family house. which the different parts of the building and its The extremely small size of the sites in the grid- relation to nature expose. In other words, in the plan area and the typical land division patterns natural and organic way the architectural elements caused by that fact are characteristic features of the were interrelated and were designed to fit nature urban fabric and thus also, bearers of important and to become an organic part of their surround- heritage values. ings. This observation by Taut is still valid today, although Taut, as a modernist, missed many essen- The Character of the Japanese tial values of Japanese architecture, such as deco- ration as an organic part of Japanese architecture, Indoor/Outdoor Relationship and the active role human beings have in the ex- The present western consciousness of urban space perience of Japanese space. has limited its focus to the negative and positive, In the hoko area, in particular, the role of street solids and voids, the outdoor space as voids and as communal space and the pre-modern township the buildings and volumes as solids. A classic ex- concept ryo¯gawacho¯, ‘neighbourhood on both sides ample of such a framework of thinking is, for of the street’, are instructive in analysing the cul- example, the map of Rome by Giambattista Nolli, tural significance and character of the urban space. from 1748, La Nuova Topografia di Roma (‘The The ryo¯gawacho¯ pattern, which was established in New Topography of Rome’). The map consists of the hoko area in the 16th century, is studied in solid and evenly distributed urban quarters and detail below, in part VI, chapter 15. 106 The Inter-Relationship between the fold expressions this relationship takes during the Urban Dwelling and Street as a urban festival, is one of the major topics to be examined in the research. Cultural Value The Japanese word for town is identical with the Critical Evaluation of Heritage word for street, machi. This fully expresses what the author has pointed out above, namely that a Arguments sharp distinction between street and house does The value criteria, which in Kyoto worked well not exist. In Japan, the dwelling space and street for historical monuments, caused problems in space are not separate spaces but there is a close evaluating ordinary everyday buildings. In the inter-relationship between the two. They are part thesis, through the examples of the fieldwork, the of the same spatial entity. author will examine and analyse, in particular, the In the urban space, the open wall with its flex- selection criteria that the heritage authorities use ible and movable lattice facade takes a key role. when a building is to be registered. The author The built-unbuilt ratio or the open-space vs. built focuses especially on three selection criteria: space relationship is thus far not the only relation- ship between the two, as spatial interactions and 1) the test of authenticity their cultural readings do account for significance. 2) the age rule Everyone who has visited Japanese cities must 3) the architectural beauty of the streetscape have been struck by the delicate charm of Japa- nese home life, the natural way people move be- Confirmation of Authenticity tween lying, sitting and squatting positions and the Until now in the heritage evaluation work in proportions between the man and the house, and Kyoto, the question of confirmation of the au- the house and the street that these interior views thenticity of historic structures and buildings has expose. been relatively unproblematic. In the case of eve- Coding and decoding of the outdoor-indoor ryday buildings, the question becomes, however, relationship is not something fixed. It is constantly more complicated. There are very few ordinary changing and culminates in such traditions as the structures which are intact without later changes Screen Festival. The urban dwelling that during or remodelling. The current criteria for authen- the festival days is exposed to the street takes a ticity in Kyoto leave most ordinary structures significantly different role from its everyday ap- outside the evaluation and listing programmes and pearance and use. Yasunari Kawabata, for instance, thus, indirectly, inhibit their protection. observed this phenomena in the following way: The interior of a house, if we take just one example, cannot be changed if the house has been “…The day of gathering at Gion had arrived. At nominated as a cultural asset. However, there are Sada’s shop they had removed the lattice door, busy with very few people who can afford or are willing to preparations for the festival”. 96 live in a museum. As Prof. Nishikawa has com- mented: In the hoko neighbourhoods the Screen Festival, in particular, is instructive in identifying the char- “... the fact that buildings must keep their characteristic acter and quality of the Japanese urban space. The outside appearance does not mean that their inhabitants methodological step taken in the present research must also follow an outmoded way of life”.97 thus aims at an approach where the dwelling pat- terns and cultural patterns are identified as an In fact one of the fascinating features of the or- inseparable entity. The inter-relationship between dinary townhouses in Kyoto and in other places the urban dwelling and the street, and the mani- as well is that they have been changed and that

107 THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK THE OF METHODOLOGY THE we can now observe the different traces of life in illustrative of this approach. On the other hand, their outward appearance left by earlier genera- the neighbourhoods in the city centre such as the tions and lifestyles. Below, through the examples hoko neighbourhoods, for instance, have been con- of our fieldwork, the author will observe and sidered too much changed and thus, too hetero- describe a number of such everyday structures. geneous in their townscape elements. In other words they lack the basic architectural integrity Age of Building regarded necessary for evaluation or designation. Another point today is that, if a building is going The heritage authorities have seldom seriously to be registered as a landmark or cultural asset, its questioned the city-planning conception. The historical value must be confirmed. An important selective approach is evident even in the urban pr- criterion is then the age of the building. Most of eservation schemes carried out by the Nishikawa the everyday buildings in the city centre were laboratory. A good example of these attitudes is, destroyed in the city fires in the Meiji era. Only for example, a proposal which the laboratory a few areas around Rokkakucho¯ were preserved. worked out for a municipal architectural compe- This means that even the oldest structures exist- tition. The laboratory won first prize. In the ing in the historic grid-plan area are not much competition scheme Yatacho¯ was used as a sam- more than a hundred years old. In the municipal ple area to illustrate urban renewal methods for listing system, where structures originating from the historic city neighbourhoods. the Edo era, in other words buildings which are The only structure which was given consider- two hundred or three hundred years old, are con- ation and preservation status was the Sugimoto sidered ‘far too young’ for listing, the chances for house. Apart from the Sugimoto house, Yata Kan- everyday buildings to be registered are extreme- non, the small neighbourhood temple was dis- ly small.98 cussed as a potential site to be preserved. Most of The age rule also to a large extent explains why the still existing wooden structures in the area such structures as the common facilities have sel- were replaced in the scheme by new multi-sto- dom been discussed as objects to be preserved. rey buildings without any consideration given to They are all too young to qualify and lack the urban conservation. In the competition scheme necessary antiquity. During the Yamahoko pro- the ground floors of new steel-reinforced concrete gramme the problem of age was encountered buildings were redesigned in the spirit of the tra- more than once and it is one of the issues focused ditional wooden frame style in order to restore the on in the research through the examples of the atmosphere of an ‘authentic’ hoko neighbourhood. fieldwork. In general, the age of buildings, in re- Although interesting as a competition proposal, lation to usefulness of desirability, is to be per- there can be no doubt, that a conservation ap- ceived as an extremely relative thing as, for proach of this kind can be by no means satisfac- instance, Jane Jacobs noted in her famous book tory in the framework of the current research. The Death and Life of Great American Cities already in the early 1960s.99

The Beauty of the Streetscape as a Heritage Value One of the major criteria in the architectural ar- gumentation work in Kyoto has been the archi- tectural beauty of streetscape. In other words, protecting and preserving certain carefully cho- sen key areas with outstanding architectural uni- ty. The four historic preservation areas are 108

109 THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK THE OF METHODOLOGY THE

Chapter 12 Recording as a Means of Evaluation

Definition of Recording in standards, the recording of the cultural heritage International Standards is essential: The international principles and standards for re- cording cultural heritage were laid out by the 11th a) to acquire knowledge in order to advance the ICOMOS General Assembly in Sofia in 1996. Ac- understanding of cultural heritage, its values cording to the text, recording and documentation and its evolution; is considered as one of the principal ways availa- b) to promote the interest and involvement of the ble to give meaning, understanding, definition and people in the preservation of the heritage recognition of the values of the cultural heritage. through the dissemination of recorded informa- In the Sofia text the tion; Recording is defined as a “capture of informa- c) to permit informed management and control tion which describes the physical configurations, of construction works and of all change to the condition and use of monuments, groups of build- cultural heritage; ings and sites, at a point in time, and it is an es- d) to ensure that the maintenance and conserva- sential part of the conservation process”; tion of the heritage is sensitive to its physical Cultural heritage refers to monuments, groups of form, its materials, construction, and its his- buildings and sites of heritage value, constituting torical and cultural significance. the historic or built environment. The Sofia declaration requires the prepara- Recording as a Method in the tion of analytical studies and inventories in or- der to explain the meanings of the heritage Current Work concerned and to justify the proposed methods In the present research, recording is used as a ba- of using it. According to the above mentioned sic method to define the character and quality of 110 the heritage. The on-site fieldwork, which was documentation.100 A remarkable number of bea- carried out in the hoko neighbourhoods, includ- utiful townhouses just disappear without ever ed three major documentations: being documented as the author observed in Kyoto during the fieldwork. 1) Recording and measurement of the street fa- Also, there is always the danger of the record- cades of three hoko neighbourhoods. The focus ing becoming an end in itself. Even in the Yama- of interest was, above all, on the traditional car- hoko programme it sometimes seemed that the pentry elements such as the lattice, ko¯shi, fa- inventory was more a ‘conscience salvaging pro- cades. gramme of the investigator’101 than a real action 2) Recording the major dwelling patterns includ- to save the heritage sites. For such work, the hands ing the unagi no nedoko, ‘sleeping places of an of the investigator were all too tied and the means eel’ pattern and the nagaya, urban tenement. available all too limited. However, at its best, an 3) Recording of the Screen Festival as an exam- inventory can be an inspiration to see the ple of cultural values and practices character- surroundings in a novel and fresh way and to stim- istic for the hoko neighbourhoods. ulate the owners and public alike to seriously consider protection of sites and structures, which In the architectural analysis the author applied, they perhaps previously regarded unworthy of primarily, the same methods and building cate- preservation. gorisations as were used by the Nishikawa lab- oratory in the historic preservation areas. Yamasaki has given a description of these meth- The Use of Terminology ods in English. This definition is referred to be- The author is aware of the dangers of proposals low (see part V, chapter 13). For the current coming from outside the Japanese preservation research, however, the author had to develop the community. Every proposal depends on the cul- method further so as to better suit the needs of tural context within which it is applied. The com- the rather heterogeneous building stock of the ments or observations that are expressed in the studied neighbourhoods. The thesis is, thus, a research, therefore, in the first place, are intended pioneer in the field. to stimulate thought and discussion instead of Its purpose is to show the characteristic out- giving direct proposals or answers. Many of the lines of the city’s transformation process in the questions and problems, if not all, voice the con- surveyed quarters during the past 20-30 years. For cerns that were expressed by Japanese scholars, the municipal authorities the method presented heritage authorities and residents alike. here provides information for making sensitive The language of the Yamahoko programme was planning policies and for developing building Japanese. The Japanese language has given some control policies. It also provides information upon distinctive perspectives to the work but also made which appropriate use of heritage may be iden- it vulnerable to errors and misunderstanding. The tified and the effective conservation plans and author bears full responsibility for whatever errors maintenance programmes may be planned. The of fact and interpretation still persist. The Japanese recording method is described in detail at the language has made communication possible not beginning of each fieldwork chapter. only with the members of the research team but The recording of heritage sites or structures it- also, with the subject of the work, the many fas- self is not entirely unproblematic. It may have cinating kimono families. many stated purposes, but it may also have unfore- The work operates in and uses Japanese con- seen side effects. For fear of having their houses cepts and terminology which Japanese resear- listed as cultural objects, many of those, who own chers themselves use in their research. In other an old house decline the questionable honour of words, the terms are used in their authentic

111 THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK THE OF METHODOLOGY THE context, and as precisely as possible. In this way, Prof. Yamasaki provides a very scientific and the thesis helps to make the Japanese ter- precise approach in his recent book (1994). The minology known and more available to the West- book contains a fine historical analysis on the for- ern reader. Furthermore, because the language is mation and make up of Kyoto’s cityscape through an essential part of the culture, the use of Ja- historical illustrations, paintings and other authen- panese terms itself illuminates and helps us to tic documents. The active role of Prof. Yamasaki understand the cultural context within which we in the laboratory of Prof. Nishikawa in develop- move through the work. This is true not only ing the urban preservation methodology of Kyo- with terms that describe the traditional wooden to has already been mentioned above. architecture, but also, and especially, with the spe- In addition to the two above-mentioned anal- cial terms of the urban festival. yses, architect Gunther Nitschke has contributed All the key terms used in the thesis are listed greatly to the understanding of Kyoto’s urban with their Japanese pronunciation, Japanese kanji heritage and the nature of the urban festival. His combination and English translation to form a comments have provided valuable insights also for glossary, attached at the end of the work as the thesis. Nitschke is among those few members Appendix 1. The large number of Japanese terms within the circle of architects and urban planners and their variety in itself illustrate the richness of who has consistently advocated wider urban pres- the urban culture and architectural testimony of ervation of Kyoto. Moreover, his article ‘Ma’ in the hoko neighbourhoods. The English Japanese Architectural Design published in the middle of dictionary, that was compiled for the thesis, is the 1960s, which concentrates upon the Japanese given in Appendix 2. space concept, has already become a kind of classic in its field. In the field of academic research Claire Sources and Related Research Gallian’s doctoral thesis at Kyoto University in Because of the specificity of the research, sources 1989, which deals with the urban preservation in Western languages have been few. Except for methodology of Japan, and Prof. Tamara K. Kyoto’s traditional wooden townhouse, the classic Haveren’s research work in the United States are kyo¯-machiya, and the mountain of books which not without merits. Both works operate in the focus on Japanese gardens, Japan’s town traditions field of urban preservation and are closely related and urban heritage are much less known. In the to the theses of this research. Gallian has given a history of architecture one of the most influential very good analysis of the system of historic ones is perhaps Bruno Taut’s inspiring book Hous- preservation in Japan. Furthermore, Gallian’s work es and People of Japan, where Taut praised Japanese contains a historical analysis of the Sugimoto town architecture and the aesthetics of everyday life. house, which is one of the key buildings in the It has become one of the classics in the field, current work. Gallian’s description of the house through which our image of the Japanese city and is excellent. its unique town traditions has largely taken shape. Haveren has focused on one important part in Compared to the mountain of articles that in the city centre: the kimono quarters of the Nishi- the past few years have been published about To- jin silk textile industry. Among other things, Ha- kyo, Kyoto has played only a very minor role in veren discusses changes that have taken place in the architectural debate, despite its great spiritual the production processes of the kimono textile in- and historical significance. Among the few pub- dustry. These changes directly or indirectly affect lications is Prof. Eugene Benda’s exhibition pub- the wholesale function and thus also, the life of lication where he comments on the urban the hoko neighbourhoods. transformation processes of Kyoto. His way of looking at the matter is critical. 7

112 ues of a traditional artisan. The most interesting Perceptions of the Past point in Yanagi’s analysis on the traditional aesthet- Various versions of contemporary relationships ics is its relationship with the everyday values and with what has been, and very much is, have been use. The objects created by an artisan were pri- expressed in analyses, which have subsequently marily appreciated for their qualities in everyday become landmarks in the development of a late life and use. This notion is particularly important 20th century perception of the past. David for the thesis, which stresses the value of the dis- Löwenthal’s The Past is a Foreign Country (1986) play items and antiquities in their place - not as was one of the first to provide a solid academic collector’s objects or as mere museum pieces. In foundation and Robert Hewison interpreted the other words, the everyday use of buildings or ar- phenomenon in cultural and political terms in the tefacts is seen as an important measure of their Heritage Industry (1987). These two books have cultural significance. served as an important background analysis in the The greater part of the thesis and whenever current work. possible, the research is based on authentic sourc- Furthermore, in analysing the values and aes- es in the Japanese language. The sources are dis- thetics of an traditional artisan, the major source cussed in the context of each topic. The of reference are the writings of Soetsu Yanagi, a bibliography, which is given at the end of the critic of Japanese industrial arts. His internation- thesis, includes only works that apply directly to ally best known work, The Unknown Craftsman, has the topics of the research or describes some spe- become a kind of classic in its field. According to cial aspect found in the work. General literature Yanagi the modern values and sensibilities based on traditional Japanese architecture has been on individuality are in great contrast to the val- excluded. 8 Living Tradition or Panda’s

113 THE METHODOLOGY OF THE WORK THE OF METHODOLOGY THE

PART V

DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF HERITAGE 116

117

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Chapter 13 The Concept of Heritage in Japan

Preservation in the Japanese ture as a case study example, the Japanese meth- Context ods of restoration and conservation of authentic It has been suggested that the Japanese idea of materials and the upholding of long-established preservation and building conservation would handicraft skills are an extremely fine and highly essentially be different from that of the West.102 Proof developed tradition from which Western countries of the statement has been sought in the tradition of could benefit and learn. For Larsen, these Japanese periodically rebuilding the Ise Shrine. The Nor- methods indeed represent the most significant and wegian Professor Knut Einar Larsen has, however, fascinating aspect of contemporary architectural recently objected to the view. According to him, the preservation work in Japan. 104 rebuilding of the Ise Shrine is not primarily to be The technique of dismantling, which is used in considered as an example of building conservation Japan throughout the building repair process, is practice but rather as a religious ritual. The Japanese based on the principal structural characteristics of researcher Nobuko Inaba too has agreed with the Japanese architecture. With a post-and-beam con- latter view. She has stated in relation to the meaning struction the structure has the inherent capabili- of the reconstruction practice of the Ise Shrine: ty of being taken apart and reassembled with no compromise to the integrity of the structure it- “...Many people have assumed that periodic reconstruc- self. The attitude towards preservation and build- tion is an accepted general conservation method - whereas ing conservation in Japan cannot, therefore, be Ise is an isolated case in which the only purpose is the interpreted simply through some religious atti- traditional ceremonial one”. 103 tudes or traditions, but as a tradition of its own with its own particular practices and philosophies. As Prof. Larsen points out, using the conservation As Larsen points out, the basic idea in Japan is of the Oyamadera Temple in the Ibaraki Prefec- that it is not only objects or buildings as such that 118 are worth preservation, but also the knowledge Practices which differ from our own should and methods which were used to produce them, also be subject to criticism, however culturally and which are crucial for their continued exist- founded they may appear to be. In Japan, con- ence and preservation. Since 1975, acknowledg- fronted with one of the world’s most refined and ing the problem, the Japanese Government advanced architectural traditions, one is closer to included a new chapter in the law for the protec- being an apprentice than a master. On the other tion of cultural properties providing for ‘protec- hand, the sight of the chaos of the modern Japa- tion of traditional techniques’. Thus, the Japanese nese environment and the ruthless destruction of do recognise that the traditional techniques are traditional milieus can be a cause of severe spir- necessary in order to preserve the historic struc- itual shock. There are not a few Western writers tures and conversely, traditional techniques are who have commented on the ugliness of mod- being preserved through actual preservation and ern Japanese towns and observed the lack of beau- conservation work. 105 ty in new buildings with their elusive looks of In the thesis, which operates in the field of ur- bizarre, cosmetic surfaces and images. According ban conservation, the context of preservation is ex- to Prof. Benda, for instance, the present day Kyoto plicitly and unambiguously defined. The attitudes “…represents a fashinating confluence of beauty, towards urban preservation are observed through nightmare and challenge”. This is another of those those preservation efforts and practices as adapted issues with which the author has struggled since in the history of urban preservation in Kyoto. first coming to Japan.107 As was observed above, in part II, chapter 9, The concept of authenticity itself is very among the large Japanese cities Kyoto not only contradictory and not at all obvious, even in West- had the oldest but also the most effective and ern cultural circles. ‘The authentic is always out developed system of urban preservation. In the of date’, as David Lowenthal put it in his article laboratory of Prof. Nishikawa the problems of “Criteria of Authenticity”.108 Those involved in preserving historical urban environments have writing the Venice Charter in 1964 came from a been determinedly discussed since the early 1970s. fairly homogeneous Western world, with a Euro- In general the author, thus, takes a critical view pean background and building traditions based on of the opinion that Japan would entirely lack the masonry and stone. Wooden town traditions and idea of preservation in the Western sense. architectural heritage such as is found, for instance, in Finland and in other Nordic countries, was given little or no consideration. Universal Values Versus the Context Larsen, for instance, has doubted whether we can In recent years, with the growth of exchange and talk about principles and theories even on the information, the dominant Western centre-pe- European level. Perhaps the national level would be riphery-thinking, of which Japan too has been an more adequate.109 Compared with most Europe- object, has been seriously questioned. Japan is now an states, for example, Australian heritage focuses perhaps the most interesting example in the less on elite than on vernacular remains. As was international debate on building conservation observed in part II, chapter 6, when the author when the concept of heritage, the question of explored the cultural background of the urban fes- authenticity and the universal values of preserva- tival, the attitudes towards the built environment in tion have to be evaluated. Where are the origins Japan and thus also, to the definition of the herit- of authenticity, the genuineness of architecture in age, might essentially differ from that of our own. the Japanese context? Even within building The Nara Discussion in 1994 confirmed au- conservation practice, scholars are not unanimous thenticity as a relative concept the application of about the answer.106 Neither will the thesis strive which depends on the cultural context within to present a solution. which it is applied.110 As Herbert Stovel points

119 DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF HERIT OF CONCEPT THE DEFINING out, the Nara meeting acknowledged the need to part of conservation and repair technique does provide a new framework of universal principles not, however, mean that the Japanese would not which could accommodate both the broad rang- value the genuineness of material and hold it to es of cultural expression to be found in different be key aesthetic ideal. regions of the world and our increasingly broad The patina of old objects and the passing of definitions of heritage now including vernacular time symbolised by it has been a dominant aesthe- expressions. Of paramount importance to the tic ideal in Japan throughout the ages. Since the thesis, however, are not the various preservation 16th century it has been closely linked to the phi- and building conservation practices and their re- losophy and aesthetics of objects in the tea cere- AGE lation to the question of authenticity, but rather mony. The author personally observed the living the fact that no prerequisites exist for the preser- cult of patina, when her tea ceremony teacher vation of everyday buildings. buried a new ceramic vase deep in the temple garden, where the pot was later ‘excavated’ for a Authenticity of Design Versus flower arrangement exhibition. The only purpose of the act was to achieve a beautiful aged patina Authenticity of Material on the surface of the pot. Reconstruction or copy has a different meaning The two Japanese terms used to describe the in general in Japanese culture compared with our aesthetic ideal, are sabi are wabi, a combination own. Throughout history the Japanese have re- of ‘poverty and profoundness’. Leonard Koren, paired their temples and other important wood- for instance, has argued that wabi-sabi is the most en buildings by partially replacing decayed or conspicuous and characteristic feature of what rotten parts with new ones. The fact that a part is we think of as traditional Japanese beauty. 111 For old or new, authentic or replaced has never been many Japanese wabi-sabi almost means everything considered as relevant as in the Western cultural that is quintessentially Japanese. In the field of environment. Furthermore, reconstruction is not building conservation the interpretation of the limited to any specific areas but is widely used in Ise Shrine as an example of the Japanese attitude varying degree throughout the building repair to historic buildings would imply that the Japa- process. Many of the sample houses to be dis- nese would not be concerned with the conser- cussed in the thesis are fine examples of the vation of authentic materials in historic practice. Without partial renewal and even buildings. A look at Japanese architectural history, reconstruction they would have been lost or de- however, shows that the Japanese have indeed stroyed.The same applies to the conservation of appreciated ancient objects and buildings for historic monuments and edifices. One of the most their patina, and treasured them just because of renowned is the rebuilding of the Golden Pavil- their ancient materials. 112 ion of Kyoto to its former glory after the build- ing was destroyed by arson in the early 1950s. The Cultural Adaptation and the Japanese who come to visit the temple regard it Japanese Preservation not as a new building but as a revered part of a living testimony. Methodologies In Japan, when restoration is allowed, the em- In Japan the foreign ideas of conservation were phasis of the project is the authenticity in design, not only imported and imitated, but the Japanese by which the Japanese mean the original state or have gradually transformed them in such a way the most significant state in a building’s develop- as to suit Japan’s natural and cultural conditions. ment through history. In most cases the building This transformation and adaptation fits well into has to be dismantled in order to be repaired. The the context of Japanese transformation of foreign wide use of partial reconstruction as an essential ideas and cultural impulses in general. The pres- 120 ervation methodologies adapted in the four his- Accordingly, in the historic preservation areas toric preservation areas of Kyoto are a case par the individual facades can be repaired and reno- excellence of a cultural adaptation which can be vated rather freely, if the reparation methods co- found in the field of urban conservation. In the incide with the traditional design patterns and historic preservation areas, in particular, the test building techniques. The method stresses flexibil- of authenticity was solved in an interesting, ity and aesthetic integrity though at the expense though contradictory way. of authenticity. The preservation is also limited to With the help of architects and preservation the outer appearance. Thus, behind an authentic authorities, the residents were given access to his- wooden facade there might be a new steel torically accurate models for restoration in the construction building or, for image or other rea- designated areas. The instructions were based on sons, an old wooden facade is replaced by a still pattern books designed separately for each area.113 ‘older’ one. We can find examples of both cases Yamasaki described the method in the following in the protected areas. way: What is problematic about this facadism, not only in Kyoto but in other places too, is that in “... So, in Kyoto we decided not to preserve the build- the name of aesthetic integrity or for image rea- ings themselves but to preserve the traditional styles sons even the slight amount of authenticity which of wooden houses which are characteristic to each possibly has survived from the past, is ruined in district of historic townscape... This attitude implies the eagerness to make more ‘authentic’ facades. that the townscape is regarded as a result of history The preserved environment is changing to a shell showing a stage of changing process and such a or a coulisse. On the other hand, the method townscape is also worth being conserved without exact coincides with the cultural context and gives the reconstruction. In this case, the word ‘conservation’ conservation method flexibility unknown in the almost means to keep traditional sense and carpentry Western conservation praxis. alive”. 114 In this thesis the question of authenticity gets significance, when the author investigates contextual According to this method, what is considered per- changes taking place in the screen display tradition. manent and important is the original design con- How can the authenticity and character of displays cept, not the authenticity of building materials or be retained in the changing circumstances? Until individual building components. Instead of now, the wooden townhouse context has played a authenticity, the method focuses on the atmosphere central role in preserving the contextual values of the and the aesthetic integrity of the cityscape. The Screen Festival. Modern construction methods and emphasis of preservation is in the continuity of local display techniques, especially the notable increase (Japanese) building traditions based on the habit of of window displays, are, however, essentially partial dismantling of building components. impoverishing the scenic values of the festival.

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Chapter 14 The Concept of Heritage in the Current Work

International Charters and towns and historic centres and quarters, together Standards with their natural and man-made environments. Faced with the dramatic changes which have lead Beyond their role as historic documents, these to cultural and economic losses of many historic areas embody the values of traditional urban cul- towns and urban areas particularly after the Sec- tures. The charter seeks to promote the harmony ond World War, the International Council on of both private and community life in the herit- Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) deemed it age areas and to encourage the preservation of necessary to draw up an international charter that cultural properties, however modest in scale, that would enhance the preservation of urban patri- constitute the memory of mankind. monies and aim for a better protection of urban The international charters and standards deal heritage. The principles laid down at the ICO- with the conservation of historic cities and sites MOS seminar held in Brazil in 1987 marked a by giving general principles and approaches as to turning point in urban conservation by identify- how they should be handled as the testimony and ing the need to protect cities as cultural entities.115 heritage of the past. They do not, however, de- An international charter was enacted in the scribe in detail what kind of planning principles same year, in 1987. This text the name of which or methods should be used, or how historical cit- is ‘International Charter for the Conservation of ies should be preserved. As a planning tool they Historic Towns and Urban Areas’ and known as are all too general. Although these kinds of char- the Washington Charter defines the principles, ob- ters are important in that they remind the public jectives, and methods necessary for the conserva- of the heritage values of the sites, it is however, tion of historic towns and urban areas. The text impossible to read from these texts all those de- concerns historic urban areas, large and small, mands and needs that are necessary in the pres- 122 ervation and conservation of the historic cities and compiling the World Heritage List has proceed- areas. Opinions about heritage values and their ed within a more restricted perception, deriving treatment are changing and the charters may be from largely European aesthetic notions relating left behind the quickly changing practices and to major monuments and sites. As Cleere states: analyses. Recent discussion on the concept of authen- “...There is an urgent need to accord due recognition ticity or the reshaping of our perceptions of the to this important and highly vulnerable sector, which has past, for instance, are examples of the rethinking so far not figured adequately on the World Heritage currently taking place. Instead of keeping the List”. charters as an absolute truth, they should be rel- ative and mirror the thought and ideas of the Thus, although there is a vast cultural heritage of period in which they are created. One thing, wooden towns and buildings in many parts of the however, is certain: every conservation task should world, these are not systematically represented on be planned separately, from its own starting points the list, unlike gothic cathedrals and the historic to suit its own requirements. There should be dif- towns of the Mediterranean Basin, almost exclu- ferent principles, for instance, for such cities as sively constructed of stone or brick. At the present Osaka and Kyoto and even in the limited hoko moment there is an urgent need for a more sys- area it is impossible to give general planning tematic approach to the wide spread of the wood- methods or principles that would be appropriate en building tradition in its diverse manifestations for the whole area, but the chosen methodologies and forms across the vast areas of the globe where should vary according to each historic area and wood predominated as a major construction ma- its own particular characteristics. terial until the advent of steel and reinforced con- Although the charters and guidelines do not crete in the 20th century. Present day Kyoto, with tell how and by what specific methods urban con- its surviving wooden townhouses, is one exam- servation should take place in individual cities, ple of such ‘forgotten’ heritage. they do give basic outlines and principles of ur- ban conservation, which Japan, as a member The Importance of Everyday country of ICOMOS, is also committed to fol- low. These texts, as international guidelines, are Buildings thus an important point of reference in the cur- In recent years there has been an increasing aware- rent research. ness and a desire to widen the field of conserva- tion to areas until now forgotten or underrated. The Wooden Town Heritage and Indeed, the indications are that the balance of power is shifting within conservation philosophy the World Heritage Listing as the categories of structures thought worthy of Wooden towns are acknowledged to be an consideration for conservation have been extend- important part of the world heritage. In the ed to include not only monumental high-class Unesco Conference on Cultural policies for De- architecture but also whole new groups of struc- velopment in March-April 1998 hosted by Swed- tures recognised as equally meritorious: vernac- ish Government, Mr. Henry Cleere, the World ular, folklorist and industrial. This new perception Heritage coordinator of ICOMOS, stressed in his of environment and conservation values suggests presentation “Wooden Architecture in the World that buildings and environments should not be Heritage Convention” the need for a global in- judged and preserved solely for their historicity ventory of wooden towns. Although the defini- or artistic value, but also for their value to the tions of cultural heritage in the World Heritage wider community and their capacity to make Convention are broadly drafted, the process of ‘place’.

123 DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF HERIT OF CONCEPT THE DEFINING One of the earliest advocates of the better ap- dition is not based on any planned physically preciation of ordinary everyday milieus and dwell- clearly definable urban spaces and entities, but on ing environments and their socio-cultural merits, the groups and rows of individual sites which was Jane Jacobs, who argued that, although cities together make up the whole place. need old buildings, they should not all be ‘muse- Furthermore, there is a difference between the um-piece old buildings’, but a good lot of plain, objects of everyday appreciation and use, and ordinary, low-value buildings including some run- those purchased as collector’s objects. The removal down old buildings. Jacobs indeed saw the need for of relics, where lineaments are indissoluble from aged buildings as one of the basic conditions when their place annuals their testamentary worth and AGE she discussed the generators of necessary diversity forfeits their myriad ties with place. Artefacts and for socially and culturally sound cities. As she noted: re-enacment substitute for lived memory. 118 Ma- terial objects - at their best - can in these circum- “…Improvement must come by supplying the conditions stances become icons of cultural identity rather for generating diversity that are missing, not by wiping than exemplars of it, as David Lowenthal has not- out old buildings in great swathes”.116 ed.119 In another context Soetsu Yanagi argued on the and, value of objects that are used everyday:

“... Cities need a mingling of old buildings to cultivate “… The works of an artisan are made to be lived with primary-diversity mixture, as well as secondary diver- ... objects of beauty create an atmosphere of spiritual sity. In particular, they need old buildings to incubate refinement”. new primary diversity”.117 Within the festival tradition there are many cul- Even the enterprises that can support new con- tural interpretations and readings which directly struction in cities need old construction in their refer to or speak for the importance of the place. immediate vicinity. Otherwise they are part of a As the author will explore later in the fieldwork total environment that is economically too lim- (part VII, chapter 21), a large number of the an- ited - and therefore functionally too limited to be tique objects and relics displayed in the Screen lively, interesting and convenient. This has been Festival refer directly or indirectly to the festival noted even by the building enterprises in Kyoto, tradition, or to their place such as a picture scroll who exploit the very scenic land and the histor- depicting a festival float, or screens that refer to ical neighbourhoods in the vicinity of their new the family (kimono) business. estates in marketing and selling them. Furthermore, some of the references are less ev- ident but still speak of the importance of place. The Value of Continued Everyday Thus, among the painting topics there are themes that refer to the special season of the festival. In Use particular, a popular topic is the water element, The value of place is related to the usefulness of which is depicted through such themes as water the place: The places are valued because they are wheels or screens floating under water. These used; because they are part of the everyday life. If themes are used not only as a seasonal reference demolished, as individuals or as ordinary wood- (after the rainy season the climate in Kyoto chang- en structures the loss might not be so great, but es to dry and hot) but also to their (believed) pro- the demolishing of a great number of such homes tective properties against fire. These are examples and life patterns would necessarily also reduce the of meanings that are directly culturally and con- value of the whole place. This viewpoint is espe- text bound and not always evident for an outside cially important in Kyoto, where the urban tra- observer, even for the Japanese. 124 The Needs of Local People Versus place of the users has not been adequately defined by our current heritage assessment methods. In- Visitors terest groups have remained under-represented in In most cities local people and communities the evaluation process and some views may nev- have spoken up about places that they value, er be represented by ‘experts’. In current heritage despite the dismissal of such places as insignificant practice conservation is largely based on architec- by the experts. Such fights are not unknown even tural and historical criteria rather than on accom- in the hoko neighbourhoods as was described in modating some of the perceptions and reactions chapter 7. The author personally participated in of everyday users of historic environments.120 such a fight in 1997, when she defended the pro- Hubbard’s notion of conservation practices as an tection of the common facility in the Naginata- elitist activity, conservation as ‘high art’ rather than hokocho¯ together with the local residents. as a setting for everyday life, applies to Kyoto’s Many buildings lose their connection with our urban vernacular traditions more than well. daily lives by being allocated new uses. Loss of In 1994, the seminar ‘What is social value?’ held traditional activity (such as kimono production by the Australian Heritage Commission acknowl- and trade in our case, for example) often means edged the need to define social value as a com- that such places are reallocated to meet the needs ponent of cultural significance and the need to of visitors rather than locals, increasing the protect places despite the dismissal of such places disconnection between the community and place. as insignificant by the experts. Many of the ele- The revitalisation of the old building stock that ments that make a place remain unidentified, de- has taken place in the hoko neighbourhoods over spite the fact that it is the whole rather than the the past two or three years although welcome as parts that will have a social value.121 such, has generally meant new locales for tourists, In our sample areas there are a number of ele- souvenir shops (although in Kyoto of extremely ments that are not valued as ‘heritage’ although high artistic quality!) and cafes in a traditional they are essential for the cultural significance and context, rather than a serious attempt to answer meaning of the place. These include such things the revitalisation and renewal needs of the degen- as the hoko area as a public gathering place for erating old building stock. In only a few cases have time honoured rituals and its ability to enhance the renewals directly served or improved the liv- community values that are meaningful not only ing standards of those who use the environment, for the area but for Kyoto as whole. The ‘minor’ in other words, the local residents.The commod- traditions within the major ones, such as the ification of culture and the poor position of the Screen Festival, add to and are an essential part of local resident against the heritage industry were the heritage. the main points that architect Arata Isozaki was Social value is about collective attachment to making when he compared Kyoto to a Panda’s places that embody meanings important to and val- cage. It seems that in his analysis he was not very ued in a community. These places may be commu- far from the truth. nity owned or publicly accessible or in some other ways ‘appropriated’ into people’s daily lives. In the Social Value as a Measure of Screen Festival the exhibition places take on a dual role: they are temporarily accessible to the wider Cultural Significance public but they are simultaneously private homes The widening of the scope of the conservation as well. This adds to the charm and significance of field has not only brought forth new areas of con- their sense and ‘experience‘ of place. servation, but it has also enhanced the assessment Cultural values themselves may inhibit protec- of criteria that are used in the heritage argumen- tion and the idea of material preservation. A pop- tation work. The deep sense of attachment to ular argument is that in Japan, where the

125 DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF HERIT OF CONCEPT THE DEFINING impermanence of material objects is regarded as a central spiritual idea, it is not necessary to pre- serve old buildings. In that case the only way to keep true to this spirit would be to document the old buildings and then let them be destroyed. The irony, however, is that even when there is a will- ingness by the heritage authorities to document old buildings, as in the present circumstances, only very few structures actually become document- AGE ed.122 The value criteria, which were developed for historic monuments leave most ordinary structu- res outside the municipal documentation prog- rammes. The limited resources, where perhaps only one architect is engaged for the documen- tation work, are focused on historic monuments. Special programmes for the documentation of or- dinary everyday structures do not exist. At the present rates of urban transformation and use of the resources at hand, it is more than likely that most of the everyday buildings worthy of closer examination will probably cease to exist before all of them have been properly documented. In the present research the dangers of basing conserva- tion policies solely on architectural or historical criteria are pinpointed, as such approaches large- ly ignore the importance that townscapes and urban neighbourhoods play in maintaining living societies and cultural identities.

PART VI

URBAN CULTURE OF THE HOKO AREA 8

128 9 Living Tradition or Panda’s

129

URBAN CUL URBAN

TURE OF THE THE OF TURE HOKO AREA HOKO

Chapter 15 Streets as Communal Space and the Self-Governing Township Communities

The Pre-Modern Township System as in earlier times, by city blocks. Town gates were and the Concept of Ryo¯gawacho¯ built at the end of each neighbourhood and with- Among the urban patterns that have shaped the in the new township units a developed form of life of pre-modern neighbourhoods in the hoko self-government was established. At a stroke a radi- area, one of the most important is the introduc- cally new urban order was created, which is per- tion of the system of self- governing township ceived even today in the triangular shape of the communities, ryo¯gawacho¯, ‘neighbourhood on both hoko neighbourhoods. Where town blocks had sides of the street’. This took place in Kyoto after previously been bounded by streets, the urban the civil wars at the end of the 15th century, when units were now made up of rows of houses on the the citizens established a system of self-defending opposite sides of the streets. This change was by township communities. The purpose of the sys- no means trivial. In the new scheme the smallest tem was to protect the parishioners against ene- organisational units were no longer enclosed by mies, who were robbing and murdering in the streets but they now incorporated the street spa- devastated town. This was the beginning of the ce. Even today streets and alleyways in residential ryo¯gawacho¯. The new system changed, among other areas of Japan serve the function of community things, the organisation of the township units spaces and they are also regarded as extensions deriving from the Heian period, and also the of private space in a way almost unknown to meaning of the street. In the establishment of the European countries.123 new township system the hoko neighbourhoods The gradual change and development of the played a key role. Tokugawa urban quarters towards ‘on both sides In the new township system the neighbour- of the street neighbourhoods’ is shown in Fig. hood unit was redefined along a street and not, 38. 130

FIG.37 THE COMMON FACILITY, CHO¯ IE, IN NAGINATAHOKOCHO¯ . THE FLOAT IS ENTERED THROUGH A TEMPORARY WOODEN BRIDGE FROM THE UPPER FLOOR OF THE COMMON FACILITY. TS.

The Self-Governing Township istrative organisations. The meaning and social Communities stand of the township community was signifi- The new system not only contributed to rede- cantly changed. fining the geometrical shape and reorganisation As a social background for the reorganisation of the urban quarters but also radically changed of the neighbourhoodship was the growing power the social and cultural status of the pre-modern of the urban merchant class. The facades of the town communities. The neighbourhood unit did townhouses had gained importance because of the not only imply the actual physical dwelling space, shops that were located on the ground floor. The but it became the major cooperative unit in the social meaning of the street as a public space had management of the township communities. In grown. The Tokugawa township reform was in the hoko area a new type of local administration harmony with this change. In the city centre hou- was developed. The previous aristocracy or tem- sing density was intensified and both the spatial ple/shrine-bound relationships, which had dom- organisation and the social organisation support- inated the life of urban quarters in the city centre ed urban life. In other words, a great deal of self- since early times, were replaced by local admin- governing took place. Prof. Tani, for instance,

131 URBAN CUL URBAN writes of this self-governing system in the follow- barbershops. Today the hoko area is the only area ing way: in the historic grid-plan area, where the spatial

arrangement that was characteristic of the pre- THE OF TURE “… A system was built in which life management and modern phase of the city centre’s urban history space management and control of the residential space were has been preserved adding to its historic signifi-

organically operated. Such control over the residential area cance. The system becomes alive during the ur- AREA HOKO with the initiative of townspeople is a noteworthy historical ban festival and is visible, for example, in the fact concerning urban history in Japan”. 124 decorated festival streets.

The purpose of Prof. Tani’s study was to elucidate the social and spatial structure of the township Street as Communal Space communities of Nara, Osaka and Kyoto of the The ryo¯gawa system stressed the meaning of street Tokugawa period and to describe the pre-mod- as communal space. The street in front of the ern urban dwelling system. Sample quarters in- house served as a playground for children as well cluded the hoko neighbourhoods. as an area where adults could socialise. The mean- As the wooden townhouses easily burned ing of street as communal space culminated in down, an important function of the township such traditions as the urban festival. The architec- communities was fire protection, especially in the tural development of the townhouses echoed the hoko neighbourhoods where the reassembled parts evolution of community events that took place in of the festival floats and their cultural assets were the street. The social events unfolded in the in- stored within the community in the local store- termediate spaces between the centre of the street houses. Even today, there is a significant local con- and the inner recesses of the townhouse. trol over the storing function (and thus, over the The sense of community within a township whole heritage) in the hoko neighbourhoods. As was demonstrated in the unified style of architec- it proved out in the Yamahoko field survey, a re- tural elements like the type of standardised roof markable number of the cultural assets are still tiles, the depth of the eaves, and in the pattern and preserved in their local storehouses and not con- numbers of slats in the window grilles. A highly trolled by the municipal authorities. advanced system of standardisation was possible Among the occupations controlled by the town- because the social organisation and the building ship communities era were, among others, public organisation were controlled by the same admin- hairdressers and barbers, which due to the compli- istrative unit. At the end of the Tokugawa period cated hairstyle (the men’s hairstyle was a symbol of every townhouse was based on an unified dimen- class), were an important lower class occupation. sioning. The size of the rooms was counted ac- The barbers’ premises also acted as local adminis- cording to the number of tatami mats and all the tration offices and information centres for the cen- structural members of the house were calculated tral government. For the Tokugawa government the on the dimensions of the tatami. land reform was one of the keyways to extend its As a result of the standardisation, all building control and power of influence even among the elements in the house such as sliding doors, win- smallest administrative units of the society. dow slats and mats were exchangeable with any The system disappeared quite late, in the Meiji other house in the town. Among the western- era. According to the Second Land Use Act in ers, Heino Engel, for instance, has in his book 1889, in the first neighbourhood records after the given an excellent description of this Japanese Meiji restoration, the public barbers had began to building standardisation system, the basis of move out of their businesses or change occupa- which was created in the Tokugawa period. The tions. In 1900, all the earlier cho¯, township, con- unity of style of traditional townscape can still trolled facilities had been changed to ordinary be observed in such places as the historic preser- 132 vation areas of Kyoto. From the hoko neighbour- Gion Festival, the institution has, however, sur- hoods the architectural integrity of style has, vived to the present day.125 however, largely disappeared, as the author will After the Second World War many common fa- demonstrate below. cilities were sold because of the uncertainty in the future of the hoko neighbourhoods. At present, however, the common facility survives in more The Pre-Modern Common Facility than half of the hoko neighbourhoods. The facil- An important local institution, which developed ity continues to be of great local importance es- in close relation to the pre-modern township sys- pecially because of the Gion Festival126 . During tem, was the common facility, known as cho¯kaisho. the festival week the common facilities are Because of its important role as public exhibition changed to temporary exhibition facilities, where facility, okazariba, during the urban festival, the the cultural assets and other paraphernalia ascribed author will briefly describe this institution below. to each festival float are displayed to public view The first consultations took place in the fifth year before the festival procession.127 These festival of the Bunroku era (1596) in Niwatorihokocho¯ exhibitions, as already noted, are among the im- where, according to a historical record stipulating portant cultural and urban testimony of the hoko the township rules neighbourhoods. The analysis of the festival ex- hibitions, inspiring as it might have been, was “ ... all in the neighbourhood should gather together in however, not possible within the scope of the a place designed for this purpose”. current work. Besides the exhibition function, the common fa- The first meetings were held in Rokkakudo¯ and cilities take many other public functions as well.128 Kodo¯ temples, two famous temples still existing in The extensive field survey material related to the the city centre. In Kyoto the cho¯kaisho facility is usu- common facilities and their function in the city ally known as ‘kaisho’, ‘cho¯ie’, or after the Meiji res- community which was carried out during the toration also: as ‘cho¯kai gisho’. The Meiji government Yamahoko programme could not, because of the ordered the change of the old name because of its vastness of the material, be included in this work undertones of the hated Tokugawa system. The new but is available to those interested from the author. name, however, never came into common use and the old name, cho¯kaisho, is kept even today. The small The Heritage Value of Common public space, the ‘noman’s land’, that was left be- tween the town gates at the crossing of the resi- Facilities dential streets, is thought to be one of the starting The field surveys, which were carried out by the points for these facilities. A permanent structure de- Yamahoko team on the common facilities, includ- veloped in the Momoyama era and spread to be- ed, among other things, a thorough inventory of come established at the beginning of the Tokugawa the pre-modern building types and spatial pat- era. The Gion Festival played a central role in the terns, which exist on these properties. Thanks to formation of these facilities. this monitoring we now have a very precise and In the pre-modern era the common facilities exact picture of these facilities and their pre-mod- had an important role in the administration and ern building types. They are often the only wood- management of the township communities. They en structures that are left from the historic served as local administration offices and also, as neighbourhoods and the wooden townhouse tra- information centres for the central government. dition. According to the Yamahoko investigation In the Meiji era many common facilities were sold the total number of wooden structures existing on with the erasing of the pre-modern neighbour- these properties was 63. In addition, there were hood organisations. In the hoko area, owing to the many structures of other materials such as rein-

133 URBAN CUL URBAN FIG.38 THE TOKUGAWA ERA LAND REFORM AND TRANSFORMATION OF URBAN SPACE.

ABOVE, LEFT. THE BIRTH OF NARROW AND THE OF TURE DEEP PLOTS, TANZAKU. IN THE TOKUGAWA ERA LAND REFORM THE HEIAN PERIOD

TOWNSHIP UNIT, CHO¯ IS HALVED BY HOKO AREA HOKO NORTH-SOUTH RUNNING STREETS. THE SIZE OF THE NEW URBAN UNIT IS 120 M X 60 M AND THE SIZE OF INDIVIDUAL SITES 30 M X 60 M.

ABOVE, RIGHT. THE ORIGINAL HEIAN PERIOD TOWNSHIP UNIT, CHO¯ , 120 M X 120 M SURROUNDED ON FOUR SIDES BY THE STREET.

BELOW, LEFT. THE HEIAN PERIOD TOWNSHIP UNIT, CHO¯ , IS DIVIDED INTO FOUR SUB- UNITS BY DIAGONALS.

BELOW, RIGHT. THE SUB-UNITS ARE UNITED AND RENAMED AS RYO¯ GAWACHO¯, ‘NEIGHBOURHOOD ON BOTH SIDES OF THE STREET’.

DIAGRAMS BY THE YAMAHOKO TEAM.

forced concrete.129 The fireproof storehouses of structures and developing the site with high-rise traditional shape and small temples and Shinto buildings is in many hoko neighbourhoods regard- shrines add to the cultural significance and her- ed as the only way to improve the falling eco- itage value of these facilities. nomy. In other words, to keep and secure the At the present moment the common facilities continuity of the festival the heritage is destroyed are threatened in a number of ways. The legislative and sold. So far the common facility has already and management mechanisms are inadequate to been rebuilt in five communities130 . Among struc- ensure their conservation. Many of the common tures that are endangered, are such fine pre-mod- facilities are of low technical standard and they are ern wooden structures as the common facility in not up to standard as regards fire protection, hu- Hashibenkeicho¯.131 midity and safety that is required for the proper storing of cultural assets. There is serious deterio- Questioning the Heritage Criteria ration of the wooden structures and materials that has taken place over a long period. The repairs have of the Common Facilities been carried out carelessly and do not fulfil the Among the pre-modern common facilities only standard that should be expected in the repair and four have so far been preserved by law and desig- conservation work on cultural properties. nated as cultural assets.132 The small number of In 1991 the common facility of Naginatahoko- protected structures is not nearly enough to save cho¯ was closed as the access to the float because the heritage as a whole. The arguments that herit- of its poor technical condition and resulting dan- age authorities have used and that finally have pre- ger to the public. Moreover, dismantling the old vented their registration have been such as the 134 lacking criterion of age and the lack of architec- “... The Yasaka Shrine is protected as an Important tural integrity. No concern has been given to such Cultural Property and the yamahoko floats (in other heritage values as the continued use and the value words, the festival floats, clarification by the author) are of the wooden town house context in the middle protected ...The only aspect which is not protected in of changing townscape. In Naginatahokocho¯, for this unique festival are the cho¯-ie (the common facili- instance, as has been planned, the demolishing of ties) and the few traditional kyo¯-machiya (in other the old storehouse and other authentic wooden words, the traditional Kyoto wooden frame houses; structures with such traditional rooms as the prac- specification by the author) left in the Muromachi dis- ticing room for the living page boy, would make trict”. an irreparable damage to the tradition as a whole. Among the members of the international pres- In the thesis the common facilities illustrate se- ervation community who have been worried vere urban conservation problems that are char- about the ongoing destruction process of the acteristic of the whole hoko area today. What this common facilities and who have clearly voiced cultural heritage needs, is not only special research their opinion for the protection of this cultural programmes to solve their technical problems, but heritage is architect Gunther Nietschke, who has also a questioning and re-evaluation of their pro- stated in relation to these facilities: tection priorities.

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FIG.39 SECTION AND PLAN OF THE COMMON FACILITY IN URADEYAMACHO¯ . LEFT SHIDO¯ , SMALL BUDDHIST HALL. ONE EXAMPLE OF THE HERITAGE VALUES OF THE COMMON FACILITIES. DRAWING BY THE YAMAHOKO TEAM. 136

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Chapter 16 Dwelling Patterns

Unagi no Nedoko - ‘Sleeping Places division type in Kyoto. These densely built nar- of an Eel’ row and deep sites are in Kyoto commonly Kyoto’s most typical townhouses, kyo¯-machiya, known as unagi no nedoko, ‘sleeping places of an were merchant houses, characterised by narrow eel’. This pattern is one of the basic urban patterns and deep lots. The basis for the plot division pat- of Kyoto. It gives character and identity to the city tern was created in the Tokugawa era when, as a structure as a whole and as such, is an indispen- result of the extensive urbanisation process and the sable part of the heritage value of the town. growth of the large cities, the housing density was The spatial evolution of the urban blocks in the intensified. As possibilities for the town’s expan- Tokugawa era was shown in Fig. 38. Together with sion outside the city walls were highly limited, the the tanzaku system, ryo¯gawacho kept its position as town had to grow inwards within the existing a basic land division pattern in the hoko neigh- urban blocks. bourhoods. The basic necessities for a more effective land use in the central area were created through a land reform that was initiated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The Tokugawa Era Dwelling Plan In the land reform urban blocks in large areas in In the narrow and deep sites a complicated and the historic grid-plan area were halved through sophisticated plan type evolved that was essen- north-south running narrow streets (roji) that were tially different from its more ‘primitive’ Heian placed in the middle of the urban blocks. The and Kamakura period forerunners. The narrow depth of new urban urban units was 60 metres and deep building site set limitations but it also and the depth of sites 30 metres. It was this nar- created new possibilities to new interesting plan row and deep building site, tanzaku (literally, ‘nar- types. From now on, it was possible to grow in- row stripes’), that became the dominant plot wards in depth within individual plots. One new 138

FIG.40 UNAGI NO NEDOKO , ‘SLEEPING PLACES OF AN EEL’ IN YATACHO¯ . PLAN OF THE MIKAMI, TAKEHANA, SHIBAYAMA, NAKATA, TAKANO AND KATO-HORIBE HOUSE. YT.

invention in the plan was to¯riniwa, a long and nar- Within the Japanese building traditions the row corridor that runs on either side of the house. Kyoto townhouse represents the western type This space became an intermediate space be- building typology in contrast to the Kanto area tween the outdoor space and the interior of the or eastern type. One of the distinct features of the house. western building typology was the above men- With the upper class shoin style, narrow build- tioned to¯riniwa space. In addition, narrow and deep ing types got popularity and began to be regard- sites forced all houses in Kyoto to use basically ed as ideal. The spatial layout of the Kyoto uniform plan types. In Tokyo the plan types were townhouse was consisted of a number of sub- much more incoherent or accidental and there is structures which were joined together with roofed no standard plan type. Bruno Taut observed this corridors. The in-between spaces that were left basic difference between plan types in Tokyo and between structures were laid out as small inner Kyoto in a following way:133 gardens. The interior was differentiated between a number of different functions; the private zone “...In Kyoto the houses are generally built with nar- in the inner parts of the house; on the street side row fronts around the squares (in other words, around was the shop or working space. In the wealthy the inner gardens; specification by the author) into which merchant homes employees slept upstairs, making they stretch narrowly and deeply. The southern orien- the townhouse the home and workplace even for tation of the living rooms, without which the Japanese maybe fifteen people. house is almost useless, has consequently to some ex-

139 URBAN CUL URBAN tent disappeared. In many houses the verandas are no longer in the sun. Consequently in Kyoto a special type has developed, in contrast to which the typical plan of THE OF TURE To kyo ”.

On the narrow and deep building sites each mer- HOKOAREA chant building in Kyoto can be classified into sev- eral sub-groups according to the floor-plan dominantly decided by the lot size, lot form and development of the housing layout. The author will analyse a number of such plan types through the examples of the fieldwork (see chapter 20).

Dwelling Patterns in Yatacho¯ Information about the character of the pre-mod- ern dwelling patterns that exist in the hoko area is provided by the fieldwork carried out by the Nishikawa laboratory in Yatacho¯. The survey was accomplished in 1990. In these field surveys, the Sugimoto house and six other wooden structures were investigated and their dwelling plans meas- ured for the survey in cooperation with the her- itage authorities. Through these structures it is possible to get a preliminary picture of the man- ifold spatial and dwelling patterns of the tradition- al building stock. The dominant dwelling pattern in Yatacho¯ as in other hoko neighbourhoods is the unagi no nedoko, the ‘sleeping place of an eel’ pat- tern. Beside this pattern a tenement pattern, na- gaya, can be found. The Sugimoto house, as an exceptionally large structure, is in a category of its own.

The Sugimoto House The most important structure among the inves- tigated buildings in Yatacho¯, and the ‘king’ among the wooden townhouses even in the wider area, is the Sugimoto house, which with its 30 metres long facade dominates the urban landscape of Yatacho¯. The house was built by Sugimoto Shinz- aemon in 1870. 134 The house was constructed only a few years after the great city fire in 1864. Therefore, in the building we can still find the ex- cellent architectural and carpentry craft of the Edo FIG.41 YATA KANNON.LOCAL era which at that period still survived in Kyoto. SHRINE IN YATACHO¯ . YT. 140

FIG.42 FACADE OF THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE. YATACHO¯ . RS.

The house has altogether 19 structures in what conditioning. In the winter, cold northern winds is, by Kyoto standards, an exceptionally spacious blow through the house through the open ranma, site. These include the main structure, moya, the the decorative wooden partitions between the street elevation, omoteya, and three elegant store- horizontal lintel and the ceiling. 135 In winter, al- houses of traditional shape. The house is not only though all lattice partitions are closed, the rooms an important architectural and historic landmark are as cold as outdoors. but also the core of the city community. Not only is the public exhibition staged and performed in The Takehana, Mikami, Shibayama, Nakata the house during the Gion Festival, but almost all and Takano Houses historical documents from pre-modern times are Among the structures, which were investigated by kept in the family storehouse and not, as is usual, the Nishikawa laboratory, the Takehana, Mikami, in the municipal archive. Shibayama, Nakata and Takano houses are repre- The house has been superbly maintained with sentatives of the ‘sleeping places of an eel’, unagi its spacious and semi-dark interior spaces, lovely no nedoko pattern. The depth of the surveyed sites inner gardens, delicate building materials and ele- varies from 16.5 metres to 46 metres. In other gant details and proportions. These dark interior words the depth of the deepest site is almost three spaces reminded Gallian of the darkness of a tra- times that of the shortest site. The variation itself ditional Japanese house which Tanizaki has prai- is a typical feature of the hoko neighbourhoods sed in his novel In Praise of Shadows(1987). Except and it is explained by the triangular shape of the for the Western style kitchen-dining room which ryo¯gawacho¯. The deepest sites were in the middle, was built during the Second World War and a new while the depth of the plots was decreasing to- bathroom which was built in a room formerly wards the borders of the neighbourhood. The used for the tea ceremony, very little has been width of the houses varies roughly around 6.7 changed. This is mostly due to the Sugimoto metres. In other words, the width of the houses family, who has adapted their lifestyle to fit in with is notably smaller than that of the Sugimoto the historic house and its conservation objectives. house. In the Tokugawa era Kyoto the width of The house has neither modern heating nor air the sites was greatly influenced by the shortage of

141 URBAN CUL URBAN land. As a result, the most typical Kyoto sites were rather narrow. In addition, the tax was paid ac- cording to the width of the house, which also THE OF TURE influenced and regulated the length of the house. Among the structures investigated are such fine

buildings as the Mikami house, which is located HOKOAREA next to the Sugimoto house. With its well-pre- served wooden frame facade and its fine tradition- al interior spaces the house is a good example of Kyoto’s surviving vernacular traditions. Other houses surveyed show a more or less renovated and renewed facade. In part VII, chapter 20, field- work no. 1, the author presents a number of una- gi no nedoko type dwelling patterns that complete our picture of the variations and richness of the Kyoto pre-modern dwelling patterns.

The Kato-Horibe House Among the surveyed houses the Kato-Horibe house is a representative of the nagaya-pattern, the urban tenement which developed, in particular, in the inner parts of the urban blocks. Unlike the unagi no nedoko pattern, the site is shallow, and the plan relatively simple lacking the spatial richness and variation characteristic for the classic Kyoto dwelling plan. A characteristic feature of the ten- ement pattern is that it has shared walls with the adjoining buildings. The sample plan, the Kato- Horibe house is a multi-family house, which con- sists of two identical residences, which were documented in the field survey. Although not as common as detached houses, the tenement pat- tern illustrates a common type of urban dwelling from pre-industrial times. One such unpretentious urban tenement dwelling, the Sugiura house, is surveyed and described in detail as part of our fieldwork (see part VII, chapter 20, fieldwork no.5). 142

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Chapter 17 The Screen Festival

Screens and the Japanese Dwelling but, peering through the screen which was concealing her, he could not get the last idea of her shape (it was so Space very dark…)”.136 Screens have been used as space dividers in Japa- nese residential architecture since the Heian pe- Beside their role as space dividers the decorated riod. Japanese architecture is based on light and screens were often the major visual foci of the movable wall partitions and on the use of screens rooms. Many of the masterpieces of Japanese art that can take on the role of screening walls. As is history are actually made on such screens, which widely known, traditional Japanese rooms are emphasises the visual significance of the screens. sparsely furnished and lack decorations except for The Tokugawa period, especially the late 16th and some cushions or tables, which are used tempo- early 17th centuries showed a special love of gran- rarily when required. The cultural significance of deur and display quite unlike that of earlier times. screens in the Japanese dwelling space can be Gorgeous decorative screens and panels, with detected in many quotations that occur in classic highly coloured scenes and designs laid on back- literature and which refer to the important role grounds of gold leaf (the so called kin-gin byo¯bu), of screens. Famous for example, is, a passage in the were typical of the time and also became popu- Tale of Genji written at the beginning of the 11th lar at such events as the Screen Festival.137 century:

“... Kobai was consumed with curiosity: If only I could History of the Screen Festival see what she looks like! he thought. It really is a pity Originally, the festival decorations for the Gion that she always has to be hidden!... One day, when there Festival were made to celebrate the deities of the was no one about, he stole slyly along to the young shrine. At some stage, however, the Gion Festival woman’s bed chamber, hoping to catch a glimpse of her, became popular among the common people and 9

the decorations began to be made solely for sight- formance was known as Byo¯bu Matsuri, the display seeing. This was a development which Japanese art of folding screens. historians have called a process from matsuri to The first time the Screen Festival is mentioned sairei, the development from festival to urban fes- in historical records, is the Miyako Gion E Zu E tival. The intention of the festival as a celebration (1894), a famous Meiji era guidebook on sights- of the shrine weakened and energy was concen- eeing spots and events in Kyoto. In the book the trated on attracting people’s attention. Since that Screen Festival is mentioned as an important sea- time the festival decorations have become more sonal event in the city centre. According to the and more gorgeous. guidebook the event is very popular among the In the early modern era the Tokugawa gov- townspeople. Many visitors come to enjoy the dis- ernment decided to stop public support of all play, which is described ‘as the most spectacular cultural performances. The key target of the cen- sight in the world’. Yasunari Kawabata described tral government was a well-organised and ordered the performance in the following way: society. Communication between different groups in the society was limited and regulated by strict “...The stores were open with painted screens set out rules. In order to prevent uncontrolled social in- for decoration. There were early ukiyoe, Kano School and fluence, Japan closed its doors from the outside Yamato paintings and Sotatsu folding screens. Among world for 200 years. The isolation policy Sakoku the original ukiyoe there were even some screens that Seisaku, lasted in Japan from 1639 to 1854. Cul- depicted foreigners in the elegant Kyoto style. They ture was pushed into the private sphere where it expressed the height of vitality of the Kyoto merchant was away from public view. In other words, the class”.138 official policy and culture of the Tokugawa era did not support the concept of public gatherings or For the present day kimono families who partic- museums. ipate in the festival, the tradition continues to be Only once a year, during the Gion Festival, cul- a source of family pride. Many of the displays have tural properties and family treasures could be ex- many years of patronage and the continued tra- hibited for public view. The private and public dition itself gives them prestige and significance. domains fused temporarily. This was one of the Outside the hoko area, home displays of a similar beginnings of the Screen Festival. In the strictly kind are seen, for example, during the Kurama controlled society of the Tokugawa era when the Fire Festival in the northern outskirts of Kyoto, city communities and urban merchants were for- and screen displays of a similar kind are found bidden to show their wealth in public, the urban even in other parts of Japan. They lack, however, festival was an important tool for city neighbour- the elegance and artistic quality of the Screen hoods to compete in elegance and wealth. Festival. In the history of Kyoto, a Yoimya Matsuri is known where every hoko neighbourhood staged The Inter-Relationship between the decorations ascribed to the Gion Festival. A te- mporary stage was set up, known as the okazariba Urban Dwelling and the Street (literally: ‘decorated place’). This became the spir- As was analysed in part IV, chapter 13, the inter- itual and visual core of much of the festival. In relationship between the urban dwelling and the more than half of the hoko neighbourhoods the screen displays is one of the key concepts to ex- common facility, cho¯kaisho or cho¯ie, was used for plain the cultural significance of the Screen Fes- this display. As was observed in chapter 15, the tival. There is no historic material on the common facility plays even today a key role in the inter-relationship between the urban festival and festival. In addition, ordinary townhouses exhib- the ordinary townhouses from periods before the ited screens and other home treasures. This per- 17th century. The first descriptions appear in a 10 Living Tradition or Panda’s

FIG. 43 OMOTE, SHOP IS EXPOSED INTO THE STREET. THE KOJIRO YOSHIDA DISPLAY, ROKKAKUCHO¯ . HK.

picture book called Gion Sairei Zu.139 In the book, festival reaches its climax. This can be seen from that was published between 1596-1658, sightseers illustrations in the Miyako Gion E Zu E (1894), are seen in the foreground and in the background for example. beautiful screens are on display. This is one of the The magnificence of the Gion Festival and the earliest documents of the Screen Festival. close inter-dependence between the urban festi- In the middle of the Tokugawa era in 1757, ac- val and urban dwelling is vividly described in cording to a famous record, Yamahoko Yurai-Ki,140 historical records such as the above mentioned the hoko neighbourhoods were decorated with Yamahoko-Yurai-Ki, which describes how lanterns and decorative cloths. Elegant gold and silver painted screens were also on display. By this “... Streets in the city centre were colourfully decorated period the street decorations that adorn the streets before the procession. Each townhouse had lanterns and during the Gion Festival, have acquired a fixed large pieces of cloth, manmaku, hanging in front of the form. They were principally the same as we see property. Golden and silver painted screens, kingin them today. In the Meiji era the splendour of the byo¯bu, and red woollen carpets were seen everywhere. 146 Each house competed in the beauty and splendour of manipulate the garden views and to produce un- its decorations inviting many visitors. Indeed, in this mo- expected views along the walking routes. The ment, Kyoto showed its most magnificent face”. landscape is not revealed once and for all, but enjoyed piece by piece with time. The Picture Window Effect and the In a very similar way, in the screen displays, Visual Significance of the Screen when the wooden partitions are removed and the house is exposed to the street, the passer-by can Festival observe the interior of the house which would The visual significance of the screen displays is not otherwise be inaccessible to public view, adding only dependent on the artistic decorations of the to the artistic impact of the displays. During the interiors, but on the total visual settings of the dis- festival nights the impact of these interior sights plays. This includes, as an essential part, the inter- is emphasised by the solitude and darkness of the relationship between the urban dwelling and the dwelling streets that are in great contrast to the street. crowded and flashy main streets. The visual sig- A well-known design concept of traditional nificance of the Screen Festival even today orig- Japanese architecture is the ‘picture window’, inates in the striking beauty of these unexpected yukimimado (literally, ‘snow viewing window’). views. With the disappearance of the wooden This means a special landscape technique of in- townhouse tradition, such sights have, however, troducing the exterior landscape into the interi- become extremely rare. It is ironic that while a or space so that the exterior can suddenly, through number of displays are highlighted in tourist pam- a skilfully placed window or door opening, be en- phlets the town considers the architecture that joyed inside the house. Such technique is in par- surrounds them as without value and has made no ticular, popular in Zen temples and gardens, where attempt to protect the wooden structures and the the ‘picture window’ effect is commonly used to cultural patterns attached to them.

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Chapter 18 The Current Profile of the Hoko Neighbourhoods

Introduction 658 inhabitants in 1990141 . In other words, dur- The objective of chapter 18 is to give a general pic- ing this period the population decreased by almost ture of the current profile of the hoko neighbour- two thirds (61%). The number of residents in the hoods. As the main indicator in the analysis the hoko neighbourhoods during the 40-year period author has used the population trend. In addition 1950-1990 is shown in table 1, Appendix 4. Based to this, the general profile of the built fabric was on this table, we identified four major population studied, that is, the number of wooden/reinforced categories of the hoko neighbourhoods: concrete buildings. The use of these buildings was also observed on-site. Observations were the ma- a) Hoko neighbourhoods where the population jor source of information. The site investigation in- has decreased for a time threatening the exis- cluded a total of 758 buildings. Structures inside the tence of the city community. urban blocks were not recorded. Besides field sur- b) Hoko neighbourhoods where the population veys the municipal registers were also available. has been decreasing slowly. c) Hoko neighbourhoods where the population has been decreasing but the number of in- Population Trend habitants is still relatively high. Over the past 30 years a drastic drop in popula- d) Hoko neighbourhoods where the population tion has taken place in the city centre and, in par- has been slowly increasing or has remained ticular, in the hoko neighbourhoods. While the stable. total population in Kyoto has shown a slight in- crease, in the hoko area the number of inhabitants As can be seen from the categories above, the has dropped from 6,738 inhabitants in 1960 to 2,- population has been decreasing in the first three 148

FIG.44 POPULATION TREND. WHOLE KYOTO IN 1960-85. YT.

categories. Although the population has been de- Age of Population and Number of creasing in categories B and C, in the C group the population is still relatively large and it has re- Households mained at over 100 inhabitants per neighbour- During the 25-year period 1960-1985 the main hood. However, only three such neighbourhoods feature of the age trend has been the general age- can be found today. ing of the population. The number of younger The worst situation is in category A. The pop- people has declined dramatically while the share ulation has dramatically decreased and the city of aged people has steadily grown. The evolution communities have almost collapsed. In 1990 in that has take place can be observed in Fig. 46. this group of hoko neighbourhoods the popula- Evaluated through school districts, the so-called tion had decreased by 92% from what it had been motogakku, the picture is not much better. There in 1950 and only thirty-five inhabitants were left. were seven fewer children in 1985 than in 1980 In one neighbourhood, Takannacho¯, the number in each city community. Furthermore, there are of inhabitants fell to zero in 1990. The situation many hoko neighbourhoods with no children of in Kankohokocho¯ was not much better. Here, one primary school age. In 1991, of the six original inhabitant was left. In Naginatahokocho¯ two school districts, four southern school districts and inhabitants remain. Most of the new buildings two northern districts were combined into one have been office buildings with no residential district. In other words, the hoko neighbourhoods function. that once were pioneers in establishing the pub- In category D the population has been incr- lic primary school system throughout Japan are easing slightly or remained the same particularly now facing collapse of the school system. during the past ten years. This has been mainly due While the total number of households grew to the construction of new apartment houses that slightly in Kyoto as a whole, in the hoko neigh- have been built in these neighbourhoods142 . Except bourhoods the number of households remained for two neighbourhoods, Tenjinyamacho¯ and almost the same. That the decrease in the number Banocho¯, habitation is still strong. The population of households was not as dramatic as might be ex- exceeds 100 inhabitants in these neighbourhoods. pected from the population trend, might be due In two hoko neighbourhoods, Taishiyamacho¯ and to the fact that while the younger generation has Kazahayacho¯, the population even exceeds two moved outside the city centre, the older genera- hundred inhabitants. In particular, in Taishiyama- tion has still continued living there. Furthermore, cho¯, population numbers have remained the same the large number of small flats built in the city even over a 40-year period. centre has, in particular, increased the number of

149

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FIG.45 POPULATION TREND. THE HOKO FIG. 46 AGE STRUCTURE. THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS NEIGHBOURHOODS IN 1960-85. YT. IN 1960-85. YT.

small households. This has influenced the structure of the built environment in the hoko neighbour- of households in the hoko neighbourhoods too. hoods are shown in Fig. 47. The figure shows the In 1988 there were 1,050 households altogeth- share of wooden buildings in each neighbour- er.143 In one hoko neighbourhood the average hood. number of households was 33. The average size of household was 2.3 persons. In other words, the size of the families was rather small. For the Use of Buildings number of households in Kyoto as a whole and The hoko area as part of the Muromachi kimono in the hoko neighbourhoods, see Figs. 44, 45. wholesale district, is traditionally characterised by an urban structure where dwelling/residential areas have been mixed with other land-uses such Profile of the Built Environment kimono production and trade. This picture is to The number of wooden buildings in the hoko a large degree still valid today. Although the kimo- neighbourhoods was registered systematically by no industry is in decline, a relatively large number the Yamahoko team. Although the survey was lim- of kimono activities is still found. Of the 737 bui- ited to the buildings along the residential streets, ldings investigated, 316 (43%) were used for trades through these investigations we can get a general linked with traditional industries. Of these, as picture of the number of wooden buildings that many as 249 (79%) were involved with the ki- exist. mono industries and trade. According to the investigation, which comprised a total of 758 buildings, there were altogether 436 The Current Profile of the Hoko wooden buildings. In other words, more than half Neighbourhoods and the Future of (58%) of buildings were still wooden. If the inner parts of the hoko neighbourhoods had been taken its Heritage in consideration, the number of wooden buildings The continuity of the Gion Festival is secured by would have been even larger. Furthermore, among law, by local preservation organisations and by the wooden buildings, 299 (39%) were of machiya huge public and private subsidies. Still, the future style, 128 (17%) of kanban, shop sign style facades, of the festival is threatened in a number of ways. nine (1%) other wooden structures. The number of With the lack of a younger generation, the con- reinforced concrete buildings was 322 (42%). tinuity of the festival has become endangered in However, there were large differences between many hoko neighbourhoods. With few surviving individual neighbourhoods. The different profiles members in the city neighbourhood the tradition 150

FIG.47 SHARE OF WOODEN BUILDINGS IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS ACCORDING TO THE YAMAHOKO SURVEY IN 1991. YT.

has become difficult to maintain. The cultural diate threat and could manage the festival with- know-how necessary for the festival such as the out help from outside. proper maintenance of time-honoured rituals and Despite the extensive construction activity in display techniques is vanishing at an accelerating the city centre, the number of residents has in- speed. creased in only a few hoko neighbourhoods. Even A large part of the work needed in the organ- in those neighbourhoods with new residents, only isation and management of the festival, is done as in a few communities have they been integrated paid part-time work. Already in six hoko into the urban festival. Because the construction neighbourhoods the festival is run by outside vol- industry and the market favour the construction unteers and the significance of the township of small tenant apartments, new residents have community as a mutual cooperation unit has de- mostly been short-term residents such as students, generated. Many of the volunteers even come unmarried young people or childless couples who from outside Kyoto. An acquaintance from Osa- are often from outside Kyoto and have no per- ka, who is working there for a large Japanese sonal interest in the festival. company, volunteers in Funehokocho¯, the neigh- With the decreasing and ageing population it has bourhood of ship shape float. Festival volunteers become more and more difficult to maintain the are even hired among the foreign students at festival. The dramatic increase in maintenance ex- Kyoto University. In Naginatahokocho¯, which is penses, such as the expensive restoration and repair the neighbourhood of the living pageboy, no fam- work on the cultural properties, has increased the ily is left in sole charge of their local pavilion. financial burden on the vanishing neighbourhoods. Representatives of the Yasaka Shrine supervise the According to the Yamahoko survey, the economy festival. According to the Yamahoko investigation has already collapsed in a number of hoko neigh- only six neighbourhoods were under no imme- bourhoods.

151 URBAN CUL URBAN As to the built fabric, the hoko neighbourhoods are characterised by a multitude of building types from the wooden frame houses to reinforced con- THE OF TURE crete and steel structures. The wooden frame houses are in a majority in the narrow lanes and

side alleys. As quiet residential oases they are per- AREA HOKO haps more important than ever. In many areas, however, a process of dramatic urban change has begun threatening the character and life of the neighbourhoods. One dominant feature of the built environment is the uneven character of the urban transformation process. There are now hoko neighbourhoods where large office buildings dominate and neighbourhoods where many wooden townhouses survive and the trans- formation process has hardly yet begun. As was analysed above, most of the vanishing hoko neighbourhoods are located in the vicinity of the Shijo-Karasuma area. In other words, they are in the core of the central business district with its large conglomeration of commercial and busi- ness functions. In these areas it is likely that the urban transformation process will continue. Out- side these areas the picture of the built and urban environment is, however quite different. In par- ticular, there are many well-preserved city neigh- bourhoods west of Nishi no To¯in Street. Among the 11 neighbourhoods, which showed an increase in population, eight communities were located in this area south of Shijo Street. These are city are- as that until now have been spared the most ex- tensive city development. Habitation is in these areas still strong and there are a large number of wooden frame houses. It is these more peripher- al neighbourhoods where it still makes sense to speak about urban conservation. Below, the author will investigate, through the example of three neighbourhoods, the architec- tural and urban patterns that exist in the hoko neighbourhoods. These field surveys will further clarify our picture of the urban profile of the hoko area and the character of its urban heritage.

PART VII

FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS 154

155 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

Chapter 19 Introduction to the Fieldwork on Architectural Patterns of Three Hoko Neighbourhoods

Description of the Survey Area The objective of the fieldwork was to obtain The foci of Chapter 19 are three historic hoko information about the special features of the archi- neighbourhoods: Kakkyoyamacho¯, Shinkamanza- tecture and urban heritage in these historic neigh- cho¯ and Yatacho¯. By their different scale and life- bourhoods, which still survive, but are severely styles they illustrate three types of urban endangered by the transformation process of the town. environment characteristic of the city centre and The survey area is defined by Shijo Street in the hoko area today. Shinkamanzacho¯ is a city the north, Ayanoko¯ji Street in the south, Shinma- neighbourhood with kimono textile manufac- chi Street in the east and Nishi no To¯in Street in turers’ houses and small urban tenanted terraced the west. In the township structure of Kyoto, Yat- houses. Yatacho¯ is a kimono textile wholesale acho¯ and Kakkyoyamacho¯ show the pattern of district with both distribution and dwelling fun- ‘lying’ neighbourhood, while Shinkamanzacho¯ is ctions. Kakkyoyamacho¯ is characterised by mixed a representative of narrow tenement lanes. The lo- land use combining dwellings with small shops, cation of the three neighbourhoods in the survey tempo. Two of the neighbourhoods studied, Yata- area is shown in Fig. 51. cho¯ and Kakkyoyamacho¯, illustrate the concept of the ryo¯gawacho¯, the pre-modern system of self-governing township communities. Shinka- History of the Neighbourhoods manzacho¯, on the other hand, is a tenement lane Kakkyoyamacho¯ in the middle of an urban block between Yata- According to Yamashiro Meisho-shi a temple named cho¯ and Kakkyoyamacho¯. Anyo-ji existed around the present Kakkyoyama- 156

FIG.48 LIFE IN SHINKAMANZACHO¯ BEFORE THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN THE 1940S. SS.

cho¯ around 1110. This temple was moved to an- In 1673 in Rakuchu¯ E Zu the Chinese ideog- other place by order of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. ram of ‘kawa’, which means leather, was changed After this record, the oldest record from to an ideogram of the same pronunciation but Kakkyoyamacho¯ is documented in 1500, just af- which has the meaning of river. In other maps the ter the O¯ nin wars, in the list which records the ideogram ‘leather’ is used. One hundred years later, festival floats. According to the list there is a in 1762 a famous guidebook, Kyo¯ Machi Kagami ‘Michi-tsukuri-yama’, a mountain shape float was published. In this guidebook the present name between Shijo Nishi no To¯in and Machi (the Kakkyoyamacho¯ is found for the first time. In the present Shinmachi) Streets. In a historical record municipal archive there are almost five hundred from 1571 the area is known as ‘Kawadanacho¯’. documents preserved which record pre-modern The area had many shops specialising in leather life in Kakkyoyamacho¯. 145 cutting. The name probably referred to this activ- ity. 144 In 1560 a Christian priest was recorded in Shinkamanzacho¯ a place named Kawanodana and ordinary poor According to Historical Place Names of Kyoto, the people lived in the area. It was recorded that the name of Shinkamanzacho¯ appears in historical re- priest was living in the house of a woman. This is cords for the first time in the Rakuchu¯ E Zu in the oldest record concerning Christianity in con- 1637. It is mentioned as ‘a narrow pass from south nection with a location in Kyoto. to north’ and called ‘Koyaku no zushi’. 146 Near the end of the middle ages the area is shown with

157 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK this name in all maps. Legend has it that in the to Mr. Jinpei Suminokura, known as a powerful Heian period a famous priest Kuya established merchant in Kyoto. The document records that a small temple, which was later named ‘Koyaku- the width of the house was approximately 53.6 dozo’. 147 A historical record from 1520 tells that metres and the depth of the site 168 metres. When a temple named Koyaku was at that time used as the ordinary houses were only 6.7 - 13.4 metres a base camp for an army group. According to an in width, the house of Mr. Suminokura was ex- old guidebook from the Tokugawa era, ceptionally large. Yamashiro Meishoshi, the location of the temple was ‘Koyaku no zushi’, in other words, the present day Shinkamanzacho¯. The Built Environment In the urban structure of Kyoto Shinkamanza- The first multi-storey buildings in the survey cho¯ illustrates narrow urban lanes which were es- areas were built in the 1960s. The new buildings tablished in pre-modern times in the grid-plan were mainly cooperative dwelling houses or build- area in the middle of the urban blocks. Such ur- ings of kimono corporations. In Kakkyoyamacho¯ ban layers are an important part of Kyoto’s urban there are also modern office buildings and a ho- morphology and examples of reshaping of urban tel. Kakkyoyamacho¯ is in the process of change. space that has taken place in the grid plan area for Most of the buildings in the neighbourhood are centuries. still small-scale townhouses with commercial kanban, shop sign facades. The scale of the new Yatacho¯ buildings is radically different from the old envi- In Yatacho¯ the oldest known document is from ronment. The integrity of the built environment 1376, when a merchant delivering oil is record- has been largely destroyed. ed as having had his dwelling there. An old map Of the three neighbourhoods, Yatacho¯ partic- depicting the landscape before the O¯ nin wars ularly shows a mixed urban landscape with a mix- shows a temple known as Yatadera in the area. In ture of multi-storey buildings and wooden 1590 the temple was transferred to Gyo¯koku-San- townhouses. In Shinkamanzacho¯ major changes jo by order of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. It can still be have been hampered by a narrow street and found there today. Before the O¯ nin wars the area complex ownership conditions. At its narrowest was known to have presented a Jizo¯hoko, a festi- point the street is only 2.8 metres wide. Most of val float, in the Gion Festival. The Yatadera was the buildings are tenanted terraced houses with known for a statue of Jizo¯ that became the sym- complex land and house ownership. Some of the bol of the neighbourhood's float. In a historical terraced houses along the lane were originally record from 1500, which deals with the reorga- built for the servants and kimono workers in the nisation of the Gion Festival there, is a mention service of the Sugimoto family. Only one large- of ‘Kotohariyama’, a pavilion with a destroyed koto scale multi-storey building has been built in the instrument. It is the major symbol of the festival vicinity of the neighbourhood. This building is float in Yatacho¯ even today and exhibited during completely out of proportion when compared to the festival weeks in the Sugimoto house for pub- other buildings along this wooden tenement lane. lic view together with other historical assets. The over scaled new building can be observed, for In 1571 the name Yatacho¯ appears for the first instance, in the measurement drawing that the time and it was established as the name of the area. author carried out in Shinkamanzacho¯, Fig. 19. In Kyoto On Yakusho Muki Taigai Oboezaki from The survey areas have preserved much of their 1717, which is a document published by the cen- pre-industrial spatial character up to today, tral government to inform newly arrived officials particularly in the inner parts of the neighbour- from Edo (Tokyo) about matters in Kyoto, one hoods. This is mainly due to the magnificent house in Yatacho¯ is mentioned. The house belongs Sugimoto house, the site of which is almost four 158 times larger than the average site in the hoko area. from the bordering streets. Thus buildings that are The total built area in Yatacho¯ is 5066 sq. m. and located near Shijo Street have higher building ra- the surface area taken by wooden buildings 2967 tios than those distanced from the street. The de- sq. m. In other words, a notable part of the built velopment ratios are between e=4.0 and e=7.0. surface area is still taken by the wooden building Compared with the existing land use, the deve- stock. lopment ratios are high in all three neighbour- At the moment, however, all three neighbour- hoods. When the city-planning map was prepared hoods are in a dramatic transitional phase in their there must have been no doubt that considerable development. The population is ageing and decli- changes in the land use of the area were to be ex- ning in numbers. The traditional industries in the pected. area are decreasing although the kimono whole- Furthermore, most of the wooden buildings in sale function is still relatively strong. With the col- such well preserved neighbourhoods as Shinka- lapsing economy of the hoko neighbourhoods, the manzacho¯ are, according to the fire prevention Gion Festival is loosing its foothold as a living legislation, actually illegal, because of the narrow- tradition. In addition, with the demolition of ness of the lanes. The buildings on the opposite wooden townhouses, the screen displays and other sides of the streets are too near to each other. In collective traditions are disappearing at an accele- all three neighbourhoods the use of wood as a rating speed. Many of the old buildings along construction material for new buildings is forbid- Shijo Street, perhaps already waiting to be demol- den. The future of all three neighbourhoods is ished, look rather dilapidated. characterised by a great uncertainty, largely be- cause of the vicinity of the Shijo and Karasuma The Survey Area and Urban area, one of the major expanding centres of the town. Conservation In the land use map the survey area is part of the Description of the Recording commercial and business district. The develop- All good planning starts by asking the question ment ratio is highest in Kakkyoyamacho¯ and its ‘what values are there today?’ - economic values, immediate vicinity. The development ratios are human, social, cultural values. The heritage should defined according to the character of the bor- be a self-evident starting point for physical plan- dering street, whether it is a dwelling street or a ning and for political decision making. This means main street, and also by the distance of a building identifying the cultural values, presenting them in

FIG.49 VIEW FROM SHINKAMANZACHO¯ , FIG.50 VIEW FROM AYANOKO¯ JI STREET. LEFT THE SUGIURA HOUSE. RS. YATACHO¯ . RS.

159 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.51 THE FIELDWORK AREA, LOCATION MAP: KAKKYOYAMACHO¯ , SHINKAMANZACHO¯ , YATACHO¯ . RS.

a way which makes them easily understable and tely a hundred facades were measured and sur- accessible, and promoting a greater awareness veyed for the research. among planners, decision makers and - above all - For the documentation the author took four ba- the general public. In the thesis the hoko area is sic measurements: width of the house (maguchi), analysed and inventorised in its present, even con- height of the upper eaves (noki shita), height of the tradictory shape. In other words, not as they once ridgepole (mune takasa) and height of the lower upon were, or as our expectations or preconceived eaves or canopy (hisashi). In addition, the facades images of them might be, but as something more were systematically photographed. The photo- fragmentary, less beautiful, something that has gone graphs were used to help drawing work, in analys- through many changes, some of them even con- ing proportions etc. Some key details were checked tradictory, but which still can present an inspiring afterwards on site and measured separately. This is challenge for urban conservation and research. a relatively uncomplicated and quick method, In the field surveys the street elevations were which is widely used by the Nishikawa laboratory systematically photographed, measured and drawn when a large number of buildings must be meas- for the documentation by the author. The neces- ured in a short period of time. The method is there- sary technical assistance for the measurement fore used, in particular, for documenting large work was provided by a group of students from groups of buildings or townscapes. the Nishikawa laboratory. Altogether approxima- 10

160 The drawings were made using the Japanese The inventory views the building stock from ‘Hanako’ drafting program. All facades were the architectural and urban point of view and thus drawn in 1:100 scale and then joined together does not replace other analyses such as historic in- as street facades. Because of the limitations of the vestigations or assessments of social and technical Japanese drawing program, the emphasis was on conditions. Also, since the scope of the inventory the clarity and information value of the measure- covered whole streetscapes, and since the level of d drawings. Their artistry or pictorial effect was precision aimed at providing a general picture of considered less important. The present analysis the building stock, the investigation was limited and the way of looking at the matter were pri- to the exterior of the buildings. How important marily operative. The point was in the analysis systematic building inventories would have been and in exact recording of the townscape, not a at the initial stages of drawing up general city building history or conservation study. The meas- plans and urban programmes, is a separate ques- urement drawings can be seen in Figs. 19, 20, 53, tion and one of those issues that the author has 54 and 55. addressed throughout the research.

FIG.52 VIEW FROM YATACHO¯ . IN THE FOREGROUND THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE. RS. 11 Living Tradition or Panda’s

161 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Fieldwork No. 1: Building Inventory

The Content of the Fieldwork are one important building type of the historic The study covers all the building stock in– urban dwelling and the traditional Kyoto town- side the three neighbourhoods, including new scape. multi-storey buildings. Altogether 97 buildings -Multi-storey buildings. In the multi-storey were surveyed: 36 in Kakkyoyamacho¯, 38 in category were included all those structures which Shinkamanzacho¯ and 23 in Yatacho¯. Two sites were have three or more floors. vacant. The author divided the building statistics -Those, which were outside the four categories, into four categories:148 investigation of building were described as ‘other’ such as the common materials, building categories, number of floors facility in Kakkyoyamacho¯. and building styles. Number of Floors Building Materials The buildings were divided into five categories by The building materials were divided into four the number of floors: categories: wood, reinforced concrete, steel, oth- -Buildings with one floor. er structures. -Buildings with 1.5 floors. Buildings in this category are the ‘classic’ Kyoto townhouses, tsushi Building Categories nikai. The buildings have a low upper floor. The author used five building categories: -Buildings with two floors, hon nikai. Hon nikai is -Detached houses, kodate no machiya. The detached a late, 20th century, variation of the tsushi nikai houses are the dominant buildingtype in Kyoto. building category. -Tenanted terraced houses, nagaya. The buildings -Buildings with three to five floors. have shared walls with the adjoining buildings. -Buildings with more than five floors In Kyoto, unlike Osaka, the terraced houses were, never the dominant types of urban dwell- Style of Buildings ing. Buildings were classified in four categories with -Storehouses, kura. The fire resistant storehouses regard to style:

FIG.53 STREET FACADE OF YATACHO¯ . THE SUGIMOTO, MIKAMI, TAKEHANA, SHIBAYAMA, NAKATA AND TAKANO HOUSES ARE INDICATED IN THE DRAWING. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR. 162 163

FIG.54 (ABOVE) SOUTH FACADE OF KAKKYOYAMACHO¯ BETWEEN NISHI-NO-TO¯ IN AND SHINMACHI STREET. THE COMMON FACILITY IN THE MIDDLE IN THE CROSSING OF SHIJO AND SHINKAMANZA STREETS. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR.

FIG.55 (BELOW) NORTH FACADE OF KAKKYOYAMACHO¯ BETWEEN NISHI-NO-TO¯ IN AND SHINMACHI STREET. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR. 164

165 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.57 A MODERN, HON NIKAI, MACHIYA WITH 1.5 FLOORS. YATACHO¯ . RS.

-Machiya, townhouse style. In this style the author except one were wooden. This is one of few those included all wooden buildings with a wooden places where one can still experience the un- structural frame and a pitched tiled roof. spoiled atmosphere of old Kyoto and the histor- -Kanban kenchiku, shop sign style. In the street ic neighbourhoods. The character of the area elevation the wooden framed buildings have a cannot be said to have changed outwardly in the shop facade like a large shop sign. past 20 years. The block typology, building mate- -Shimotaya style. A derivation of the machiya, rials and scale of the houses are the same as they townhouse style. Some wooden buildings in the have been for centuries. The survey results are central area are of the shimotaya style, although shown in Fig. 1, Appendix 4. in fewer numbers. Its hallmarks are usually a high wooden fence and a main building that is recessed from the street. Building Categories -‘Other’ such as multi-storey buildings, fire-proof Most of the wooden buildings in Yatacho¯ and storehouses, kura, etc. Kakkyoyamacho¯ were in the kodate no machiya category, in other words they were detached townhouses. The number of these houses was 54. Survey Results The relatively large number of urban tenements, Building Materials nagaya, in the survey area, altogether 24 houses, is All three neighbourhoods still have an excep- explained by Shinkamanzacho¯, the dominantly tionally high number of wooden structures left. urban tenement lane. In addition, there were Among the 97 buildings studied a large majority, three fire proof storehouses, kura. Two of them 83 were wooden. In all three neighbourhoods the were found in the Sugimoto site and one in the share of wooden buildings was still more than half site of common facility. They are important land- of all buildings. In Shinkamanzacho¯ in particular, marks of the changing townscape. The number of the number of wooden buildings was exceptional- multi-storey buildings was 15. The survey results ly large. In this neighbourhood, all the buildings are shown in Fig. 2, Appendix 4.

FIG.56 (THE OPPOSITE PAGE) STOREHOUSE, KURA, AND A HIGH GARDEN FENCE. SHINKAMANZACHO¯, THE SUGIMOTO SITE. RS. 166

FIG.58 TSUSHI-NIKAI MACHIYA. THE TRADITIONAL KYOTO FIG.59 A MODERN, HON NIKAI, MACHIYA WITH TWO TOWNHOUSE WITH 1.5 FLOORS AND WITH A WELL- FLOORS. YATACHO¯ . RS. PRESERVED LONG MUSHIKO MADO, INSECT WINDOW, IN THE UPPER FLOOR. YATACHO¯ . RS.

Number of Floors than 5 floors. One third, 28 buildings of the According to the field survey, here and there the wooden frame buildings were still in the classic, townscape has been encroached upon by new tsushi nikai category. In other words, they followed buildings too large to fit in well. This is the case the pattern of the classic Kyoto townhouse. A particularly in Kakkyoyamacho¯ where the tallest representative of this building category can be multi-story buildings have eight floors. In Yatacho¯, seen, for instance, in Fig. 58 that shows one such the scale of new buildings is smaller, but because tsushi nikai building in Yatacho¯. The number of of the many new buildings that have been built buildings that had two floors was 52. The hon in the neighbourhood, only fragments of the nikai frame was common in Kakkyoyamacho¯ and wooden town remain, and the building tradition Shinkamanzacho¯. The survey results are shown in has not been continued properly. If it were not for Fig. 3, Appendix 4. the Sugimoto house and some other wooden townhouses still existing in Yatacho¯, it would be Style of Buidings difficult to identify the old townscape and the Most, 48 buildings, of the wooden-frame houses identity of the neighbourhood. 11 buildings showed the machiya style. In Kakkyoyamacho¯, showed 3-5 floors and four buildings had more however, the shop sigh style, or kanban kenchiku,

167 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.60 A MODERN, HON NIKAI, MACHIYA WITH FIG.61 KANBAN KENCHIKU, SHOP SIGN STYLE. YATACHO¯ . RS. TWO FLOORS. YATACHO¯ . RS.

dominated. Also in Yatacho¯, there was a number of shop sign facade houses, see, for instance, Fig. 61. The total number of shop sign style houses was 27. In addition, two wooden-frame houses were of the shimotaya style. Both of them were located in Shinkamanzacho¯. The survey results are shown in Fig. 4, Appendix 4.

The relatively large number of variations found in the building categories and styles in the sur- vey area is a common feature of the Kyoto townhouse and the wooden town heritage. The large number of buildings surveyed makes the sample representative and illustrates the character of the built fabric in other hoko neighbourhoods also. 168 Fieldwork No. 2: Use of Building

The Aim of the Fieldwork Shinkamanzacho¯. The total number of vacant The aim of the case study was to investigate the buildings was nine. The survey results are shown present use of the buildings. In particular, the in Fig. 5, Appendix 4. author focused on the use of the ground floor. The case study is based on the observations and inven- Use of the Ground Floor tories made on site. In addition to the field ob- In 26 buildings the ground floor was used as resi- servations, Mrs. Sugiura, as a local resident, was an dential space. In Shinkamanzacho¯ especially the important source of information. number of residential function was high. The ground floor was used as dwelling in 20 buildings. Use of Buildings Shop was found in 28 buildings.149 There were The author divided the main use of the buildings many shops especially in Kakkyoyamacho¯. In this into five categories: residential buildings, those neighbourhood the number of shops was 23. with mixed use in combination with dwelling, Furthermore, workshop or working space was commercial buildings such as office buildings and found in eight buildings. The number of manu- kimono enterprises, other uses and vacant build- facturing spaces was thus relatively low. The few ings. number of working spaces was, in particular, prominent in Shinkamanzacho¯, which previous- Use of the Ground Floor ly was a flourishing kimono-manufacturing lane. The Kyoto townhouse with such spaces as shop The workshops were in the following fields: or manufacturing space on the ground floor, the kimono manufacturing (4), textile dyeing (1), author focused particularly on the use profile of maker of traditional name plates (1), designer of the spaces at ground level. The author used six use kimono crest (1) and maker of sliding doors (1). categories: dwelling, shop, workshop or manu- In addition to workshops, there were enterpris- facturing space, office space or enterprise, empty es and offices. The total number of them was 12. and other. The ground floor was classified as a Many of them had a traditional profile. The ki- shop, if the omote, room next to the street was a mono wholesale function continues to have a shop, and as a residence if the room was used as a strong foothold in the neighbourhoods. There dwelling room. were a number of kimono wholesale enterprises particularly in Yatacho¯.

Survey Results Trends of Instability Use of Buildings Some trends of instability were observed. One A majority of buildings had a mixed use in com- example was the large number of vacant or aban- bination with dwelling. The total number of res- doned spaces. As many as 13 buildings had a va- idential buildings was 66. In other words, a cant ground floor. In Kakkyoyamacho¯ in majority of buildings had a residential function. particular, the number of vacant spaces was high. The number of commercial buildings without res- The ground floor was vacant in nine buildings. idential function was 16. Another important fea- However, because of the limitations of the survey ture was that there was a relatively large number method and the limited survey area, it is not possi- of empty or abandoned houses, especially in ble to draw any final conclusions. Also, the quar-

169 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK ters surveyed border on one of the major streets in Kyoto. The central location affects the urban development of the sample quarters in an unpre- dictable way. In particular, the large number of vacant or abandoned spaces in the area may be explained against this background. The survey results are shown in Fig. 6, Appendix 4. 170 Fieldwork No. 3: The Architecture

“... then we interpreted that the facades are composed The Aim of the Fieldwork of ‘facade frame types’ and ‘design elements’ such as Throughout the case study, the author aimed sliding doors, lattice work windows and earthen wall to test, in particular, the architectural patterns panels fixed in the frames. These design elements are of the survey area and its vernacular vocabulary. mutually interchangeable, a wall panel can be replaced For the survey, altogether 82 wooden framed by a window for example. Each facade type has suita- facades were studied: 36 in Shinkamanzacho¯, 30 ble design element variations”. 150 in Kakkyoyamacho¯ and 16 in Yatacho¯. The new, multi-storey buildings were excluded. For the current building inventory the facades The major objective of the recording was to were divided into five kinds of major building identify the architectural patterns and carpentry components: roofs, eaves, walls, windows, doors. elements of the wooden framed facades as well as This was the basic categorisation used by the to analyse the alterations and modifications made Nishikawa laboratory in the building inventories. to them. The recording is primarily intended to Then the author analysed their individual design aid decision-making as the preliminary step in the elements such as roof tile design, wall structure, monitoring and evaluation process of the histor- wall materials and the number of ko¯shi lattice ic neighbourhoods. In particular, the investigation partitions. Because of the often different treatment aims to identify the number and types of tradi- of the ground and upper floors, the architectural tional carpentry and building components. The details on the ground and upper floors were ana- inventory as such cannot be used as a planning or lysed separately. design tool as it would demand a more careful investigation of the origins of the design elements Roofs, Yane of the buildings. The author counted the number of buildings with a traditional pitched roof. In addition, the The Method of the Survey and number of flat roofs and other roof shapes were also counted. Then the author investigated the Major Results roofing materials and the type of roof tile design. Traditional Japanese architecture is based on the Of the 97 buildings studied a large majority, 82 post and beam structure where the facades con- buildings, have a pitched roof shape (see Fig. 7, sist of an exposed wooden structural frame. Within Appendix 4). Furthermore, 80 buildings in the a unified frame the facade is filled in with vari- survey area have the traditional tile roof covered ous kind of building components such as win- with authentic Kyoto roof tiles left. This is a large dows, doors and earth panels where individual number, which gives character and identity to building components can be removed or replaced the whole townscape. One such elegant tile roof by an other element. This principle was adapted in the survey area can be seen in Fig. 63. in the four historic preservation areas as one of the key concepts in developing the preservation Roof Tile Pattern methodology for the wooden facades. Dr. Yama- The author used two tile categories, the ichi- saki describes the matter thus: monjikawara and the sankarakusa pattern. The roof tiles of ordinary townhouses in Kyoto are usually

171 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.62 TILE ROOF PATTERNS, SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . RS.

either of these two patterns. The roof tile pattern monjikawara design. Altogether 34 buildings that is used in fire-proof storehouses, is known as showed this roof tile pattern. The survey results are hongawara. As to the (traditional) design of roof shown in Fig. 9, Appendix 4. tiles, most of the tile roofs were of ichimonjikawara and sankarakusa design patterns. Both were found Walls in equal numbers (27 roofs each). All tile roofs, The wall structure was divided into two main could not, however, be identified because they categories: shinkabe, ‘half-timber’ style, and o¯kabe, were invisible from the street. The number of plastered style. Shinkabe, ‘half-timber’ style, in par- these cases was 24. The survey results are shown ticular, illustrates a traditional wall structure with in Fig. 8, Appendix 4. an exposed wooden structural frame. In the 17th century descriptions of Kyoto there were, as was Lower Eaves or Canopy, Hisashi described in chapter 5, examples of the plastered An important architectural element of tradition- type townhouses known as nuriya. Despite the al townhouses is the canopy or lower eaves between fire-resistant qualities of such buildings, the peo- lower and upper floor. The author also considered ple of Kyoto seemed to prefer the shinkabe or ‘half the roof tile pattern in this part of the roof. timber’ style, in which structural columns and As one of the most important architectural el- beams are exposed. This style is still common and ements of the Kyoto townhouses, all the machiya one of the characteristic features of the Kyoto style, wooden-frame buildings in the survey area townhouse. showed a canopy between the ground and upper In the wooden-frame buildings almost all fa- floor area, 48 buildings in all. In the canopy far cades (41) showed the half-timbered, shinkabe, the most common roof tile pattern was ichi- style. In Kakkyoyamacho¯, because of the shop sign 172 style, plastered walls, o¯kabe, were common. The mokubu, in every shinkabe, half-timbered wall was number of plastered walls in this neighbourhood also considered. Usually the wood is left in struc- was 23. In the upper floor the shinkabe structure tural parts in its natural state, which naturally turns dominated. This wall type was found altogether to a darker shade by exposure and daily polishing. in 47 facades. The survey results are shown in When painted, black is common. The most com- Figs.10 and 11, Appendix 4. mon wall colours were grey (23), yellow (ish) (19) and brown (18). In other words, the colours were Building Materials rather traditional (see Fig. 14, Appendix 4). As to the building materials, in the ground floor as many as 21 buildings showed traditional plas- Windows ter, tsuchi, wall treatment. In addition, mortar was In traditional Japanese architecture the windows common. This material was found in 23 buildings. and doors were barred by square bars of wood In the upper floor the number of traditional plas- known as ko¯shi. In this field survey also the au- ter, tsuchi, walls was 32 and mortar in 23 walls. In thor paid a special attention to them. Windows on other words, the number of plastered walls was still the ground floor were classified in four broad relatively large. The survey results are shown in groups as to whether they had a lattice window, Figs. 12 and 13, Appendix 4. ko¯shi, a glass window, a glass window and lattice window in combination, or another type of open- Colours ing such as an entrance door or a garage. Lattice Unlike our mental picture which is largely a result windows were of two basic types: hirako¯shi the flat of the black and white pictures of the modernist lattice window or/and dego¯shi, a projecting lattice image of Japanese architecture, the traditional bay window. In addition to the ko¯shi partitions, architecture of Japan was not at all monochromatic the author recorded such wooden facade elements but full of fine and deep colours. Besides yellow or as rain closets, tobukuro, and protective wooden brown, there were pink, black, Indian red, dark gre- wall partitions, koshikabe, ‘hips wall’, of tradition- en, and dark blue. However, with the penetration al carpentry and design. Morse described the to- of contemporary materials and colour pigments bukuro in the following way: into the market, the fine old colours have gradu- ally disappeared from the townscape. Some old “…Not only the verandah but entrance to the house, colours can, however, still be found. Besides colour, as well as the windows when they occur, are closed at the surface treatment of wooden structural parts, night by amado. In the daytime these shutters are stowed

FIG.63 TILE ROOF, SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . RS.

173 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.64 ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS: DEGO¯ SHI, FIG.65 ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS OF THE SUGIMOTO PROJECTING LATTICE WINDOW AND INUYARAI, A LOW HOUSE: KO¯SHI, LATTICE, DOOR; HIRAKO¯SHI, FLAT LATTICE BAMBOO FENCE. THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE. RS. WINDOW, TSUCHI, PLASTERED WALL, KOSHIKABE, ‘HIPS’ WALL, INUYARAI, DOG’S FENCE. RS.

away in closets called tobukuro. The closets are places ervation areas). The elegance of the ko¯shi design at one side of the opening or place to be closed, and just culminates in the survey area in the facades of the outside the groove in which the shutters are to run. They Sugimoto house, see Figs. 64-66. have only the width of one shutter, but are deep enough In the upper floor, only three well-preserved to accommodate the number that is required to close any long mushiko mado, insect windows, could be entrance”. 151 found. In most of the townhouses the mushiko mado opening was replaced by glass windows. The On the upper floor the most distinctive architec- survey results are shown in Fig. 16, Appendix 4. tural element of the Kyoto townhouses is the mushiko mado, insect window. On the upper floor Doors the author placed the facades in five categories ac- Doors were divided into five main categories: a cording to their opening type: those with a well wooden sliding door (in the building inventory: ita, preserved insect window, mushiko mado, those with blank), a lattice sliding door, ko¯shi, a sliding door a glass window, those with a glass window and a with an aluminium sash, a shutter or, other modern partially preserved mushiko mado, those with an- door type such as fire door, no door. Thus, besides other type of window or opening, those facades traditional doors, we took into consideration sliding which had no window on the upper floor. doors with an aluminium sash and metal shutters. A large number of wooden facade partitions Of the 82 facades studied, more than one third, are preserved. 19 facades (23%) can still be cate- 32 facades, still have either a wooden lattice, ko¯shi, gorised as traditional wooden lattice facades with or ita, wooden blank, door. The survey results are various ko¯shi designs. Altogether there were 20 in- shown in Fig. 17, Appendix 4. dividual flat lattice windows, hirako¯shi, and 18 dego¯shi partitions. Furthermore, there were 20 rain Other facade elements closets, tobukuro, and 16 wooden ‘hips wall’, Outside the facade such elements as wooden fenc- ko¯shikabe partitions. The design of ko¯shi partitions es, air conditioners, protecting reed screens, sudare, was, however, very heterogeneous and varied from shop signs, kanban, roller shutters and planting facade to facade. Thus, in the survey area the au- were investigated. On the Sugimoto site there is thor could not detect any unified ko¯shi style (such a large number of old trees the site being a green as can be found, for instance, in the historic pres- oasis even for a wider area. 174

FIG.66 ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS OF THE SUGIMOTO HOUSE. DEGO¯ SHI, PROJECTING LATTICE WINDOW AND INUYARAI, A ‘DOG’S’ FENCE. RS.

The most important architectural elements townscape. Altogether the author identified more were wooden protective fences of different types than 50 different, less or more traditional, build- such as inuyarai, a low protecting bamboo fence ing components from the traditional design pat- in the lower part of the facade and komayose, a low tern of roof tiles to colours and materials of the protecting wooden fence. Both of these fence walls, and to the elements of the traditional car- types were found in the survey area (see, for in- pentry such as rain closets and protective ‘hips stance Fig. 66). Furthermore, an important archi- walls’. Because of the comprehensiveness of the tectural element in the survey area is the high survey, the survey gives a relatively reliable picture wooden fence, takabei, that is found in Shinka- of the architectural elements that are characteris- manzacho¯ on the Sugimoto site (see Fig. 56). A tic for the wooden-frame houses not only in the number of protecting reed screens, sudare, that are hoko area, but in a wider area in the city centre as common everywhere in the Kyoto townhouses, well. were also found. The traditional architectural elements of the wooden frame facades had been renewed in Conclusions of the Architectural many facades so that the character and design unity of the buildings has completely changed Vocabulary Fieldwork and the composition of the facade altered in such The Lack of Unified Style a way that almost nothing exists of the original Among the traditional building elements are, design. Carelessly made repairs have in many above all, the elegant tile roofs, which dominate facades replaced the old sophisticated organic the streetscape even in the midst of the altered materials such as wood and earth plaster with

175 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK new facade materials such as imitation ceramics Questioning the Current Heritage and even stone and brick. Cheap new materials Assessment Methodology essentially change the look of the facades, the In the context of the current heritage assessment elegance of which was originally based on the methodology which aims to preserve the aesthet- harmony of proportions and sparing use of ma- ic integrity of the townscape, as the method was terials. Modern window and door repairs unfor- adapted in the historic preservation areas, the tunately make no use of traditional carpentry ‘spoiled’ and often aesthetically unpleasant wood- skills. In the survey area there are unfortunately en frame facades that were documented in the only three long, ornamental mushiko mado, insect field survey can hardly be considered of value. windows left. Instead ready-made prefabricated The obvious heterogeneity of the style of the aluminium units of standard construction and wooden facades and the setting as a whole poses design have been fitted in large numbers. a difficult question to the preservation authori- As a result the facades are a conglomeration of ties. Obviously there is no unified ‘style’ into heterogeneous elements and their design unity has which these heterogeneous facades could be suc- been lost. With glass windows, iron railings or iron cessfully ‘restored’. bars have increased to protect the interiors from But is the whole question right? Why could onlookers and intruders. Other common addi- these facades not be accepted as they are with all tions are shop signs, particularly in the commer- the changes and alterations wrought in them by cial buildings in Kakkyoyamacho¯. All these new time? Should rather the whole concept behind elements add to the visual turmoil of the town- the heritage argumentation be changed so that scape. The commercial language culminates in the authorities could accept these wooden facades those facades where the whole facade has been in their present condition as an essential part of designed as a large shop sign. In these facades an the urban heritage and history of their town? intrusive number of foreign architectural motifs Aesthetic value or beauty is only one value cat- have been added. In these buildings we can now egory among others; in addition to aesthetic or found a jungle of styles from romantic or colo- historic values economic, human, social and cul- nial ‘Spanish’ to rustic red brick facades. In some tural values should be given consideration, too. spots the outlook of the houses is more like Las Nowadays such stratification might be appreci- Vegas than Kyoto and quite far from our precon- ated more than was the case before. In such a ceived images of Kyoto. As an example of the framework of thinking each stratum adding to the current mixture of styles is, for instance, a row of present identity of the building is thought to be shop facades in Kakkyoyamacho¯, on the southern of equal interest. side of Shijo Street as they can be seen in the Everywhere preservation criteria have changed measurement drawing, Fig. 55. as social and historical aspects have gained ground Even those facades that have been spared by the replacing purely aesthetic views. In such a con- most radical changes have gone through minor or text, it is more important than the integrity of the major changes. Except of the facade of the Sugi- wooden facades that the old building stock is kept moto house, which has been carefully preserved in overall good repair so that the values it repre- in its authentic design condition, the author could sents will not be entirely lost. This applies equal- not record any other structure, which had kept its ly well to our sample quarters too. The author design identity and authentic materials entirely maintains that a new approach to urban preser- without later changes and additions. Thus, if there vation is necessary in Kyoto and should be im- is any general conclusions to be drawn from the plemented now when there still is a large number field survey, it is the evident lack of any unified of wooden houses left. architectural style. At a more general level, the change of conser- vation paradigm does not only apply to Kyoto but 11

176 is closely related to the urban conservation prob- not be evaluated using same criteria as towns built lem of wooden towns in general. Because of the in stone or brick; change and a certain degree of vulnerability and fragility of the wooden town ‘unauthenticity’ must be tolerated and accepted, tradition and the authenticity problems involved, if any of the wooden heritage is to be saved. The special attention should be paid to the methodo- houses and their architecture cannot be ‘frozen’ if logical approach. The wooden town heritage can- they are to continue as living environments.

FIG.67 DECORATIVE WALL DETAIL, SHINKAMANZACHO¯ . RS. 12 Living Tradition or Panda’s

177 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

Chapter 20 Introduction to the Field Survey on Traditional Dwelling Patterns.

The Aim of the Fieldwork nedoko pattern, ‘sleeping place of an eel’, the stand- The fieldwork below concentrates on traditional ard Kyoto dwelling plan on long and narrow sites. dwelling patterns that exist in the hoko neighbour- This plan type is further classified in a number of hoods and their immediate vicinity today. The sub-groups depending on the site and the taste field studies consist of two parts: and wealth of the owners and builders. In the 1) In the first part (fieldwork no. 4) the author following the author will describe two such ba- surveys and analyses seven historic urban dwell- sic plan types: ings, which were measured and surveyed by the municipal heritage authorities in 1991. The urban Omoteya-Tsukuri Machiya dwellings which were documented for the survey, This is one of the basic plan types of Kyoto. In this though ordinary townhouses, are all architectur- plan type there is a two-storey main structure, omote, ally and aesthetically very qualified and thus rep- in the street elevation. The functions of the house resent the best of Kyoto townhouse traditions. The are divided between a number of sub-structures as spectrum of fine interior spaces stretches from the earlier explained in chapter 20. Between the built museum-like interiors of the Naka house to more areas there are small inner gardens that are the most ordinary urban dwellings. The structures are characteristic feature of this dwelling plan. among those very few everyday structures that have been documented by the heritage authori- Takabei Tsukuri ties to date. As to their dwelling plans, all the sur- ‘High Fence’ Style. In this style the main build- veyed houses are representatives of the unagi no ing is recessed from the street. A characteristic 178 feature of the takabei tsukuri style is a high wood- the neighbourhood buildings. Compared to the en fence. Two of the surveyed houses, the Koba- dominant, kodate no machiya, detached pattern, yashi and Naka house, show this style. The the tenement pattern has been much less stud- variation, which can be seen in the plans and in ied and published and has practically remained the skilful combination of building volumes on outside the scope of academic research. In the the individual sites is in itself one impressive piece current research the nagaya pattern represents an of evidence of the richness and creative spirit of interesting type of pre-modern urban vernacu- the best Kyoto urban traditions. lar dwelling, without which our picture of Kyo- 2) In the second part (fieldwork no.5) the au- to’s pre-modern dwelling patterns and the thor surveys and describes a typical urban tene- richness of its urban heritage would not be com- ment, a nagaya type urban dwelling, which the plete. author measured for the thesis during the Yama- The exact location of the surveyed townhouses hoko programme. The tenement pattern repre- in the central area is shown in the survey map, Fig. sents an urban dwelling that has shared walls with No.2.

179 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Fieldwork No.4 Field Survey Of Seven Historic Urban Dwellings

The Aim of the Fieldwork Through the municipal documentation work The survey is based on a field survey organised by the author had an opportunity to observe the the Cultural Heritage Office and assisted by a evaluation and argumentation methods on-site group of students from the Nishikawa laboratory and in particular, the problems involved within the in 1991-92. The field survey was part of the mu- listing work. These problems have already been nicipal documentation programme for historic str- pointed out and referred to above. The example uctures in 1991. Altogether seven urban dwellings of these houses shows how alarming the preser- in the city centre in and around the hoko neigh- vation situation in Kyoto really is. After the doc- bourhoods were measured and surveyed, their plans umentation five of the houses were included in a drawn, the old documents investigated and the resi- book describing well-preserved Kyoto townhous- dents interviewed. Besides the main structures, oth- es, and thereby their special cultural history and er structures on the site and in the gardens were architectural qualities were acknowledged.152 surveyed as well. The survey investigates these None of the structures, however, qualified as a structures, in particular, from the urban conserva- cultural asset. tion point of view. The aim of the investigation is thus, not so much to identify the general princi- Description of the Seven ples of the traditional urban dwelling as to focus on the special way each of the investigated struc- Documented Houses tures has adapted to the present conditions, the way Almost all the documented houses are Meiji era the structures have been maintained and on their structures and being wooden buildings, they are physical and technical condition. already of considerable age. Besides the main

FIG.68 FACADE OF THE FUKUYAMA HOUSE IN IWATOYAMACHO¯ . RS. 180

FIG.69 PLAN OF THE FUKUYAMA HOUSE FIG.70 PLAN OF THE ITO HOUSE. MEASUREMENT MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE DRAWING BY THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE. CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE.

181 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.71 PLAN OF THE NAKA HOUSE. MEASUREMENT FIG.72 PLAN OF THE NAKAE 1 AND NAKAE 2 HOUSES. AT DRAWING BY THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE. THE BACK OF THE SITE THERE ARE TWO FIRE-PROOF STOREHOUSES AND TWO ANNEXE BUILDINGS. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE. 182

FIG.74 PLAN OF THE KOBAYASHI HOUSE MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE.

FIG.73 PLAN OF THE MATSUMOTO HOUSE. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE.

183 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.75 FACADE OF THE KOBAYASHI HOUSE. SHIMOTAYA STYLE, THE HOUSE IS RECESSED FROM THE STREET. NOTE THE HIGH WOODEN FENCE,TAKABEI, AS A HALLMARK OF THE STYLE. RS.

structures there are courtyard and outbuildings of Each of the houses studied illustrates the aesthet- different types. These courtyard buildings are so- ic integrity of the historic urban dwelling and metimes even older than the main structures. The Kyoto’s architectural heritage. Much labour and newest of the houses was the Naka house, built money has been spent keeping these houses care- in 1930 in a highly traditional wooden frame style. fully preserved. Moreover, most of the families have All the families residing in the houses have lived deliberately chosen the machiya lifestyle, in other in Kyoto for many generations. The people resid- words, living in a traditional townhouse. Though ing in these houses are occupied in traditional ordinary urban dwellings, all the houses have ma- industries, so that they present a cross section of ny fine qualities. Besides having well preserved the social profile of the city centre. main structures many of the houses have one or Mr. Fukuyama is a textile dealer and kimono two massive storehouses which add to the high designer, Mr. Nakae a kimono wholesale dealer architectural qualities of the site. In addition, there and Mr. Matsumoto with his wife are kimono are private tea ceremony houses and annexe build- manufacturers. Mr. Ito and Mr. Naka are retired. ings used as guest houses. All these structures add In the pre-modern Kyoto the production and to the charm and high standard of this lifestyle. trading cloth was closely integrated with its The dwelling plans as parameters of the tradi- wooden town architecture and the machiya life- tional lifestyle offer great variety and inventiveness style. In these houses work and family life have as all the houses have been adapted to changing been almost inseparable for generations. Of the conditions and modern lifestyle. Compared with seven houses, the Matsumoto house is the only the cramped conditions of modern urban dwel- one which is still used as a dwelling and ma- lings and the standard mini apartments dominat- nufacturing space. The Fukuyama and the Nakae ing the housing market, these houses offer many 1 houses although residences earlier, now serve as luxuries that most middle class families can only offices for family enterprises, while the Kobayashi, envy. There is abundant storage space, working Ito, Matsumoto, Naka and Nakae 2 houses are space at home and an annexe for the older gen- used as residences. Two of the houses, the Ito and eration, all examples of the high dwelling standard the Fukuyama houses, are known for their exhi- these houses offer to their residents. Most of the bition function during the Gion Festival, which houses have been recently renovated so that they lends them the status of local landmarks. also have all modern commodities. 184 Although all are representatives of the build- Since the construction operation, the house gets ing types that evolved on the deep sites, they are sunlight for only a few hours a day in winter. In of different types; the variation itself being one fas- the beautiful back garden the visitor is moved to cinating feature of the historic urban dwelling and another world: there is a garden shrine dedicated the urban heritage of Kyoto. All the houses have to Hachi Dai Ryo¯, a White Snake, (because of the a very distinct personality, identity and character snakes that used to lived in the garden still before which leave a strong impression on the visitor and the Second World War), the old storehouse and which clearly distinguish Kyoto from other Japa- some old camellia trees. nese towns. Except the Naka house, which has The family is one of the families who partici- been carefully maintained in its authentic con- pate in the public exhibition during the Gion dition, all the houses have gone through changes Festival giving the house the status of a local land- either minor or major, which add to, rather than mark. In this neighbourhood the exhibition is deplete their charm. rotated between a number of families. Iwatoyama- A description of the houses is given below. cho¯ is one of those hoko neighbourhoods where the public exhibition is organised in private The Fukuyama House. Kyoto shi, homes. Shimogyo¯-ku, Shinmachido¯ri Takatsuji Agaru. Iwatoyamacho¯. The Ito House. Kyoto-shi, Shimogyo¯-ku, The house was purchased in the Meiji period by Nishi no To¯in Ayanoko¯ji Nishi Iru Minami the grandfather of Mr. Fukuyama. The oldest struc- Kawa. Ashikariyamacho¯. ture on the site is the storehouse, which is thought The house was built in 1890 by the grandfather to be more than a hundred and eighty years old. of Mr. Ito. The family has lived on the same site Mr. Fukuyama is a wholesale dealer for Japanese since 1760. The present owner is an eighth gene- kimono textiles and also, a kimono obi designer for ration, his daughter a ninth generation and their the Nishijin weaving industry. Mr. Fukuyama wants seven-year-old grandson a tenth generation Ky- to keep the old house but he is uncertain whether oto resident. All documents concerning the histo- his daughters will be able to keep the property ry of the family were burnt in the city fire of 1864. after him although the family will continue the Before the Meiji era the family specialised in the kimono business. The surrounding area is charac- dying of the upper part of men’s festival kimonos. terised by new high-rise buildings. 153 The business, however, ceased more than a A remarkable part of the interior (the omote- hundred years ago. The family owns land and ur- noma, the front room, in particular) has been kept ban tenant houses in the neighbourhood. As in the unchanged since the great typhoon in the Taisho other houses, one of the aesthetic foci is the gar- era and has the interior furnishing of that peri- den, an essential element of the Kyoto townhouse. od. The family moved out in 1970 and the build- Three garden shrines are dedicated to the Inari san, ing has since been used as office space for the to the Benten san and to the Great Sun Buddha, family enterprise. Except for deformations in str- Dainichi Nyorai. At the back of the garden there uctural parts caused by the construction of high- is a tea ceremony house, which was built in 1933. rise buildings in the neighbourhood, the house is The site, which is almost 50 metres long, is excep- in good condition. The earth floor area has gone tionally deep. through remodelling and the stone floor, the old The earth floor area, doma, was originally two cooking range and the well have been demolished. and a half ken wide (approximately five metres), The structural members are, however, still exposed but was remodelled in the 1940s. It is now much A small pool designed by Mr. Fukuyama's fat- narrower. The cooking range, kamado, was demo- her in the early 1920s was demolished when a lished but the well still exists. On the ground floor studio was built in the middle garden (nakaniwa). there are the following rooms: omotenoma, genkan

185 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK no ma, nakanoma, daidokoro, oku, niwa, chashitsu The Kobayashi House. Kyoto-shi, (front, entrance, middle, kitchen, back, garden, tea- Nagakyo¯-ku, Nishi-no-To¯in. ceremony room). On the upper floor two tatami The house is designed in the takabei-tsukuri style, rooms have been joined to form one large room. which means that the main two- storey structure The family album is full of pictures of the Gion is recessed from the street and instead of a facade Festival. Among the family treasures are many there is a high wooden fence. The only opening valuable historic screens from the Meiji and Edo is the gate at the eastern end of the fence. The periods. According to Mr. Ito, the family was the entrance to the house is reached through a small only family in the neighbourhood which had fine front garden. As in the Fukuyama house, the mid- screens to display. However, the family has not dle garden, nakaniwa, has been rebuilt. It is now a participated in the festival since the Second World western style living room. The zashiki, parlour is War. Mr. Ito, who is now 75 years old, and his wife one of the largest among the houses studied with want to keep the old house as long as they live, fine sukiya style design and with such architectural but they do not know what will happen after elements as picture alcove, tokonoma, shelf, tana, them. The machiya style house needs repair and and lute-alcove, biwa-toko . 154 The size of the guest renovation that the present owner cannot afford. room is 10 mats. At the rear of the site there is an

FIG.76 INTERIOR OF THE NAKAE 1 HOUSE. VIEW FROM FIG.77 INTERIOR OF THE NAKA HOUSE. VIEW OF THE THE EARTH FLOOR AREA, TO¯ RINIWA. RS. EARTH FLOOR CORRIDOR, TO¯ RINIWA. THE STRUCTURAL PARTS SHOW A SOPHISTICATED WOODWORK WITH A COMBINATION OF DIFFERENT WOODEN MATERIALS. RS. 186

FIG.78 GARDEN OF THE NAKAE HOUSES WITH A STONE LANTERN AND STEPPING STONES. IN THE BACKGROUND A BAMBOO FENCE – ALL ELEGANT ELEMENTS OF A KYOTO TOWNHOUSE. RS.

annexe building with two floors. The earth floor konoma, a shelf, and a writing desk. All show ex- area, doma, is excellently preserved. Because of its cellent materials and design. The ranma partition, fine interior spaces and other architectural qual- the wood work between the horizontal lintel and ities, the house was considered to have potential ceiling in the living room is made of dark as a cultural asset. 155 Japanese kurogaki wood, a rare and expensive material today. Due to a special mortar-bamboo The Matsumoto House. Kyoto shi, technique the interior walls have kept their sur- Nakagyo¯-ku, Ogawado¯ri Rokkaku Sagaru face in perfect condition without shrinking or any Higashi Iru. Motohonnojicho¯. other visible damage. The upper floor is used as The house was built in 1888. The old smoke and working space, where the kimono silk textiles are ventilation opening can still be seen in the roof. painted. A major remodelling took place a few years ago The family is the third generation in the Ni- when the kitchen was modernised and the bath- shijin kimono textile industry. They are known as room and a new guest room annexe added using specialists in a craft known as gold painting.156 traditional carpentry techniques. The house is a This technique is the final stage in kimono ma- very good example of how the historic urban king. It resembles modern airbrush technique, dwelling has been successfully adapted to chang- through which the painted figures get their final ing lifestyles and renovated without violating too touch and artistic finishing. But, as Mrs. Matsumo- much the authentic atmosphere of the old house. to said, such work is ‘very boring to do every day’. As a two-generation residence the house offers a The family, which has been granted the Award of luxurious standard which includes, among other the Kyoto Handicraft Union, has no successor. things, a small tea ceremony annexe. Also, the The Nishijin kimono industry is in great econ- neighbourhood is exceptionally well preserved. omic difficulties. Twenty-seven wooden houses survive in the nei- ghbourhood. This is one of those places in the city The Naka House. Kyoto shi, Kamikyo¯-ku, centre where we can still sense the unspoiled at- Muromachi Oike Agaru, Higashikawa. mosphere of the historic neighbourhoods. The house was designed by the father of Mr. Naka In the floor plan the earth floor area runs along who was an architect, and built using the same the southern side of the house and five living design methods and techniques as the Kyoto Shi- rooms are grouped along it. The width of the mabara Sumiya residence, a building that is famous earth floor area is 1 ken (approximately 1.8 me- for its design and designated as a cultural asset. Be- tres). The living room, okunoma (literally: the room cause of its excellent design techniques and mate- in the rear of the house), has a picture alcove, to- rials the Naka house has all the qualities of a

187 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK historic landmark, but as a relatively new structure mountain motif highlighted with gold paint. In from the 1930s lacks the present criterion of age. the elegant living room on the upper floor a pic- The house is designed in the takabei tsukuri , ture alcove, a shelf, a lute alcove and a writing ‘high fence style’ with a low pavilion, hiraya, on desk, are of elaborate shoin style. Mr. Naka lives the street elevation. The proportions and design alone in his beautiful house just a few metres from of the street facade are, however, quite different the busy Oike Street. from that of the Kobayashi house. Especially, the design of the flat lattice window and the front The Nakae 1 and the Nakae 2 Houses. gable of the pavilion are delicate. In the interior Kyoto shi, Kamikyo¯-ku, Shinmachi Ayanoko¯ji a prominent feature of the house is an exception- Sagaru, Nishikawa. Funeyamacho¯. ally well-preserved earth floor area, doma, with a These two houses owned by the Nakae family are sophisticate wood work and with a fine combi- elegant examples of well preserved and well main- nation of different wooden materials. The posts tained urban dwellings. The Nakae 1 house, which and beams are made of Japanese pine and pale Ja- earlier was the residence and head office of the panese maple is used in the sliding doors. family enterprise, now serves as office space. The In the living room the ranma partition has a second house is used as the family residence. The

FIG.79 GARDEN OF THE MATSUMOTO HOUSE WITH RENOVATED TOILET-BATHROOM ANNEX ON THE RIGHT. RS. 188

FIG.80 INTERIOR OF THE NAKAE 1 HOUSE. VIEW FROM FIG.81 INTERIOR OF THE RENOVATED AND PARTIALLY OMOTE, OFFICE ROOM WITH OLD FURNISHINGS. THE REMODELLED NAKAE 2 HOUSE. RS. ROOM GETS SIDELIGHT FROM ABOVE. RS.

family has run a kimono wholesale business since house has been regularly repaired and is in excel- the Edo period. 157 The family, which comes from lent condition, but as Mr. Nakae said, to keep the Kameoka, near Kyoto, has lived in Kyoto for 250 old house in good shape is not only demanding years. According to family documents, the family but also very expensive. The residence went established the kimono trade in the neigh- through a major remodelling five years ago. It is bourhood in 1822. The old house burnt down in now a combination of traditional and new design the city fire in the Meiji period. The residence was elements with ‘Frank Lloyd Wright’ style interiors. built in 1870 and the storehouse one year later. The guest room has wooden board floor and it is The Nakae 1 house was built much later, in the used as a Western style dining room with a din- Meiji era, in 1907. A second storehouse and an ing table and chairs. Also the toilet-bathroom has annexe building were built two years earlier, in been rebuilt. 1905. The residence was rented after the Second World War, but it was brought back into family ownership and is now used by the family as their The Future of the Houses residence. Surrounded by high-rise buildings with their of- In both houses the low upper floor has been ten drastically changed environment, it is a mira- preserved and is used (as traditionally) as a storage cle that so many fine historic urban dwellings and space. The garden is one of the largest of the hou- traditional dwelling environments have survived ses surveyed with large stone lanterns, stepping up to the present day. In the houses studied it was stones and other traditional elements. To keep the still possible to enjoy the authentic Kyoto atmos- garden in its original shape is a demanding task phere even in the midst of the heavily changed and takes a notable amount of the yearly repara- cityscape. As an essential feature of the surveyed tion costs as they said. Compared with the spa- houses were the inner gardens, which were laid cious garden, the guest room of the Nakae 1 out and designed with at least as much care and house is surprisingly small. The elegant office skill as the wooden frame buildings. Small garden room gets side light from a ceiling window and shrines and other ceremonial characteristics add- has old furnishings. The old cooking range was ed to the heritage value of these sites. demolished and the wood heating stove for the With the increasing construction activity on bath replaced by gas in the 1930s. Except for these neighbourhood sites, it will however, be difficult changes the interior is in authentic condition. The to keep the fine domestic qualities. New buildings,

189 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK usually devoid of aesthetic quality, are being built near the old, more graceful buildings destroying their privacy and spoiling their garden scenes. As part of the commercial and business district the future of most of the surveyed sites is character- ised by great uncertainty, so that radical precau- tions will be necessary if anything of the traditional living environment is to be saved. Al- most all the houses studied face a change of gen- eration soon. This will be a critical moment not only for the houses surveyed but for many other historic urban dwellings too. Not even one of the families could be certain of the future of their house meaning that any far- sighted planning of the property was impossible. From the preservation point of view regular and continuous maintenance of a property is one of the basic necessities for economically sound preservation of the building. None of the struc- tures were considered qualified to be nominated as cultural assets, although they were acknowl- edged to have many fine qualities. 190 Fieldwork No. 5 Survey Of An Urban Tenanted Terraced House, Nagaya

Description of the Survey the street elevation, a privy-bathroom annexe at The field study below is focused on the documen- the rear and a small garden in the southeast cor- tation of the physical features of one nagaya pat- ner of the site. Between the garden and the house tern urban dwelling, the Sugiura house in runs an L-shaped veranda, engawa. Shinkamanzacho¯. The field survey is based on the The width of the house is 7.1 metres and the measurements of the house, which were carried length 8.8 metres. The size of the house is quite out in 1991 by the author and assisted by a group average for Shinkamanzacho¯.160 Compared with of students from the Nishikawa laboratory. For the the long and narrow unagi no nedoko pattern, the survey the author listed the names of the individu- site is very shallow, but typical for this kind of al rooms as family members use them: the size of urban terraced houses. From the plan organisati- the rooms, their everyday use and the storage on of the Sugiura house we can read the spatial spaces they contain. The screen display, as staged organisation and character of many other urban in the house, and the role of the house in the Gion tenanted terraced houses too. Practically all the Festival are studied separately in chapter 20. buildings along Shinkamanza Street are of simi- As a sho¯bai, in other words a textile manufactur- lar pattern. The average size of a dwelling house er’s dwelling and production space, the Sugiura in this neighbourhood is 70 sq. m. and the smal- house is divided between the space for business, lest tenanted house only 26 sq. m. Furthermore, and the production and living spaces. All the 83% of houses were less than 100 sq. m. and 25% rooms and structural members are based on the less than 50 sq. m. All buildings were less than 200 old Kyoto tatami module, which is larger than that sq. m. used today. 158 The house is the so-called omote Unlike in the usual tenement pattern, the Su- nagaya type 159 with the main structure, omote, on giura house has not shared walls with its neigh-

FIG. 82 NIWA, GARDEN. ON THE RIGHT THE TOILET-BATHROOM ANNEXE. THE SUGIURA HOUSE. RS.

191 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG. 83 BUTSUDAN, THE BUDDHIST ALTAR IN THE ZASHIKI, GUEST ROOM. IN THE FOREGROUND A TEA CEREMONY SET. THE SUGIURA HOUSE. RS.

bourhood buildings. In other words, the house ant house built for kimono artisans in the employ- cannot technically be described as a tenement. ment of the Okao family. The house was bought Because of its other nagaya like properties, the by Mr. Sugiura’s parents after the Second World author, however, keeps the nagaya categorisation War, when many tenant houses were sold to ten- throughout the work. ant families as part of the American Occupation land-reform programme. In this programme, which was carried out in 1947-49, tenant-oper- History of the Sugiura Family ated land in Japan, which had remained at about The Sugiura family came to Kyoto from Omiha- 45 % since early in the century, was reduced to chiman, Shiga Prefecture and before that from less than 10 % by banning all absentee landown- Aichi Prefecture where the family was known for ers. Generous credit terms and high inflation af- making tiles for temples. Mr. Sugiura’s father ter the war made it easy for urban tenants to moved to Kyoto when he was sixteen. Before the acquire ownership of the land at a relatively low family moved to their present house, the family price. 161 Also in Shinkamanzacho¯ a large number lived in two other houses in the same neigh- of former tenant houses were sold as was found bourhood, both of which still exist. out by the author in the survey that was referred The family has lived on the current site for in chapter 8. more than 80 years. They are one of the oldest Specialising in the dyeing and cleaning of families in the neighbourhood and the Meiji pe- kimonos, the family is one of the few kimono riod house is one of the oldest houses along manufacturer families left in Shinkamanzacho¯. Shinkamanza lane. The house was originally a ten- Most of them are retired or have changed occu- 12

192

FIG.84 ZASHIKI, GUEST ROOM WITH TOKONOMA ALCOVE. THE SUGIURA HOUSE. RS.

pation with the decline in kimono production. Before the war almost all the residents in the The Floor Plan Before neighbourhood were kimono manufacturers for The original plan organisation is that of a typical the producer-landowner Okao family, who spe- Kyoto townhouse: a long corridor with an earth cialised in the famous Kyoto shibori knot dyeing floor, to¯riniwa, runs through on the other side of technique. Today almost all the socio-economic the house and the tatami covered living rooms are ties, which 20 years ago dominated life in the organised along it. The garden is at the rear, in the neighbourhood have been broken. Except for old north-west corner of the site. Thus, even in the Mrs. Okao, who lives in the neighbourhood, all shallow nagaya sites the house is oriented towards the other members of the old landowner family its inner parts. The tiny inner gardens and their have died. Mr. Sugiura now runs his own busi- interior views were - and still are - one of the ness, working independently for his clients. The charming features of these otherwise densely built family has three daughters, two of whom are mar- urban sites. ried and have moved away. In the Sugiura house the earth floor corridor, The location of the Sugiura house and the to¯riniwa, runs through the house on the southern house of Mrs. Okao is shown in the measurement side of the site. Originally the to¯riniwa corridor drawing, Fig. 19. As can be seen from the draw- was, as usual, two floors high. Three tatami rooms, ing, the Sugiura house shows a well-preserved the omote, nakanoma, okunoma, front, middle and Meiji era wooden lattice facade with such deli- back rooms, were organised along it. The daidoko, cate carpentry elements as tobukuro, rain closet, kitchen, was originally part of the earth floor area, dego¯shi, projecting lattice bay window and wooden doma, where the washing room now is. The mid- sliding door. The house of Mrs. Okao is new but dle of the earth floor area was used as a dyeing follows the scale and style of old townhouses in space. In other words, the manufacturing function the neighbourhood. was an integral part of the function and spatial The family members resident in the house are arrangement of the tenement house. Mr. and Mrs. Sugiura and their youngest daugh- On the upper floor there were three tatami ter who, in her twenties, is one of the few young rooms in a row with the staircase in the middle people left. 162 Two of the rooms on the upper room. The balcony on the upper floor was larger floor are sublet to a young relative from Hokkaido. than now, eight mats. 13 Living Tradition or Panda’s

193 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK still be seen in places, for example the wall and The Floor Plan Now door posts. In the renewed parts the remodelling The house went through a major remodelling at has often been done with much less care and with the beginning of the 1960s when the house ser- cheap building materials. As a result the house is ved as a residence for two generations, when the currently a mixture of different materials and mother of Mr. Sugiura was still alive. The earth tastes from various periods. Rooms that survive floor area was rebuilt as only one floor high. The from the old plan organisation are the well pre- dining-kitchen was rebuilt in the middle part of served omote (room nearest the street), which the house (nakanoma) now with a wooden board functions as the working space for Mr. Sugiura, floor. A second staircase and a bathroom were zashiki, the guest room, the veranda and the gar- added. On the upper floor three rooms were di- den. Thanks to them the house still keeps the vided into six smaller rooms. Only the guest room, major traits and atmosphere of the traditional zashiki, kept its old shape. urban house. The remodelling and alterations largely ob- The plan and section of the house are shown scured the original room organisation of the in Figs. 109 and 110, as decorated for the Screen house. The old structural members can, however, Festival.

FIG.85 DAIDOKORO, MODERN KITCHEN THAT WAS BUILT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 1960’S. THE SUGIURA HOUSE. RS. 194 building was demolished to give a way for a The Future of the House parking lot. As one of the town’s potential expansion areas, Furthermore, the withering manufacturing ac- the neighbourhood around the Sugiura house tivity has increased the speed of the deterioration faces threats that have deleterious effects on its process of the built fabric of the neighbourhood. urban characteristics and life. Such threats in- A number of buildings are abandoned or empty. clude both the lack of proper conservation and Cosmetic repairs are not nearly enough to solve management policies as well as the threatening the renovation problems that the buildings along effects of the expanding business and commer- this urban tenement lane face. The location of the cial area. The urban transformation process has area behind Shijo Street increases the pressures for progressed rapidly behind Shinkamanzacho¯ af- more intensive land use. ter the fieldwork was carried out. Many old A decision on the future of the house has to buildings, which during the measurement work be made within the next couple of years. In the still were preserved, have been demolished. old house a major renovation will have to be The sites have been developed with high rise made. In particular, the privy and the bathroom buildings of eight to ten floors. One tenement need repair and partial rebuilding. The Japanese

FIG.86 OTEARAI. THE JAPANESE STYLE TOILET. THE SUGIURA HOUSE. RS.

195 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.87 FESTIVAL DECORATION OF THE SUGIURA HOUSE.SS.

style toilet will be unsuitable for an ageing cou- Conclusions of the Dwelling ple and also the bathroom (furo) needs repair. The different floor levels of a traditional Kyoto town- Pattern Fieldwork house might also cause problems if there is an There is a number of conclusions that can be aged person in a family using a wheelchair. drawn form the fieldwork. The current methods At the present moment the bathroom is used for evaluating heritage in Kyoto have not been only occasionally. The couple still follows the able to identify the heritage value of the city as a habit of visiting the local neighbourhood bath- whole. As a result, a continuous transformation house (osento¯ ) which is located only a few me- process is going on threatening not only architec- tres away from their house. For the family it turally and historically qualified and distinguished might be too expensive to hire traditional car- buildings but important parts of Kyoto’s built fab- penters for the bathroom renovation work. On ric as well. The overemphasis on landmark values the other hand, the standard ready-made bath- emphasises few spots for living environments and room units that are in the market do not fit the leaves the everyday environment as a free battle- style and atmosphere of the old house. Nor are ground for developers and land speculators. In the the ready-made units cheap. worst case, the landmark preservation leads to For the old couple the house is also too large. indifference to everyday dwelling patterns and The ageing family will discontinue manufactu- townscapes which however are important for the ring activity in a few years’ time. One potential understanding and reading of the town as a whole. vision for the family is to develop the site, pos- Instead of geometrically shaped and clearly de- sibly, in cooperation with the neighbouring sites. fined and architecturally unified urban blocks Joint speculation with the sites backing on to it Kyoto is consisting of a large numbers of individ- is one option, which might provide financial ual spots each site adding its own variation to the return but which would also risk the physical in- total picture of the whole. The preservation of few tegrity in this part of the neighbourhood. Mrs. landmarks is meaningless if the immediate envi- Sugiura is also worried about the future of the ronment around the protected houses is changed Screen Festival and whether it will be possible to a concrete jungle (as the author observed in the for her to continue the display in this place. site surveys) spoiling garden views, lighting cir- cumstances and privacy on the sites. Thus, the 196 damage caused by individual new buildings amidst 2) that the city planners begin to regard the or- old quarters in such cities as Paris or Helsinki is dinary building stock as worthy of renovation and far not so great than in Kyoto and can, in best this view is adapted into housing policy pro- cases, be maid quite organically. grammes and plans, Most of the preservation problems that were 3) that the heritage evaluation assessment involved on the surveyed sites, were related to the methods are developed so that they concern the city planning problems as a whole. For any her- requirements of vernacular buildings and all their itage evaluation to be successful, these basic prob- value categories. lems should be solved first. Moreover, it is In Finland the discussion on urban conserva- questionable if the current heritage methodolo- tion began at the end of the 1960s when the con- gies are a right evaluation tool. The evaluation servation and repair of wooden working class areas methods that take concern only a limited number such as Käpylä and Wooden Vallila in Helsinki and of heritage values, causes the evaluation be not Porth Arthur in Turku became topical. The pres- only absurd but also utterly harmful. Even today ervation problems of these areas were very simi- there is no legal protection for any of these struc- lar to areas now described. tures and even in the case they were protected, In Kyoto there might be better ground for pres- they could be protected only as museum objects ervation discussion now than before. In the 1992- thus freezing their life within. 1997 municipal housing programme a shift of focus Compared to the historic urban dwellings, the of public housing policy could be observed for the tenement building stock is, if possible, even more first time. According to this programme the focus difficult to evaluate in cultural heritage or archi- of housing policy is gradually moving from the tectural terms. The current threat to the building suburban areas to the city centre and thus, to the stock is a direct result of the city planning meth- historic city neighbourhoods. This new develop- ods so that they should be changed first. Another ment has occurred at the same time, as there is a question is whether even the right city planning growing number of ageing people living in the city policies can work effectively if they are not com- centre. Although the new trend lends hope, that bined with effective urban renovation plans. The public housing policy could gradually be moved minimum demand for all the surveyed sites should away from new production to renovation and mod- be: ernisation of the old building stock, as late as in 1) that the heritage value of the everyday build- 1997, the municipal renewal proposals that were ings and sites is acknowledged and this view is under planning on such urban tenements lanes as integrated in the general approach to city plan- Shinkamanzacho¯, were based on a radical rebuild- ning and methodologies used, ing and reshaping of the old environment.

197 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

Chapter 21 Introduction to the Fieldwork on Cultural and Urban Patterns of the Screen Festival.

General Outline of the Fieldwork as to their size, period, painter’s name and themes. Compared with the Gion Festival, which in Kyoto In the first place, the present study is not an art- has been the topic of a mountain of scholarly historical study of screens, but a study which is fo- studies, the Screen Festival has been studied only cused on the cultural and urban patterns of the occasionally, and even then, from the point of displays. An essential part of the cultural value of view of the historic screens. The Yamahoko inves- the display tradition is understood to be the ur- tigation was one of the first surveys which aimed ban context. to assess the wider, urban context of the displays. This is also the major aim of the current research. The analysis is based on on-site fieldwork that The Hayakawa Survey in 1977 the author carried out in Kyoto as a member of The main source of information for the analysis, the Yamahoko team. Approximately one hundred apart from the fieldwork, was a master’s thesis neighbourhoods were examined, including listing study carried out by the architect Masuhiko more than 134 articles and 160 screens. The field- Hayakawa at Kyoto University in the laboratory work had to be carried out in a very short peri- of Prof. Atsushi Ueda in 1977. Prof. Ueda is a od of time because most of the screens were well-known advocate for Japanese architecture in publicly displayed for only a few hours during the Japan and abroad. He initiated the exhibition on two festival nights. As an integral part of the Yama- the Kyoto townhouse, Kyo¯-Machiya, in the Kyoto hoko survey the individual screens were analysed Museum in 1990. He is also the author of The and surveyed by a group of art history students Inner Harmony of the Japanese House (Kodansha: 198 Tokyo 1990). The exhibition and the book have forced concrete) and the general character (high served as an important source of inspiration for rise/traditional) of the exhibition facilities are the current work. examined. In the Hayakawa survey, all the displays in and Fieldwork no. 8 is a documentation of the man- around the hoko neighbourhoods were systemat- ifold display patterns that exist in the festival. The ically recorded and analysed. Through this survey focus of interest is on traditional displays and in the author gained useful information about the particular, on the inter-relationship between the history and profile of individual displays in the house and the street. In other words, the fieldwork cross-section period 20 years ago. 1977 was one focuses on the urban patterns of the festival. of the years when the speed of urban change was In Fieldwork no. 9 the cultural know-how and at its peak. The number of displays had dropped the staging technique are studied in detail using to a very low number. However, many traditional one ordinary kimono home display as an exam- displays of high artistic quality still existed then. ple. The home display described illustrates the un- The Hayakawa survey although it may differ in pretentious kimono artisan home displays that technicalities such as the slightly different outlin- flourish particularly outside the hoko neighbour- ing of the survey area, provided a useful source of hoods. Through this fieldwork the author also reference and a comparison survey for the present acquired knowledge of the manifold value-judge- inventory, where the author draws the current ments and meanings an individual, displaying per- cross-section profile of the Screen Festival. son may attach to the festival. In Fieldwork no. 10 the author draws the pro- file of seventeen individual displays. They include Content of the Fieldwork a sample collection of the most prominent displays The content of the fieldwork is as follows: today. All these displays are important local land- Fieldwork no.6 is a short introduction to the dis- marks. The focus of study is on the urban quali- played articles. Even now the folding screens are ties of the displays, rather than on the description the major content and visual focus of the displays. and arthistorical value of individual screens. Qual- In addition, luxurious kimonos and other kimo- itative changes in the festival are described through no related silk textiles are on display. the example of two traditional displays that are Fieldwork no. 7 is a cross-section of the present now shown in a modern (reinforced concrete) day festival. In particular, the author focuses on setting. the current profile of the displays, such as the The survey area was bounded by Oike Street number and location of the displays. The profes- in the north, Horikawa Street in the west, Kara- sions and occupational fields of those who dis- suma Street in the east and Takatsuji Street in the play are also investigated and certain properties south. The lining of the survey area can bee seen such as the construction material (wood/rein- in the survey map, in Fig. 2.

199 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Fieldwork No.6 The Profile of the Displayed Articles

The Aim of the Fieldwork General Description of the Screens In the following investigation the author pays at- Although an expert, art historian study of the tention particularly to the role of home treasures screens was outside the scope of the thesis, the fol- and folding screens.163 Still today, the home treas- lowing information is aimed to orientate the read- ures play a dominant role in the festival empha- er about the main characteristics of the exhibited sising the contextual and place values of the screens. In general and as it turned out in the festival. Aside from the screens, that are the ma- fieldwork, it is impossible to give a simple and jor visual foci of the displays, the author counted consistent classification scheme for the different 23 different kinds of articles that had been put on kinds of screens which are exhibited, because of display. Thus elegant kimonos and kimono texti- the great variety of styles, painting themes and les, picture scrolls, old armour, wooden models of periods represented. The author has limited her- festival floats and classical flower arrangements add self to some of the most common themes and sty- to the charm of the displays. The elegance of the les and to the major painters and painting schools. display depends not so much on the number of As to the age of the screens, besides many con- displayed articles, but rather on the artistic setting temporary screens from the beginning or middle and the choice of items. In other words, the aes- of this century, there are many fine screens from thetic and visual value is as much in the ensem- the Meiji and Edo periods. Kyoto was one of the ble as in the individual items that are on display. centres, where with the growing interest in Japa- An essential part of the charm of the displays is nese aesthetics in Europe in the 19th century, their relationship with the audience and the street. antique screens were copied in large numbers to be exported to foreign countries. Most of the screens seen in the festival are such copies of fa- mous, older screens. For the details of the screens the author consulted art historian, Assoc. Prof. Ms.

FIG.88 MATSU - TSURU - PINES AND CRANES, A FIG.89 WOODEN MODEL OF THE FESTIVAL FLOAT IN THE COMBINATION THAT IS REGARDED AS AUSPICIOUS. MORII DISPLAY, KANDAIJINCHO¯ . RS. THE MATSUMI DISPLAY. YAMADACHO¯ . RS. 200

FIG.90 A JAPANESE EAGLE IS PAINTED ON EACH LEAVE OF THE MAIN SCREEN. THE KONDA DISPLAY, EBO¯ SHACHO¯ . RS.

Iwama, who with her students investigated and The Gion Festival Exhibition in 1983-84 classified all the screens in the festival. Two exhi- The exhibition was organised by three authori- bition catalogues (in Japanese) provided in- ties concerned about the future of the Gion Fes- formation on individual, historically valuable, tival. Among the art treasures, besides nine screens. wooden models of the festival floats and four pic- ture scrolls, there were eight screens owned by Exhibition at the Municipal Museum of Art private collectors. Two of the screens are still dis- in 1975 played in the festival: A pair of six-leaved Rakuchu¯ - In the exhibition 38 screens from different peri- Rakugai screens from the Edo period seen in the ods and painters were collected in and around Ikegaki display (display no. 4) and a two-leaved the city centre. Some of the screens are still ex- Gion Sairei Zu screen seen in the Ueno display hibited in the current festival, such as screens in (display no. 13). the Matsushita display (display no. 50), a set of screens depicting bamboo by Tsuji Kako in the Arakawa display (display no. 24) and a set of The Age and Topics of the Screens screens from the Edo period, which portray hu- At the moment, besides ordinary screens made by nting on Mount Fuji, in the Ichihara display urban artisans, there are fine screens from almost (display no. 46). all the major Kyoto painting schools. These paint-

201 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK ings demonstrate not only the high artistic level ing ‘twenty-four legends depicting happy parent- and historic value of individual screens, but also hood’. the high cultural level of the whole festival. This Among the historical painting motives one group of screens includes, to mention only some common genre are the Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai screens, of them, paintings from the famous Kano school, which are Edo period or later copies of the orig- (which Yasunari Kawabata mentioned in his com- inals. Like the original paintings, they portray ments on the Screen Festival), the Sumiyoshi Kyoto at different seasons, and show events in and school and the Hasegawa school, which are all around the capital. Among this genre of screens well-known historical Kyoto painting schools. there is a fine museum-piece screen from the Among individual painters there are such re- middle of the Edo period in the Ikegaki display nowned painters as Tessai Tomioka (1836-1924), (display no. 4), which was mentioned in the ex- Shonen Suzuki and Shiko Watanabe. The oldest hibition catalogue above. Furthermore, in the screen is a painting by Donshu Ohara (-1587) Issetso display there is a fine Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai portraying a Japanese festival. Besides these histor- screen from the same period. This screen portrays, ically valuable museum-piece screens, there are among other events, the Gion Festival. The dis- many ordinary screens made by urban artisans. play, unfortunately, is not accessible to public view. Altogether the author identified four major The fourth group of paintings deals with sea- groups of painting topics and themes: sonal themes. Since the Gion Festival was viewed A large majority of screens deals with Chinese as celebrating the summer season, themes with painting themes. In this group are black and white seasonal references are common. In the seasonal paintings with classic landscape themes such as category are, for example, such screens as ‘kimono paintings depicting mountains and water. Other ladies looking at fire-flies in the moonlight’ refer- popular painting motifs are pine trees and cranes, ring to a popular leisure activity in late summer matsu and tsuru, a combination which has tradi- eves in Kyoto, even today. Other paintings with tionally been considered auspicious (see, for in- seasonal themes are screens and picture scrolls that stance, the Matsumi display: display no. 39, Fig. 88) derive their themes directly from the Gion Fes- Among the philosophical themes there are such tival, and also screens which, like many float combinations as the Japanese koto instrument, sho¯gi decorations, refer to the water element. One of game and sumie, ink-painting teacher164 as in the the most fascinating screens among this genre Imae display (display no. 6) or an ink painting tea- is a screen which depicts colourful Kyoto fans cher among his students as in the Komatsu dis- painted as if floating under the water. This screen play (display no. 32, Fig. 118). In the philosophical is shown in the Komatsu display in Ennogyo¯jacho¯ category of paintings there is also a screen show- (see Fig. 94). Not all seasonal screens, however, de-

FIG.91 AN ANTIQUE TAPESTRY IN THE FUKUI DISPLAY, HAKURAKUTENCHO¯ . AN EXAMPLE OF THE REVITALIZATION OF THE FESTIVAL. RS. 202

FIG.92 KIMONO OBI IN THE IWATA DISPLAY, BANOCHO¯ . RS. FIG.93 CLASSIC HYO¯ GI FLOWER ARRANGMENT IN THE ICHIHARA DISPLAY. RS.

rive their themes from this special season. There tique kimonos such as in the Komatsu display are paintings with autumn grasses and even scre- (display no. 32) to gorgeous no costume kimonos ens, which portray snowy mountains. and self-dyed kimonos. Beside kimonos other kimono related articles were on display such as The Profile of the Displayed kimono string and kimono obi, all these items being outstanding works of art. Articles Today For the survey the displayed articles were classi- Old Armour and Other Antiques fied in six major groups: screens, kimono textiles, Old armour was recorded in three displays: the armour, wooden models, other articles and flow- Matsuzakaya (display no. 27), Sakane (display no. er arrangements. 42) and Hirai (display no. 51) displays. Among other popular antiques are, for instance, Screens decorative hand-woven mats that add colour (blue In 1991-92, out of the total of 56 displays, screens mats are common) and sense of taste to the dis- were the main content of the displays in 49 of plays. them. The number of screens in one display was usually from two to four screens. Altogether the Wooden Models of Festival Floats Yamahoko team recorded more than 160 screens. Although not so old, the oldest ones were from The setting of the screens took a number of pat- the Meiji period; large wooden models depicting terns such as screens in U shape or in a row. festival floats add their charm to the festival. They are intended to be a reference to the role of the Kimonos and Kimono Textiles Muromachi district in the Gion Festival and thus The Muromachi area as one of the major centres examples of articles that are culturally and con- for Kyoto’s kimono trade, a number of luxurious text bound. Altogether the author counted sev- kimonos and kimono textiles are on display. In en large wooden models. The largest ones were particular, the number of kimonos was large in the almost two metres long. One such wooden hoko displays set up by kimono enterprises and whole- model is seen, for instance, in the Morii display, sale companies. In these displays the kimonos have see Fig. 89. an important image and business supporting role. The type of kimonos ranged from Chinese an-

203 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Flower Arrangements (display no. 46), Fig. 93. In the background there The most common of the minor exhibits are clas- is an antique screen which portrays hunting of sical flower arrangements, which add colour and boars on Mount Fuji. The screen has been listed a seasonal quality to the displays. In the Gion by heritage authorities. Festival, flower arrangements accompany other decorations. The hyo¯gi flower, in particular, is ide- Other Articles ntified with the Gion Festival. It is a flower ar- In one display the display objects were derived rangement, which demands a special technique, from the Iwatoyama float, such as the tapestries which can be mastered only after several years of which decorate the float during the procession. In practice. This arrangement is one example of the another display the focus was an antique tapestry cultural know-how of the Yamahoko kimono from 16th century Belgium. The tapestry was pur- families. These classical flower arrangements were chased for the family collection a few years ago. recorded in numerous displays. One such hyo¯gi This is one example of the recent attempts to revi- flower arrangement is seen in the Ichihara display talise the Screen Festival.

FIG. 94 COLOURFUL FANS ARE PAINTED AS IF FLOATING UNDER THE WATER. THE KOMATSU DISPLAY, ENNOGYO¯ JACHO¯ . RS. 204

FIG.95 THE CHO¯ JI DISPLAY, KAZAHAYACHO¯ . KIMONO-RELATED ARTICLES ARE ON DISPLAY. HK.

205 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Fieldwork No. 7 The Current Profile of the Screen Festival

Introduction to the Fieldwork The Profile of the Exhibition The number of kimono families exhibiting has The exhibitions are placed in three categories: fallen dramatically, particularly since the Second home displays, combination home-enterprise, and World War. A low point was reached at the end enterprise. Enterprises were divided into two sub- of the 1970s, when the number of displays fell to groups: traditional industry and industries outside only 30 displays. The city’s transformation proc- the traditional field. ess threatens the display tradition in a number of ways. In particular, the wooden town architecture Home Displays context has become endangered. In the investi- In 1977 70% of exhibits were home displays, in gation, which is focused on the general outlines other words, they were set up by private kimono of the festival, the author set up two major ob- families. 166 Also today most displays were home jectives: displays, 35 in all. The profile of home displays was as follows: home displays 1) To investigate the exact number of displays six, combination home-traditional industry 25, other home dis- 2) To investigate the current profile of the displays plays four. The number of home displays in the Yamahoko neighbourhoods was 21 and outside the hoko neighbourhoods The field material was divided into five groups: 14. Thus, particularly outside the Yamahoko neighbourhoods, the the name and address of the exhibition, the dis- home category displays formed a large percentage of the total play facility, the profile of the exhibiting person number. or company, the field of the enterprise and the display year. Displays Outside the Home Category 21 displays were outside the home category such as displays set up by kimono enterprises and The Profile of Displays in 1991-92 companies or even by large hotels and banks. During the two display years the author record- There were 17 displays outside home category ed a total of 56 display.165 An increase of 26 dis- in the hoko neighbourhoods and four outside plays was thus noted. Among the displays listed 38 these neighbourhoods. The share of these displays were within, and 18 outside the hoko neighbour- was thus large, particularly in the Yamahoko hoods. The number of displays thus increased both neighbourhoods. Most of the enterprises oper- inside and outside the hoko neighbourhoods. The ated in traditional fields. Only five displays were distribution map for 1991-92 is shown in the exhibited by enterprises outside the traditional survey map, Fig. 2. The names and addresses of the fields. individual displays are given in Appendix 6. The most frequent number of displays was recorded in Mu- Professional Profile of the Enterprise romachi Street, where there were 12 altogether. In addition, there Even today most of the participants were in the ki- were 10 displays in Shinmachi Street, six in Karasuma Street, six mono textile industry: altogether 35 displays. in Nishikiko¯ji Street and five in Ayanoko¯ji Street. 70% of the The following enterprises exhibited: kimono manufacturing displays were found along these five streets, which are the two, kimono wholesaling 25, dyeing seven, one kimono obi traditional core of the Screen Festival. maker. In addition there were such traditional fields as fan mak- ing (one), tatami making (one), manufacturing wooden boxes 206 (one), a Japanese style restaurant (one). Six displays were out- The Building Material of the Display side the traditional field. In six displays the occupation of the Facility versus the Profile of the Displaying exhibitor could not be identified. Person/Enterprise The author compared the profile of the exhibit- ing person/enterprise and the building material The Profile of the Display Facility of the exhibition facility. Outside the home cat- The author classified the display facility in two egory the vast majority of displays, 17, took place major categories: wooden/reinforced concrete in reinforced concrete structures. In the category structures. The author also observed the number of home displays the great majority, 26, took place of floors. in wooden structures. In other words, there was a correlation between the home-category and the Reinforced Concrete Structures wooden display facilities. Almost half, 26 displays, took place in reinforced concrete structures. The number in 1977 had been 10, thus there was an increase of 16 displays. Summary In the hoko neighbourhoods there were displays in 20 rein- Below the author will draw conclusions focusing forced concrete structures, more than half of the total. Outside especially on two major issues: the hoko neighbourhoods the number of these displays was only six. 1) The general profile of the displays 2) Current trends Wooden Structures Among the display facilities there were altogeth- The General Profile of the Displays er 30 wooden structures. Among them 18 were The survey recorded a general increase in the nu- investigated in the hoko neighbourhoods and 12 mber of displays. The number of displays almost outside them. Outside the hoko neighbourhoods doubled over the past 15 years. Moreover, of the the share of wooden structures was thus, still rel- 30 displays, which existed in 1977, only 13 or 14 atively large. Furthermore, of the wooden struc- displays could be identified as having survived up tures, 20 had a machiya shape, in other words, a to now. Thus, the number of new displays was traditional wooden frame facade. Kanban, shop even greater than would appear from the num- sign facade, was recorded in seven displays. Three bers alone. It is thus no exaggeration to say that displays took place in rebuilt wooden structures, the festival has been undergoing a revival during which were designed in the traditional town- recent years. Displays along Muromachi Street house, machiya, style.167 particularly, the traditional core of the festival, inc- reased. There were only two displays in 1977, so Number of Floors the increase to 12 displays is remarkable. More- Three categories were used for the number of over, the physical changes in the built environ- floors: those with two or less floors, those with ment did not notably affect the growth in the three to five floors and those with more than five number of displays. 62% of buildings along floors. 30 display facilities had two floors, 17 had Muromachi Street are reinforced concrete three to five floors, 9 had more than five floors. structures. 38 buildings had three or fewer floors. Thus, most Furthermore, a very traditional profile of those of the exhibition facilities were still of relatively who display was recorded. The kimono industry small scale. has kept a strong foothold in the festival. The screen displays continue to be a highly appreci- ated tradition of the Muromachi kimono families. The Union of the Kyoto Textile Industry has

207 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK played an important role in the revival of the fes- mono field). Outside the Yamahoko area the tival. In the middle seventies it had an image number of home displays was, however, still rela- boosting campaign to promote the kimono tex- tively large. tile industry. With this objective in mind it also Furthermore, related to the later trend, there is promoted such traditions as the Screen Festival.168 a gradual disappearance of the wooden townhouse The large number of kimono textile enterprises, context. The number of displays in reinforced which participate in the festival, demonstrates that concrete structures increased being now almost these efforts have not been in vain half of all displays. This is a large number and not The general atmosphere now might be differ- without an effect on the atmosphere and charac- ent from 15 years ago. With the extensive media ter of displays. interest in traditional events there might now be a higher degree of public awareness of such tradi- tions as the Screen Festival. The display is seen as a source of local pride. According to this survey, the kimono enterprises are very much involved in the festival and the number of kimono enter- prises has even increased. Even the number of home displays, against our expectations, was able to grow. Besides kimono merchant families many ordinary kimono artisan families participate in the festival.

Current Trends One prominent feature is the disappearance of many traditional displays that were still on the scene twenty years ago The second feature is the relatively low total number of displays. The number of displays is still very low and nowhere near the number in the years before the Second World War. According to the Yamahoko survey there are only 1.08 displays per hoko neighbourhood. This is anything but promising if we consider the future of the festi- val. Furthermore, there are many hoko neighbour- hoods where no screen displays were recorded at all. The author recorded 17 such neighbourhoods already, in other words, almost half of all the hoko neighbourhoods. Third, there is a gradual disappearance of the home context. While the emphasis earlier was on kimono homes with a traditional life style, there are now many displays outside the home category. In the hoko neighbourhoods almost half of the dis- plays are now outside the home category, in oth- er words, the displays are set up by enterprises and companies (although many in the traditional ki- 13

208 Fieldwork No. 8 Investigation of the Staging Patterns

Introduction to the Fieldwork This investigation focused particularly on two The major aim of the investigation was to record things: the staging practices and patterns today. Particular attention was paid to the wooden townhouse con- 1) the traditional staging patterns text as the scenic stage of the festival. In the tradi- 2) the modern window displays tional architecture the technique of display was managed by such things as the choice of the dis- In the field survey all displays and their staging play room and by the viewing pattern. The display patterns were investigated, their plans with the could be seen through lattice, ko¯shi, partitions or the placing of individual screens drawn and photo- wooden partitions could be removed so that the graphed. The investigation form is attached in public and private domains merged into each other. Appendix 5. In addition to the material provided Ms. Iwama saw the exposed rooms as the quintes- by the Yamahoko field surveys, the survey by sence of the traditional displays: Hayakawa with its many pictures and graphic il- lustrations, provided valuable information on the “... Is not one of the great meanings of the Screen Fes- staging techniques of the festival in a cross sec- tival to be found in the way the urban dwelling is ex- tion period when major changes in the display posed as if on a stage?”169 technique had not yet taken place.

In some displays, in particular if the number of Description and Classification of screens was large, many rooms are used for the dis- play. In that case the onlooker can enter the house the Display Patterns and enjoy the screens in the inner parts of the The author studied the display patterns and the house. Then the guestroom, zashiki, is most often staging technique from three different viewpoints: used as for staging the display. In the traditional displays there is a strong sense of relationship not 1) name and location of the display room only between the onlooker and the staged screens, 2) viewing pattern and the route taken by the but also between the onlooker and the house. public

FIG.96 THE STREET PATTERN. THE DISPLAY IS VIEWED FROM THE STREET. THE KONDA DISPLAY, EBO¯ SHACHO¯ . HK. 14 Living Tradition or Panda’s

209 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.97 THE KOJIRO YOSHIDA DISPLAY IN ROKKAKUCHO¯ . THE OPEN WALL PATTERN: THE WHOLE FACADE IS OPEN TO THE STREET. HK.

3) partition between the outdoor and indoor Name and Location of the Display space. Room Through this classification the author hoped to The author used four categories depending on the get a exact picture of the manifold of the display location of the room: patterns that exist in the festival and also, to get tools through which to analyse the changing Pattern A, Room Next to the Street trends in the festival. The present analysis is the The Screen Festival is concerned with the impact first comprehensive study on the urban patterns on the street, the most popular room for staging of the Screen Festival. In describing the names of screens is usually the room next to the street the display rooms and display patterns the author (omote). According to Hayakawa in the tradition- uses terms that the Japanese researchteam used in al displays the rooms used for the display were their work. most often such rooms as the mise-no-ma, shop, omote-no-ma, front room or omote-mise, front shop. In modern office buildings the display room is usually the shop or an office room. 210 A majority of the displays, 36 followed this pat- Pattern B was recorded in 13 displays. 11 dis- tern. Of these 18 were in wooden, 18 in rein- plays were recorded in wooden and two in rein- forced concrete structures. forced concrete structures. In this category of displays there were such fine displays as Pattern B, room in the inner parts of the the Ueno (no. 13), Matsuuma (no. 17), Kojiro Yoshida (no. 28), house Komatsu (no. 32) and Ban displays (no. 33). According to Hayakawa such rooms as the irori- noma, fireplace room, nakanoma, middle room, Pattern C, to¯riniwa, genkan, entrance hall uriba, selling room, misenoma, shop, kakobu, writ- or corridor ing room, zashiki, guest room, o¯setsuma, guestroom, In this pattern the entrance hall, or in wooden were used. Many large displays were of this pat- structures, the to¯riniwa, the earth floor corridor, is tern. Still today pattern B is mainly identified with the major stage for the display. The difference large traditional displays. If the hierarchy was not between pattern C and pattern A, is that in pat- marked clearly and the room was not tatami tern A the display room is a tatami-room while floored, the author considered the display room in pattern C it is not. as pattern C. The entrance hall was used a s place for display in nine displays. Of these, five were found in rein- forced concrete and four in wooden structures. The displays in wooden structures that took the entrance pattern, were: the Kizaki (no.18), Shimizu (no. 49), Kitagawa (no.7), Koizumi (no. 25) displays. In the reinforced concrete cate- gory were the Imae (no.6), Chikitsi (no. 31), Jumatsu (no.36), Matsushita (no. 50), and the Kyoto Hotel (no. 48) displays.

Pattern D, show window In this pattern the show-window box is decorat- ed. An example of these modern show window displays is the Itariyard display in Koiyamacho¯ (Display no. 38), which can be seen in Fig. 100. Though diverging from the more traditional dis- plays, the author included this pattern as one new type of display. There were five show-window displays alto- gether. The Furukawa display (display no. 2), which in 1992 took the entrance and home patterns, in 1991 decorated only the show-window. Thus the number of show-window displays in that year was six.

Viewing Pattern and the Route Taken by Public The effectiveness of the display depends on how the onlooker observes the display. An essential as- FIG.98 OIE, HOME PATTERN. PERSPECTIVE DRAWING OF THE BAN DISPLAY BY THE AUTHOR. THE SCREENS ARE pect in the viewing pattern is how the relation- DISPLAYED IN THE GUESTROOM. ship between the audience and the house is

211 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.99 MISENOMA-TO¯ RINIWA, SHOP-ENTRANCE PATTERN. PERSPECTIVE DRAWING OF THE SUGIURA. DISPLAY BY THE AUTHOR.

manipulated. In Japan, the visitor is regarded to Pattern A. The screens are displayed in the stay outside house as long as she keeps her shoes misenoma (shop) and the audience views and is standing in the earth floor area (doma) of the display from the adjoining entrance the house. Only when she leaves her shoes, the space visitor is allowed to enter the tatami area. In oth- The screens are displayed in the tatami area and er words, as soon as the visitor has entered the the screens are viewed in the entrance hall with- tatami area, the visitor is regarded to have entered out leaving shoes. In 1977 most of the displays the house. In the Screen Festival this relationship were of this pattern A. It continues to be com- is manipulated in a number of ways. Hayakawa mon. Fig. 99 shows the general principle of the observed three basic patterns: misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop-entrance pattern. The example is taken from the Sugiura house in 1) from the street, without entering the house Shinkamanzacho¯ (display no. 44). The shop-en- 2) from the entrance hall in the earth floor area trance pattern is not limited to traditional displays, without entering the tatami area. but can be found in modern reinforced concrete 3) in the tatami room. Hayakawa named this structures too. viewing pattern as the oie pattern, home Altogether 24 displays took the entrance pattern, because the viewer or audience in this pattern. This was more than one third of all pattern literally enters the house. As a display displays. The entrance pattern was mainly identi- room can be used any of the tatami rooms in fied with the wooden buildings. Of all entrance the inner parts of the house. The author patterns 20 displays took place in wooden keeps the same classification. structures. Only four examples of the entrance pattern were found in reinforced concrete structures. The author divided the entrance pattern into two sub- groups: 212

FIG.100 MODERN WINDOW BOX PATTERN. ITARIYARD, FIG. 101 ENTRANCE PATTERN. TOHO, KOIYAMACHO¯ . RS. ROKKAKUCHO¯ . RS.

1) The display takes an asymmetrical pattern. The author calls partitions the display, and thereby the whole the asymmetrical pattern the misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop entrance house can temporarily be exposed into the street. pattern. Hayakawa did so too. The great majority, 16 displays, was In modern steel-reinforced concrete structures of the asymmetrical pattern and 14 displays of them were found most of the street patterns (if not all) are win- in wooden structures dow displays where the display is looked at 2) The display takes the frontal pattern as in some genkan, through a closed glass window. Fig. 96 shows the entrance, displays, or as in those displays which take place in principle of the street pattern or ko¯shi open pat- modern office entrances. The frontal pattern was found tern in the Konda display in Ebo¯shacho¯ (display altogether in eight displays. Of these displays six took place in no. 30). wooden and two in reinforced concrete structures. 27 displays took the street pattern. Of these, 11 displays took place in wooden and 16 in rein- Pattern B. The audience leaves the shoes in forced concrete structures, in other words, the the entrance hall, enters the house and the street pattern was largely identified with the new, screens are looked at in the house steel and reinforced concrete buildings. Perspective drawing of the Ban display in Hon- eyacho¯ (display no. 33) that is depicted in Fig. 98 Partition between the Outdoor and shows the general principle of the oie, home pat- tern. Indoor Space The oie, home pattern was recorded in 15 disp- In the classic displays communication between the lays altogether. Of these, seven were recorded in display room and the street area was managed and wooden and eight in reinforced concrete struc- regulated by the open or half-open wooden par- tures. Many displays in this category are shielded tition, ko¯shi. In new reinforced concrete structures, from public view and they are shown only the display is usually seen through an open or clo- privately. sed glass window or door. The author uses three categories: Pattern C. The display is viewed from the street Closed glass window or door This is one of the ‘classic’ patterns that evolved in This pattern has become common with rein- the context of the wooden town architecture and forced concrete and glass structures and mod- open wall. Because of the removable lattice, ko¯shi ern air conditioning. The sense of closeness

213 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.102 STREET PATTERN. KAMATA, NISHIKIKO¯ JICHO¯ . RS. FIG.103 MODIFIED OIE, HOME PATTERN. SCREENS ARE VIEWED IN THE DISPLAY ROOM. YAMASHIN, HAKURAKUTENCHO¯ . RS.

and intimacy between the displaying person open facade the public can see deep into the in- and the audience is sacrificed for security and ner parts of the house. comfort. The ko¯shi, lattice open pattern was recorded in Eight displays were viewed through a closed three displays: the Kojiro Yoshida (display no. 28), glass window or door. Of these, seven were in re- Matsuzakaya (display no. 27), and Konda (no. 30) inforced concrete structures. displays. They were all among the most beautiful Displays in reinforced concrete structures were: the Morita- displays in the festival. In addition, some displays ka (display no. 14), Nakamura (display no. 19), Kawarazaki could be seen through a half-open wooden par- (display no. 20), Eibien (display no. 21), Arakawa (display no. 24), tition such as the Morii (display no. 41) and Mi- Yasuda (display no. 45), Senso (display no. 53) displays. Only one yagawa displays (display no. 43) adding a charming of these categories of displays was found in a wooden structure: element to these displays. display no. 1, the Nakao display.

Open window or door Summary The relationship between the house and the au- Because many displays took more than one dience is more intimate than above. display pattern, we considered different combi- In five displays the partition was an open glass nations and classified the displays into six catego- door. ries: Of these displays the Yamada (display no. 56), Ikegaki (display no. 4), Fukui (display no. 22), Ichida (display no. 26) were dis- 1) The street pattern, 19 displays played in reinforced concrete structures. Koizumi (display no. 25) 2) The entrance pattern, 17 displays was displayed in a wooden structure. 3) The street and the entrance pattern, five disp- lays Wooden lattice ko¯shi partition 4) The street and the oie, home pattern, two dis- The display is viewed through lattice ko¯shi parti- plays tion or ko¯shi partition is removed. This is the classic 5) The oie, home pattern, 11 displays traditional pattern that can be found only in the 6) The oie, home pattern and the entrance pat- wooden town house context. It is thus one of the tern, two displays unique cultural patterns of the festival. The audi- [Total 56 displays] ence stands outside the house, but because of the 214

FIG.104 ENTRANCE PATTERN. KAMATA, NISHIKIKO¯ JICHO¯ . RS.

Large majority of displays took the misenoma- tern. In this pattern the audience stands outside to¯riniwa, entrance pattern, where the onlooker has the house in the street but the whole house is access to the entrance hall of the house, but is not exposed into the street. This is a traditional pat- encouraged to enter the tatami area of the house. tern with a sense of closeness and a strong expe- This is a semi-public pattern where the audience rience of place. The number of these patterns is or visitor can partially enter the building but is still low. Only three displays were recorded with this officially regarded as standing outside the house. pattern. This is an alarming trend, if we think of This is one of the traditional patterns, which is still the successful continuity of the festival. Only one very much used and alive today. According to our of them, the Kojiro Yoshida display in Rokkaku- survey, the entrance pattern was mostly identified, cho¯, shows a completely open wall where the as would be expected, with the wooden structures whole house is exposed to the street and the pub- but could be found in small numbers in reinforced lic can see through the open wall deep into the concrete structures as well. inner parts of the house. Beside the entrance pattern a small number of Furthermore, there were a number of oie, wooden structures took the open wall, ko¯shi pat- home patterns. In this pattern the audience lit-

215 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.105 STREET PATTERN. THE KOJIRU YOSHIDA DISPLAY. ROKKAKUCHO¯ . RS.

erary enters the house. The irony, however is, that A relatively large number of displays is today most of these displays were closed off from pub- looked at through a closed glass window. When lic view and could be viewed for the survey only examined from the visual effectiveness of the dis- by special permission. There were many fine dis- play, the window pattern appears to embody a plays in this category including Matsuuma in fundamental shift in the idea of the staging tradi- Shijocho¯ and Imae in Uradeyamacho¯. The pattern tion. The effect is superficial when compared with itself is not bound to the wooden town house the more classic displays. Nor is the large number context, but can be found in modern structures of window displays very promising if we think of as well. This however, necessitates that there is a the continuity of the atmosphere and authenticity clear articulation between the tatami area and the festival. Closing off the displays behind a glass other, more public parts of the house. An exam- wall, although understandable from the displaying ple of a successful adaptation is the Komatsu person’s point of view, is one of the unfortunate display in Ennogyo¯ jacho¯. The display is also trends which has come about in recent years. The worth of noting because of its many fine historic number of these displays is already alarmingly high, screens. degrading essential urban values in the festival. 216

FIG.106 THE KONDA DISPLAY. EBO¯ SHACHI. RS.

217 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Fieldwork No. 9 The Profile of One Kimono Home Display

Introduction to the Fieldwork giura family owns seven antique screens to be dis- The focus of the case study is the Sugiura display, played in the festival. As well as the screens, clas- a modest home display in Shinkamanzacho¯ (dis- sical tea ceremony sets, picture scrolls and other play no. 44). Without any museum-piece screens cultural artefacts are used in the display. or other precious antiques, the display portrays a As a tenant lane Shinkamanzacho¯ was never at kimono artisan’s home display of the type that the centre stage of the Gion Festival. However, flourishes particularly outside the hoko neigh- some families used to display screens. Before the bourhoods. The material for the survey was ac- war the display was dominated by the Okao fam- quired during two field surveys in 1991-92, when ily, who were the influential producers-landown- the author participated together with the family ers of the neighbourhood. In the Okao display as in the staging of the display. In the field survey, all Mr. Sugiura said: the articles that were staged for the display were examined and their position in the display investi- “… one could see from the street deep inside the house gated. Further information was acquired through between the daidokoro, kitchen, and the misenoma, shop, numerous talks and discussions with Mr. and Mrs. and splendid screens were displayed”.170 Sugiura, both before and after the festival. Compared to some displays where, the display The Okao display however, was discontinued in tradition has been continued since the Meiji or 1941. While it flourished before the Second World even Edo period, the Sugiura display is rather new. War, after the war only four families kept up the Screens and other artefacts were purchased by Mr. tradition. Today the Sugiura family is the only Sugiura’s mother. She began the display tradition family which continues the tradition in the before the Second World War. Altogether the Su- neighbourhood.

FIG. 107 THE SCREEN DISPLAY IN 1991. THE HORSE AND MONKEY SCREEN, A FLOWER ARRANGEMENT AND A FAMILY HEIRLOOM DOLL. THE SUGIURA DISPLAY. RS. 218

FIG.108 THE SCREEN DISPLAY IN THE SUGIURA HOUSE IN 1992. THE SIX-LEAVED WILLOW SCREEN. RS.

According to Mrs. Sugiura, it was Mrs. Okao, with the folding screens for the festival. The pub- the wife of the landlord, who played a vital role lic has access to the earth-floor entrance space. The in introducing the custom of the Screen Festival display takes thus the misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop-en- to this kimono artisan family. She gave advice re- trance pattern as in most home displays today. The garding the choice of articles such as the elegant family has only once removed the wooden par- tea ceremony sets and on the necessary cultural titions and exposed the house to the street since the know-how. In this way, those who were tenants Second World War. Besides the main display, the could also participate and become integrated into zashiki, guest room is also staged for the festival. the festival. Moreover, these displays gained spe- However, the guest room is shown only to private cial meaning in an environment, where tradition- guests. In the main display three screens are usu- ally only those who were landowners or house ally displayed in each year. The content of the scre- owners could participate in the Gion Festival. ens and their placing changes every year being one of the charming features of the festival. Description of the Content of the The key person in the display is Mrs. Sugiura, to whom the display and the choice of articles are Display a means to express ‘her pleasure and delight to dis- The main stage for the display is, as is usual, the play’ as she said. She thinks about the setting and omotenoma, the shop or working space, which is the mood of the display long before the actual dis- emptied of its everyday furnishing and decorated play. Furthermore, there is an explanation given

219 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK by Mr. or Mrs. Sugiura related to every item that The display in 1992 followed much the same is on the stage. Some of these explanations are pattern as in 1991. Also the number of screens was listed here, but to list all of them would have been the same. Variation was achieved through the dif- almost impossible. Many of the display items re- ferent choice of screens and flower arrangement. fer directly to the hoko area or the Gion Festival, The main screen was a six-leaved black and white such as a family heirloom doll depicting Jingu landscape screen, which portrays willows. The two Kogo, one of the symbolical figures of the Gion other screens were a Chinese mountain landscape Festival; or a black and white picture scroll, which screen (in 1991 the main screen) and a low scre- portrays Naginatahoko, the leading float in the en which contains prints of Hiroshige. Together festival procession. these three screens gave a totally different mood for the display.

The Sugiura Display in 1991-92 The Zashiki, Guestroom Display in 1991 The author divided the display according to the and 1992 displayed room into three categories: the miseno- The dining-kitchen is temporarily closed off from ma, workshop display, the zashiki, guestroom dis- view by a sliding door when the guest room is play and the outdoor space. The list of the decorated for the display. The number and plac- displayed articles, their placing in the display room ing of screens is altered each year. The pattern of and some characteristic features such as the di- display is less fixed than in the main display. Be- mensions of the displayed screens are given in sides screens, the display may include such ele- Appendix 4, table 2. The section and the plan of ments as a tea ceremony set or other family the display can be see in Figs. 109 and 110. Num- treasures that are on display. The decorations in the bers in the drawings refer to the numbers in the tokonoma alcove are an integral part of the mood appendixlist. of the display. In 1991 there was only one low screen dis- The Misenoma, Workshop Display in 1991 played. This was a two-leaved screen with prints and 1992 of Hiroshige. The theme of the prints is ’53 views In both years the screens were arranged in a loose on Tokaido’. Tokaido was the old main road be- U-form. In 1991 there were three main screens. tween Edo and Kyoto. Along this route there were The main screen was a six-leaved black and white 53 post stations and inns, which were placed so screen painted in ink. This screen depicts a Chi- that every post had some special landscape view. nese mountain landscape and it was placed in the In 1992 only one large six-leaved screen was middle of the room. In addition, there was a blue staged. This screen depicts two groups of men six-leaved screen, which portrays a Chinese Cal- catching fish on the shore with two fishing nets. endar. This screen was placed on the left side of All these screens are family heirlooms and valued the main screen. The third screen was a black and treasures of the house. white two-leaved screen. This screen portrays two Chinese horoscope animals, the horse and the Decorations Outside the House in 1991 monkey. This was placed on the right side of the and 1992 main screen. Beside screens the display included The major decoration outside the house are the such decorative elements as a pair of hand-woven festival lantern and a decorative cloth (manmaku) antique mats, a flower arrangement and sudare, with the family crest. These decorations are hung light reed screens, used as space dividers between under the lower eaves during the night time invit- the display room and the entrance space. Such ing visitors to see the display. The lantern is not only screens are a popular element in other screen dis- associated with the Screen Festival, but it is one of plays as well. the major symbols of the Gion Festival. Altogeth- 220 er five families in Shinkamanzacho¯ hung such lan- ues should include, at least, the following value terns outside their doors during the last festival categories: night in 1992. In 1991 a temporary bench was also 1) Individual interpretations and significance a installed outside the Sugiura house inviting visitors displaying person or/and the community attach- to see the festival display and the decorated house. es to the display. Among these are, for example, the social pride and the self consciousness the display- ing person has in a tradition usually described as Summary the privilege of the kimono merchant class. With its screen display the Sugiura house has 2) The deep sense of attachment to place the become a kind of temporary local landmark tak- displaying person has. In the Sugiura case it in- ing an important role in the festival. The urgen- cludes not only such physical things as the age of cy of historic preservation has already been the house (the house as the oldest structure in asserted in earlier chapters. Special sensitivity is Shinkamanzacho¯) but also social ties and family now needed to assess the heritage value of these histories in the neighbourhood. Until now social ordinary kimono home displays. The continued value has tended to mean all those values ex- cultural practice of the screen display tradition pressed by the community that fall outside the in this family is itself an important measure of professional framework. social and cultural value. Besides purely art his- 3) Public accessibility. Those who visit the Su- torical or antique arguments, that have been in giura house during the festival, Japanese and the foreground until now, the assessment of val- Western visitors alike, are all contributing to its

FIG.109 SECTION OF THE SUGIURA DISPLAY. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR.

221 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK continuation and helping to shape the culture of that place. The remoteness, darkness, or ‘difficul- ty to find’ add to rather than detract from the charm of that place. The most exciting places are those in remote lanes and unexpected places far- away from the pressing crowds of the Gion Fes- tival. 4) The display items as an ensemble. Although the individual display items might lack (expert) value, the culturally conditioned display patterns and the total setting as an ensemble adds essen- tially to their charm. Among these patterns are, for instance, such temporal patterns as the flower ar- rangements individually chosen and skilfully ar- ranged for the display. An essential aspect of the total ensemble is the wooden townhouse context without which the whole meaning of the display would be essentially degraded or even, lost.

FIG.110 PLAN OF THE SUGIURA DISPLAY. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE AUTHOR. 222 Fieldwork No. 10 Seventeen Screen Displays

Introduction to the Fieldwork The purpose of the investigation is to record the major classic displays of today. The scenic chang- es implemented by new settings are traced through two displays, which are staged in mod- ern office buildings. The material for the study was acquired through on-site field surveys. All the displays de- scribed illustrate some important aspect in the survival of the festival. Among the exhibitors there are, as before the Second World War, such pow- erful Muromachi kimono families as the Imae, Ban and Matsuzakaya families. For them the disp- lay is treasured not only as a family tradition, but the display continues to have an important image and business-supporting role. Because of the important role of ko¯shi, the open wall pattern, all of them are described below. Among them, the Kojiro Yoshida display with its fine interior spaces exposed to the street is one of the attractive foci of the whole festival. It also illustrates the listing and argumentation problems facing the protection of the exhibition structures today. In spite of its fine architectural and urban qualities, the wooden structure is not considered qualified enough as a cultural landmark. Most of the displays described take the miseno- ma-to¯riniwa, shop-entrance pattern, the most important staging pattern today. In the shop-en- trance pattern one has a partial access into the ho- use, which would otherwise be inaccessible to public view. Together with the open wall pattern, the entrance pattern illustrates cultural patterns that evolved from and essentially depend on their wooden townhouse context. This pattern has a pivotal role in manipulating the scenic effect and FIG.111 PLAN OF THE KOJIRO YOSHIDA HOUSE. the intimate scale characteristic of the traditional THERE ARE TWO INNER GARDENS IN THE PLAN festival. As the investigation shows, there are still AND AT THE BACK OF THE SITE TWO FIRE-PROOF STOREHOUSES. MEASUREMENT DRAWING BY THE many fine traditional displays with the entrance CULTURAL HERITAGE OFFICE. pattern left. They are all examples of the indispen-

223 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.112 THE BAN DISPLAY, HONEYACHO¯ . HK.

sable heritage values of the wooden townhouse Current unfortunate trends in the display tra- context. dition are illustrated, in particular, by two dis- Three of the exhibiting wooden structures, plays: the Imae and the Ikegaki displays, which the Ban, Kojiro Yoshida and Matsuzakaya hous- are located in modern, reinforced concrete struc- es, have been separately documented by the tures. Both displays are examples of the degen- municipal authorities. They were included in the erative effects the growth of the Gion Festival same book published by the Cultural Heritage into a mass event has brought to the festival. The Section that was already introduced in the ear- loss of privacy and the pressures of mass event lier chapters of this work. The book portrays have caused the originals to be screened off from historic urban dwellings in Kyoto. Although the the public: in the Ikegaki display through a glass publication is more symbolic than implementing window; in the Imae display by closing off the actual designation, it can be hoped that the pub- whole display from public view. In the Aoki and lication will increase awareness of the importan- Komatsu displays the old atmosphere is more ce of the wooden town architecture and thereby successfully preserved. Both display in rebuilt or also promote its preservation and protection. partially renovated structures. Among the three structures only the Ban house has been preserved by law. Among the display- ing townhouses, the Ban house is, therefore, in a special category of its own. 14

224

FIG.113 THE FURUKAWA DISPLAY, TENJINYAMACHO¯ . RS. FIG.114 THE KOJIRO YOSHIDA DISPLAY, ROKKAKUCHO¯ . HK.

The Ban Display. Rokkaku Karasuma Nishi Description of the Seventeen Iru Minamigawa, Honeaycho¯ Screen Displays The Ban display is one of the oldest displays in The seventeen documented screen displays were: the festival with many years of patronage and a high profile in the kimono production. The house The Furukawa Display. Nishikiko¯ji is, as already stated, one of the five ordinary town- Shinmachi Higashi Iru Minamigawa, houses, which have so far been nominated as a Tenj i nyamac ho¯. cultural asset. The nomination took place in 1990. The author chose the Furukawa display to be According to family records, the family moved portrayed here, not so much because of the disp- into the neighbourhood in 1896, in other words, layed articles, but because of its fine interior space, more than one hundred years ago. It is thought which is exposed to the viewer from the entrance that the oldest part of the house was built at that hall through the long and narrow house. There is time. The focus of the display is a famous piece a garden and a stone lantern at the rear of the of Japanese art history: a black and white screen house. This is one of those places where it is still painted by Suzuki Shonen (1848-1918) depicting possible to enjoy the charm of the traditional ar- a wolf (see Fig. 112, previous page). The display, chitecture with its long and fascinating interior which takes place in a semi-dark entrance hall, is views. Protecting and preserving even some of one of the most impressive scenes in the festival. these views would be a major step towards keep- In addition to the entrance display, a splendid dis- ing the authentic atmosphere of the festival. The play takes place in the inner parts of the house focus of the screen display is a set of four-leaved with many museum-piece screens. The elegant screens. The screens which are painted by by Abe zashiki display was photographed for the Yama- Shunpo, portray cranes and date from the Meiji hoko survey by Hiroshi Kyogoku, see Fig. 8. period. As well as the screens luxurious kimono textiles bring their own splendour to the display. The Yoshida Display. Shinmachi The Furukawa display is one of the three displays Takoyakushi Agaru Nishikawa, Rokkakucho¯ in Tenjinyamacho¯ on the southern side of Nishi- The owner of the display, Mr. Yoshida, returned kiko¯ji Street (see Fig. 113). to Kyoto twenty years ago after having studied and taught in Tokyo. As an artist, a professional painter, he appreciated the beauty and history of the Gion Festival. Mr. Yoshida is now one of the 15 Living Tradition or Panda’s

225 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.115 THE MATSUZAKAYA DISPLAY, ROKKAKUCHO¯ . RS.

key persons in the festival, who organises cultur- around the world. The display reflects his aim to al projects and art exhibitions related to the fes- keep the festival tradition, not only as a “colour- tival, many of which are held in his own house ful public display, but as something which one can in Rokkakucho¯. The house is a well-kept wood- participate in and make for oneself”.171 The staged en structure of the omoteya tsukuri machiya style kimonos are designed by Mr. Yoshida and his wife. from the Meiji period (1909). The house shows The display is one of the three surviving open wall an elevated upper floor (1935) . The wooden fa- displays and among them the one which survives cade is designed with such imposing details as the in the most open form. In the current evaluation battarishogi, a sales bench which can be lifted up system, the house is considered to be too young on the wall when not in use and put to full use to qualify as a listed or protected landmark. in such events as the urban festival. The plan of the house is shown in Fig. 111. At the back of the The Matsuzakaya Display. Shinmachi narrow and deep site there are two gorgeus store- Takoyakushi Agaru Higashigawa, houses. Rokkakucho¯ The festival tradition was continued after the With the Yoshida display the Matsuzakaya display Second World War until 1958, but was interrupted is one of the few ko¯shi open patterns and one of during Mr. Yoshida’s stay in Tokyo. In 1976, Mr. the important foci of the whole festival. The buil- Yoshida partially rebuilt and reconstructed the ding, which is the head office of the Matsuzakaya wooden facade, which now plays an important kimono company, is in the omote tsukuri machiya role in the festival. For him the house and the style with an unusual nine and a half ken width. display are an integrated whole. As he said: The house was built in 1902.The family is, with the Mitsui family, one of the oldest families in “...The proportions and the materials of the wooden Rokkakucho¯. The family moved to Kyoto in 1741 architecture harmonise naturally with the staged screens”. and into the Rokkakucho¯ neighbourhood in 1748. Today however, the display is set up by com- As an artist’s home the house itself is like a muse- pany executives. None of them lives in the neigh- um. Like many other displaying persons in the bourhood. The display has been set up with the festival Mr. Yoshida is an enthusiastic antiquarian same pattern since the 1950s. The facade is deco- and art collector. The loft studio on the upper rated with two lantern stands and a decorative floor is filled with old and new pottery, books, curtain screen with family crest. Like the Kojiro paintings and pieces of sculpture collected all Yoshida house, the Matsuzakaya house too, is one 226 of those wooden structures in the festival which suzakaya displays the Konda display is one of the deserves attention from the heritage authorities. three surviving lattice, ko¯shi open displays, and It is not the absolute antique value of the screens, therefore, in a special category of its own among but rather the whole setting that makes the her- the exhibiting townhouses. Among the fine muse- itage value of these displays. um screens there is a large screen by Kano Tsu- nenobu, a renowned Kano-school painter from The Konda Display. Muromachi Rokkaku the middle of the Edo period. The painting, which Agaru Nishikawa, Eboshacho¯. consists of two six-leaved screens, portrays the The house is built of fine quality Japanese cedar, su- Japanese eagle with one eagle painted on each leaf. gi. With spacious interior spaces, many show rooms, There is also a two-leaved screen by Okamoto fine traditional inner gardens, elegant guestrooms and Seiki, a famous Edo period painter. The screen a tea ceremony room annexe, the structure has all portrays a pine tree in a snowy landscape. the good qualities of the traditional Japanese house. The words of Edward Morse, who described the The Matsuuma Display. Shinmachi Shijo material qualities of the traditional Japanese house Sagaru Nishigawa, Shijo¯cho¯. at the end of the 19th century, could have been di- The display is a fine example of the classic home rectly taken from this house: display pattern, where the screens are enjoyed entering the tatami area of the house. The owner, “...The papers of fusuma of neutral tints, the plastered Mr. Matsuuma, who was a well-known kimono surfaces, when they occur equally tinted in similar tones, dealer, died in his fifties in 1992. Before his death warm browns and stone colours predominating; the ce- he started many initiatives for establishing funds dar board ceiling with the rich colour of that wood; the for the reconstruction of the Gaisen Fune Hoko, wood work everywhere modestly conspicuous, present- the large ship-shaped float of this neighbourhood. ing the natural colours undefiled by the painter’s mis- The ship burnt down in the city fire in the Meiji eries, these all combine to render the quiet room and period. Only the exhibition remains in Shijo¯cho¯. refined to the last degree”. 172 The family moved into the neighbourhood in Tai- sho 10 (1923). The original display was even more The wooden structures were restored a few years gorgeous than that which we see today. The dis- ago and they are in excellent condition. The au- play practice was, however, stopped because of the thor visited the house in 1993 and was shown all ‘growing low level and bad manners of the pub- the interior spaces and their screens. The public lic’.173 In other words, crowds attracted to the sees only the shop, misenoma display, through the Gion Festival themselves have began to demean open lattice window. With the Yoshida and Mat- the experience.

FIG.116 THE MATSUUMA DISPLAY, SHIJOCHO¯ . RS.

227 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.117 THE KONDA DISPLAY, EBO¯ SHACHO¯ . RS. FIG.118 THE KOMATSU DISPLAY, ENNOGYO¯ JACHO¯ . RS.

The many temporary hawker stalls in front of gant screen is one of my favourite screens in the the house, which have proliferated in recent years, festival (see Fig. 94). There is also a pair of two- spoiled the atmosphere with bad smelling oils and six leaved screens from the Meiji period. The pain- noise. The public display had already been stop- ting portrays Chinese philosophers. On one leaf ped by that time. Among the displayed screens there is a painter among his students. A further there is a museum piece Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai screen screen of note is a six-leaved screen from 1790, (paintings inside and outside the capital) from the which depicts bamboo and a full moon. The dis- Edo period. The unfortunate thing is that the dis- play is a successful example of displays that has play is no longer shown to the public. As a wood- been continued in rebuilt structures without too en structure it is, however, one of the structures much violating the scale and atmosphere of tra- that could be brought back to revitalise the open ditional displays. wall pattern. The Ueno Display. Nishikiko¯ji Karasuma The Komatsu Display. Muromachi Sanjo Nishi Iru Kitagawa, Uradeyamacho¯ Agaru Nishikawa, Ennogyo¯jacho¯ The display was documented by Hayakawa in The display takes place in a new structure, which 1977 and still survives up to the present day. As has been built in a machiya shape. A karesansui type most of the previous displays, it is an excellent ex- dry sand and stone garden and three spacious ample of the heritage value of the wooden town- storehouses survive from the previous house at the house context. Three rooms are staged for the back of the site. The storehouses are ‘full of old display. Among the many fine screens there is a paintings and screens’ as they said. The owner is a screen by Kikuchi Keigetsu, a famous Taisho- Muromachi kimono dealer who is a collector of Showa period painter. The screen portrays ‘kimo- paintings and antiques so that there are many no ladies looking at fireflies in the moonlight’. This museum-piece screens. The display room is long screen is mentioned in many guidebooks about the and narrow and the screens are viewed in the tata- Gion Festival. Another museum piece screen is a mi floored area. Thanks to this display pattern, two-leaved screen, the so-called Gion Zairei Zu much of the atmosphere of the traditional display screen. The screen is mentioned in exhibition cat- is preserved, in spite of the contextual change. alogues, which list historical screens. The wooden Among the many fine screens, one of the oldest facade in Uradeyamacho¯ is decorated for the fes- is a pair of screens from the Edo period. This set tival with a decorative festival cloth. The owner of portrays Japanese fans. They are painted in a river the display, Mr. Ueno, is a famous antique collec- landscape as if floating under the water. This ele- tor. The family operates a Japanese style restaurant. 228

FIG.119 THE UENO DISPLAY, URADEYAMACHO¯ . YT.

The Keimei Display. Bukko¯ji Karasuma sit Kyoto during the festival. The custom enjoys Nishi Iru Minamigawa, Kugikakushicho¯ great popularity. In 1993 more than five hundred The family is one of the large kimono dealer requests to rent a kimono for the festival nights families of the Shinmachi-Muromachi area with were made. many outlets and customers all around Japan. The main structure with an elaborate wooden facade The Matsumi Display. Aburanoko¯ji was built in 1936 on the southern side of Buk- Nishikiko¯ji Agaru Nishi Iru, Yamadacho¯ ko¯ji Street. In the partial rebuilding which took The house in which the display is staged is a place a few years ago, it was planned to demolish well-preserved wooden structure of the omoteya- the old facade and parts of the old house, but the tsukuri-machiya style. This is a very fine display carpenter refused to carry out the task. This house particularly because of its wooden townhouse is a good example of successful renovation, where context. It illustrates in an indisputable way the the old facade is preserved and thanks to it, the unique charm of the traditional displays. This is streetscape now keeps some of the features of the emphasised by the location of the house in a historical townscape. Behind the wooden struc- well-preserved neighbourhood that has not suf- ture there are new building parts. fered urban change. The building pressures and The screen display was revitalised some years modern city development seem to be very far ago. It has been a great success in improving the away from the quiet atmosphere of this display. business image of the company. Besides the scre- The display is located on the eastern side of en display the performance includes a baroque Aburanokoji Street, one block north from Shijo concert. In addition, two hundred cotton kimonos Street. are rented out to interested parties, mainly to The family is one of the kimono dyer fami- those in the kimono business such as a business lies of the Nishi no To¯in area. In the workshop, partner in Nagoya, who invites customers to vi- misenoma, there is a pair of two six-leaved screens.

229 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK The theme is a pine tree and cranes, which to- no ma, front room, the bay window is also decora- gether are considered an auspicious combination. ted. When the entrance door is closed, the display Furthermore, in the misenoma no genkan, work- can be peeped at through the wooden lattice win- shop entrance, there is another pair of two six- dow. This adds a charming detail to the display. The leaved screens; one two-leaved screen with gold display is within a one-minute walk of the crow- paint and calligraphy and one two-leaved screen ded Shijo Street, along a well preserved wooden which portrays Japanese cranes. The traditional lane south of Shinkamanzacho¯. I visited the Miya- architecture that surrounds the screens makes a gawa display in 1991. This house is one of those perfect setting for the beautiful display (see Figs. structures and sites where we can still experience the 88, 120). unique Kyoto concept of the interior garden views - and all this just in the very heart of the town. The Nagai Display. Nishikiko¯ji Nishi no The display has some fine museum-piece To¯in Nishi Iru Kitagawa, Kuyacho¯ screens. In this category there is, among other The display on the northern side of Nishikiko¯ji things, the main screen, which depicts the Mu- street takes the misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop-entrance sashino landscape. The screen was painted by pattern. What was said of the Matsumi display is Minagawa from the Sumiyoshi school in the also true for this display. The family is one of the middle of the Edo period. A pair of two six-lea- kimono dyer families of the area. The factory is ved screens by Taniguchi Aizan portrays Chinese on the right of the entrance space. As well as children playing. Other screens include a low screens, there is a large wooden model of the fes- screen by Kikuchi Keigetsu, a famous printer tival float, which can be found on the centre (1879-1955) and one two-leaved screen. This stage in the middle of the display room. The screen is decorated with fan-shaped paintings. theme of the main set of screens is ‘Snowy mountains’. The screen was painted at the end The Sakane Display. Shinkamanza Shijo¯ of the Meiji period. Together with the Matsumi Sagaru Higashi Iru, Suminogicho¯ display the Nagai display is one of my great fa- This is a quiet home kimono display with the mi- vourites in the festival (Fig.124). senoma-to¯riniwa, shop entrance, pattern just a few metres away from the Miyagawa display. The same The Miyagawa Display. Shinkamanza Shijo¯ can be said of the context as of the Miyagawa dis- Sagaru Higashi Iru, Suminogicho¯ play. The structures are unpretentious, but have all The display takes the misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop-en- the charm of the traditional wooden architecture. trance pattern. Besides the main display in the omote Although the separate, narrow lane means the dis-

FIG.120 THE MATSUMI DISPLAY, YAMADACHO¯ . RS. 230 play is often unnoticed by a wider public the from the Meiji era painted the screens. The dis- quietness of the lane is the great charm of the dis- play also contains a set of two-leaved gold pain- play. The display is only two minutes’ walk from ted screens. The Aoki display is an example of Shijo Street. displays that has successfully continued in par- The focus of the display is a set of two six-leaved tially rebuilt structures but still keeping the screens from the Edo period. The screens depict the charm of the traditional displays. production of silk from the feeding of silk worms to the final silk textile product. Two leaves of this The Morii Display. Bukko¯ji Nishi no To¯in screen can be seen in the cover of this work. The Higashi Iru Minamigawa, Kandaijincho¯ screen refers to the family occupation and has been The display is one in the misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop- specially made to be exhibited in the Gion Festi- entrance pattern on the southern side of Bukko¯ji val. Among the other articles on display there is a Street and has a pleasant homely atmosphere. suit of armour and two red toolboxes. When the door is closed, the display can be peeped at through the wooden bay window add- The Aoki Display. Ayanoko¯ji Nishi no To¯in ing to the charm of the display. The family is one Nishi Iru Minamigawa, Ashikariyamacho¯ of the kimono dyer families of the Nishi no To¯in The family is a third generation Kyoto family. The area. The factory is adjacent to the residence. The display is one in the misenoma-to¯riniwa, shop-en- focus of the display is a large wooden model of trance pattern on the southern side of Ayanoko¯ji the festival float, which almost fills the tiny dis- Street. The facade is built in the commercial kan- play room. Together with the wooden model the ban, shop sign style, but when the house is ex- major decorations are a screen and a flower ar- posed to the street, the charming interiors of rangement. traditional type are a pleasant surprise for the vis- itor. In this display there are altogether four The Ikegaki Display. Shinmachi Nishikiko¯ji sets of screens. Two six-leaved black and white Agaru Nishikawa, Mukadeyacho¯ screens portray a seashore landscape and a moun- The family has lived in the neighbourhood since tain landscape with a waterfall and a hermit’s hut. 1938. In the time when Hayakawa documented A disciple of the famous painter Suzuki Shonen, screen displays, the Ikegaki was one of the splen-

FIG.121 THE SAKANE DISPLAY, SUMINOGICHO¯ . A DETAIL OF THE SCREEN IS SHOWN IN THE COVER OF THIS WORK. RS.

231 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

FIG.122 THE MIYAGAWA DISPLAY, SUMINOGICHO¯ . RS.

did traditional displays, which Hayakawa called as bourhood in 1938. Before that the family lived in a ‘street museum’. The screens were peeped at thr- the Nishijin area, where the family displayed scr- ough the wooden lattice window or viewed by eens during the Imamiya Shrine festival. Accor- entering the large display room. Today the Ikegaki ding to Mr. Imae, who has been the president of display is a good illustration of the changes associ- the family enterprise since the Second World War, ated with the move to reinforced concrete struc- the Screen Festival is no longer the same as it used tures. In the original display, which took place at a to be. As a child Mr. Imae went to see screens in doctor’s home in a room called the machiai-shitsu, Muromachi Street where the most famous screens waiting room, three six-leaved screens were dis- were traditionally found. Many people spent up played. Among them were two fine museum-piece to an hour quietly looking at the screens. Mr. Imae Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai screens from the middle of the has now stopped the public display because of the Edo period. Even today the Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai set “lack of manners of the public and their inability is still the main focus of the display. However, now- to appreciate the screens”.174 adays the display is seen from the street through a Many of the screens have been specially made closed glass door. By this seemingly minor change, for the display. Among the screens are such fine the character of display has completely changed. screens as an Edo period pair of two six-leaved screens. This set portrays a koto instrument, sho¯gi The Imae Display. Takoyakushi Shinmachi game and sumi-e, inkpainting teacher. Another Higashi Iru Kitagawa, Ubayanagicho¯ fine screen is an eight-leaved screen, which por- The family, which is one of the top kimono deal- trays a mountain landscape by Shunkyo Ya- ers in the Muromachi area, moved to the neigh- mamoto (1844-1895). The display is on the 232

FIG.123 THE MORII DISPLAY, KANDAIJINCHO¯ . RS.

northern side of Takoyakushi Street. Like the tional value categories and those brought on by Ikegaki display the display illustrates the unfor- the fieldwork. tunate changes which have taken place in the staging tradition. The main display is shown only The Traditional (Specialist) Value Categories privately. Only a small window-box display, When assessing the value of individual displays, which is decorated at the entrance door, is left those with the greatest value could normally be for public display. listed as follows: 1) The oldest displays with many years of pa- Conclusions of the Screen Display tronage and a high profile in the kimono produc- tion such as the Matsuzakaya display. Even this Fieldwork display was not acknowledged to have a heritage Among the screen displays that were described value, because of the relatively young age of the above only a few of the structures qualify as wooden structure and the lack of historic value architectural or historic landmarks. Still, they are of the screens, according to the heritage experts. important and charming landmarks of a vanish- 2) Those existing in historically and architec- ing tradition, still existing but severely threatened turally qualified structures such as the Ban display. by the transformation process of the town. Most 3)Those with individual museum piece screens of the displays are still located in well preserved and other valuables without special connection to neighbourhoods endowing them with a special the character or historical value of the exhibition sense of authenticity and charm. Therefore, more locale such as the historic screens in the Ikegaki than any individual museum-piece screen, it is the display. The Edo period Rakuchu¯ -Rakugai screens whole setting, which contributes much of the are seen through a glass window in a modern value and meaning of these kimono home dis- business locale. plays. Below the author will consider the tradi-

233 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK Value Categories Detected Through the value the tradition and participate in it contrib- Fieldwork ute to its continuation, helping to shape the cul- Based on the above mentioned criteria conserva- ture of the place. This includes not only the tionists have assessed a small number of displays displaying persons but the accidental visitor and as having a distinct historic value and as such con- the audience as well. The experience of place is sidered them worthy of special protection. How- thus widely shared during the festival; the place ever, there are a number of displays without becomes a landmark through all the collective as- special historic value but which have a value of sociations and participation. their own connected to a group of people who The meaning may also be contextual or there value the place and to whom the display tradition may be other values such as: has a special meaning. Such meanings may be 3) The materials, light, scale and proportions of highly individual such as: the wooden townhouse differ essentially from that 1) The special way the screens or other valua- of a modern business locale. The contextual val- bles came into family ownership and the “story” ue category may also include such things as the of the screen. The author heard a number of such (psychological) ‘remoteness’ of the display facili- stories during the fieldwork. Many of these sto- ty, darkness or ‘difficulty to see or find’; anything ries were connected with the history of the fam- that contrasts with the commercialised, over- ily, or the (usually kimono related) family business. crowded mass performance. The ko¯shi, open wall 2) The deep sense of attachment to place the pattern itself is an important heritage value and displaying person has. Those individuals who should be, besides other value categories, included

FIG.124 THE NAGAI DISPLAY, KYU¯ YACHO¯ . RS. 234 as an important element to the general evaluation be assessed through selected, expert values alone, criteria. but also other values and meanings must be tak- 4) A useful understanding of place is a ‘place en into consideration. The cultural practices and as a process’: first that the places are maintained to traditions of the people of a place itself contrib- continue to exist, and second, the place continues ute to and make an important social value. The to exist, because people interact with it. The role Australian Heritage Commission even equates the of a place in people’s everyday lives is one meas- broadest definition of social value to its cultural ure of its social value. In the Sugiura display, that significance. This means that the cultural and in- was described above in chapter 21, fieldwork no. dividual experiences that shape people’s own 9, and in many other kimono artisan displays, the views of place are important and they should have place is not only the home of the people but their their own place in the evaluation and assessment everyday working space as well. The use category methods of the heritage. is especially important in Kyoto where traditional In general, the problems related to the protec- houses were never just residential spaces but had tion of the Screen Festival tradition and its con- production and cultural functions as well. text, are not a separate question, but illustrate the 5) The screen display tradition as it is described urban conservation and heritage assessment prob- above combines both accessibility and privacy. The lems that are characteristic for the hoko area and fact that the displays can be enjoyed in some per- the city’s historic centre as a whole. As long as son’s home gives them special meaning the more these methodologies and perceptions are not the environment around them is transformed into questioned, the preservation situation will not an anonymous place, ‘to be found anywhere’. Al- be essentially improved. Generations, however, though the Screen Festival will continue in mod- change and interpretation of a value change with ern business locales set up by kimono companies, them. Retaining some of the original landmarks the loss of home displays will evidently reduce the in connection with tourism should promote busi- value of the whole place and thus, key meanings ness, too. In the light of present trends, however, in the festival. it is more than likely that only a very little of the The conclusions of the fieldwork suggest that wooden townhouse context will still be there for the value of the Screen Festival tradition cannot coming generations to appreciate.

235 FIELDWORK IN THE HOKO NEIGHBOURHOODS HOKO THE IN FIELDWORK

PART VIII PART

CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK 238

239 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS

Chapter 22 Conclusions of the Research

Questioning the Current Definition Urban patterns that in a local perspective may of Heritage appear as ordinary and of no great historical or The threat to the urban heritage in the surveyed architectural value (or considered even valueless), quarters is two-fold, comprising both the threat- may in the broader perspective appear to be ening effects of city planning as well as the lack of unique and possess their heritage value. In Kyoto appropriate conservation and heritage evaluation such value categories are, for instance, related to methodologies. In particular, the limited, expert the cultural and social role the Kyoto townhous- valued definition of heritage is problematic. In es, machiya, have for the city and for its urban general, and as experiences in Europe and other patrimony. Kyoto is appreciated as much because places show, conservation of a few key buildings is of its whole heritage, the numerous individual no longer thought to be sufficient to ensure the small sites packed closely together and the spaces preservation of the cultural history of the wooden between them, as because of some excellent in- town milieu, nor of wider urban values. Although dividual buildings. from the architectural and historical point of view Protection and preservation of the urban mor- the Sugimoto house is without doubt the most phology and pieces of urban fabric is, therefore, important building in the hoko area, it would have as important as protection of architectural mon- been better to protect the surroundings of the uments, if we are to understand the architectural house as well, so that the building could be expe- history of the town and the way of living of its rienced in its historic context. It is not merely a people. In the current day Kyoto, the importance matter of preserving the building itself that makes of everyday buildings and wider urban fabric has a building understandable and alive, but rather the only grown with the urban changes that are tak- interaction between the building and its surround- ing place around them. Thus, although individu- ings. This is true of many other surveyed houses too. al buildings may lack strict conservation criteria 15

240 the number of the preserved buildings and the fy the facade as the only part of the building depth and comprehensiveness of the built fabric worthy of protection, while freely shaping their itself may, as such, make up an outstanding herit- built fabric behind. Such protection actually age value. In the present work large areas around means very little, because it concerns only a lim- Nishi no To¯in Street north and south of Shijo ited part of the protected property and even causes Street with their well-preserved wooden building the whole protection seem absurd. Thus, in the stock are good examples of such values. Gion Shimbashi area, there are traditional row We have also to be reminded of the time per- houses, where the only protected part is the fa- spective. A built fabric that at a certain stage of cade and the front part of the house, leaving the planning was not seen as worthy of protection backyard and riverside of the house without prop- may achieve such qualities later with time. The er protection. There is also no zoning. As a result time perspective can thus make sense of the ar- brutal tall buildings are built up behind protect- ticulation of preservation objectives even in a case ed buildings so that the streetscape that was in- where interest has not been expressed in the in- tended to be protected is destroyed by the jungle itial phase of planning and where the environment of reinforced concrete and steel buildings. The is generally considered to have no heritage value. same is true and happens all the time around the The relativity of most values, varying as they do individual, protected cultural assets and landmarks. with historical and cultural contexts, requires Reconstruction of facades for unified town- more flexible criteria than now obtain. At the scapes further emphasises streetscape for aesthet- same time, to be of most use, guidelines need to ic value. In the city centre where it is difficult to be made more applicable to specific sites. find well preserved and unified street facades, the In the central areas of Kyoto it is necessary to concept is especially dangerous. Giving priority to revise the concept of heritage and to re-evaluate the atmosphere and homogeneity of townscape aspects of the cultural significance of a place. Now leads to indifference to everyday dwelling patterns such a re-evaluation have a much better founda- and townscapes which, however, are essential for tion as a number of international, explicitly de- the understanding of the city as a whole. In the fined assessment tools exist. Cultural values are hoko area facade preservation is not only inade- generally acknowledged as an important factor in quate but inappropriate as well. As a consequence the definition of heritage. Furthermore, the of facade preservation, the courtyard buildings, wooden town heritage as a new area of focus has storehouses and gardens existing on the heritage begun to step into the foreground in the inter- sites have received little, if any, attention from the national preservation debate. As was noted in the city planners and thus, their substance as living en- text, there is an urgent need to accord due rec- vironment has been disregarded. In the eagerness ognition to this important and highly vulnerable to find well-preserved facades, the pre-modern sector, which has so far figured less adequately in dwelling patterns and their significance for urban international charters and heritage lists. morphology and thus for its preservation and This discussion can also, as its best, give Kyoto evolution, has never been positively analysed. and its urban conservation problems the necessary Furthermore, focusing on and documenting international pretext and perspective. some key buildings only is in itself very problem- atic. Documenting and selecting key structures is From Expert Values to the surely one important step towards better treatment and continuity for preserving Kyoto’s urban her- Preservation of the Whole itage and local landmarks. However, it is far from The architectural beauty of the streetscapes is an sufficient in terms of urban conservation. Al- over-emphasised conservation value in Kyoto. As though it is important to protect individual build- a whole, this emphasis has made residents identi- ings within a context, it is only recently that the 16 Living Tradition or Panda’s

241 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS importance of the urban fabric and larger urban integrity of home collections. Thus, it is most de- entities in its full sense has come to be understood. sirable that the family treasures and historic screens This new appreciation has been extended quite are appreciated in their original locations and logically to the settings of building groups, quar- places, not as ‘frozen’ museum relics (although this ters and whole towns. does not mean that any screen should not be On the whole, more attention should in Kyo- placed in a museum). to be paid to continuous care of the everyday If bringing cultural heritage within the walls milieus where individual sites or even whole of a museum makes them easier to see, it also neighbourhoods still stand intact. In these areas curtails the viewer’s temporal awareness. In an (this research identified a large number of them) antique building or landscape one moves in time the actual age of the buildings or strict preserva- among survivals; in a museum they are shorn of tion directives are not so important. What is more duration, as David Lowenthal has noted.175 The important is that the continuous maintenance of most artful placement, the most breathtaking the heritage is actively supported and that the proximity, cannot compensate for that detach- overall scale of new buildings and dwelling pat- ment. The landmarks must not be moved from terns harmonise and coincide with the old envi- their original place if they are to mark their ‘land’. ronment. The wooden town tradition as it exists It is, thus, essential that the screens and kimonos in the central area and its manifold expressions be protected in their context. As mere museum should be the decisive yardstick and all planning objects the screens and kimonos are somewhat measures should be carried out in relation to it. meaningless. Secondly, the display items of lesser value long gathered together also gain value as an ensemble. The Screen Festival Tradition and This is particularly true of the Screen Festival, the Meaning of Place where most of the display items are home treas- The conclusions of the thesis suggest that the val- ures often owned for several generations within ue of a place cannot be assessed through select- the same family. In one display there might be ed, official expert values alone, but other values valuables, but also other relics or objects of less and meanings must be taken into consideration historical importance but equally valued because too. The cultural practices and traditions of the of their associations with family members, dead people of a place make up an important social or alive, for example. The display as an ensemble value. The Australian Heritage Commission even often also adds to their value as an aesthetic com- equates the broadest definition of social value to position. The wooden townhouse context itself is its cultural significance. This means that the cul- an important heritage value that adds to the tural and individual experiences that shape peo- meaning and value of the place. Besides purely art ple’s own views of place are important and they historical or antique arguments, the assessment of should have their own place in the evaluation and values should thus include an essentially broader assessment methods of the heritage. Social values range of value categories. and place oriented value criteria are especially important when evaluating such traditions as the Revising the System of Protection Screen Festival. As was found in the fieldwork, an essential as- Priorities pect of the value of the displayed screens is their The methodological step that was taken in the place. Separated from their place, the screens lose historic preservation areas which stresses continu- an essential part of their meaning. Bringing and ity of building and carpentry traditions over au- selling the artefacts or parts of the home collec- thenticity - with certain limitations - could suc- tions to museums or antique collectors affects the cessfully be applied in the city centre, too. Some 242 of the wooden structures surveyed were examples context. In the thesis the author listed a large of successful renovation and partial reconstruction number of such distinct qualities of the ‘place’. during recent years. Without such reconstruction we would now miss many unique cultural pat- terns that exist in the Screen Festival. It is these Questioning the Argument of Age examples where reconstruction should be con- The 50-year date that is often used to establish sidered as well grounded and as something that landmark status is not critical. What is more im- really makes sense. Currently, however, there portant is that it defines a community’s traditions seems to be a kind of regrettable hypocrisy about and culture. This idea is especially relevant in the whole way of dealing with this marginal but Kyoto where the wooden building stock has been important issue. Instead of regarding such chan- rebuilt many times and the whole heritage falls ges as obstacles to evaluation and listing systems, outside the norm of what we think of in Europe they should be seen as positive attempts to keep as historic fabric or heritage. As for the underly- the tradition alive and therefore, as operations ing objective, age is less important. It is a ques- which deserve full support from the heritage tion of what we can learn from a building or a authorities. building stock and what its cultural significance Our own experiences in urban conservation is. work in Finland show that evaluation systems that Prof. Nishikawa has estimated that the average are strictly focused on some limited quality may age of an ordinary Japanese wooden house is 40 be harmful for protection and preservation as a years. However, if the house is regularly main- whole. It may inhibit other values from being tained, the age can be extended dramatically and given proper consideration. Therefore, instead of is, actually, much longer. Most of the everyday absolute criteria, there should be different lists and buildings which were portrayed in the thesis or evaluation methods for different heritage struc- which were investigated by the Yamahoko pro- tures. In other words, the evaluation grades should gramme, were wooden structures of considerable vary and depend on the listed structures and sites. age. Many of the houses studied were more than Lacking age and authenticity were used as argu- one hundred years old. In almost all these build- ments why such fine structures as the Naka house ings the structural members were in excellent and the Kobayashi house (lacking authenticity) condition. As experiences from other places show, did not qualify under the listing system, although age plays no significant role if the protected houses they were acknowledged to be of architectural qualify in other respects. and historical value. Among this group of struc- In Finland we have successfully preserved and tures were also common facilities and their pre- protected wooden townhouse areas where build- modern building types. ings are 50 years old or even less. In many coun- If a building is important to the character and tries the authorities still have to cope with a stat- identity of a community and it is beloved and utory 100 or 50 year rule. In others the rule has recognised as a symbol, then it is a landmark. been gradually relaxed or the whole issue left to Evaluating and listing everyday buildings should the academic tradition.177 In the United States it not only compel one to be more sensitive to dif- is required, that for a building to be listed in the fering values, but it should also provide an National Register its value must be established at opportunity for revising the whole structure of least 50 years before, and in England the ’thirty- heritage criteria and arguments as, for instance, year rule’ was adopted in 1988 whereby modern Tuominen has noted.176 In this work as an exam- buildings 30 years old could be protected under ple of such neglected heritage values are, for in- the planning acts.178 In international built herit- stance, the manifold display patterns, that are age argumentation work the field of conservation found and depend on their wooden townhouse has spread enormously by virtually eliminating

243 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS cut-off dates and including even 20th century under the closest protection - though there may buildings. The age criterion is used both as an be individual sites and some spots that already absolute criterion or, as something which adds to have been damaged. In these areas, entire districts, other criteria and values. not only strips of land or a few rows of houses, should be declared protected areas and closed to The Need for a Place-Oriented new construction unless such new construction is particularly well adapted to its surroundings. In Urban Conservation these areas there are still many authentic zones, The major reason for the desolation and destruc- whole entities of urban fabric consisting of many tion of the urban fabric in the hoko area is the lack traditional wooden lattice facade residences where of preservation interests described in the existing the special charm of the old neighbourhoods is land-use plan. Through the rapid speed of land still maintained. If just these areas were adequately speculation, existing qualities are also disappear- preserved or protected against unexpected brutal ing very quickly and will most likely continue to change, Kyoto could still conserve some of the do so in the future. After the author had complet- essential aspects of the ordinary life and living ed the measurement work, two sites in Shijo¯cho¯ traditions of the ancient capital. were developed and the silhouette behind the low This change, however, requires city planners shop facades in Kakkyoyamacho¯ is now domi- and conservationists to actively begin to pay at- nated by two windowless multi-storey car parks. tention to these everyday environments and ini- In addition, one wooden townhouse in Kakkyo- tiate place-oriented conservation policies in the yamacho¯ was demolished to make way for the context. Although it is beyond of this research to construction of another car park building. At the present such a plan, it would be in the interest of same time Yatacho¯ suffered the loss of two woo- all parties that a rational and reliable urban con- den buildings. The pressures on the built fabric servation plan exists. This speaks for a procedure have not ceased although the bubble economy has where general preservation objectives are clearly burst. Therefore, it is important that conservation expressed and pointed out already at the earliest is observed and discussed together and close co- stage of the planning procedure: operation with the general land-use objectives. 1) For those interested in preservation it is a As was observed in the thesis, the same plan- question of creating a readiness against pressures ning regulations are applied in the centrally locat- for change and of protecting buildings and envi- ed city neighbourhoods as in the more periph- ronments worthy of preservation. The largest chal- eral areas. Even one new building, if wrongly lenge for town planning in Kyoto is to do with placed or over-scaled, may suddenly ruin a whole retaining the urban morphology of a town and its neighbourhood. In the hoko area it hardly makes essential everyday buildings and sites. sense to implement historic preservation for the 2) For a potential developer it is question of whole area: the neighbourhoods nearest Shijo and getting information about the qualities of a cer- Karasuma Streets will probably continue their role tain building or property and of those demands as part of the central business district far into the for preservation that may exist. An optimal case future. On the other hand, there is no reason why for a developer is when a minimal number of lim- preservation objectives should not be implement- itations are implemented in the plan. This, actu- ed in more peripheral areas. In these areas the ally is the case today. A good conservation plan pressure for intensive land use are lesser and these necessarily means that there exists a number of areas are still relatively well preserved. clearly expressed regulations and rules if it is to Well preserved historic neighbourhoods be- succeed in its goal. In general, the higher the tween the Nishi no To¯in and Shinmachi Streets heritage value of an area is, the more detailed and south and north of Shijo Street should be put numerous also the regulations and limitations are. 244 3) For the property owner who owns an old tioned in the plan, is the midtown area, in other house such information provides basic informa- words the historic city centre and its urban quar- tion on how or she he should proceed to main- ters. This is an important formulation, which if tain his property in the best possible condition in carefully implemented, could, at least theoretically, the future. At the same time, good maintenance provide an entirely new basis for future urban means that the qualities of the built environment policies which would better take into considera- are preserved and that the protection aims accept- tion the special character of the historic neigh- ed de facto. bourhoods and also create a potential framework for an appropriate conservation plan. The Conservation of the Hoko Area In spite of the progressive spirit that is expressed in the plan, however, as late as 1994, when more as a Cultural Heritage than 20 major urban projects were scheduled to The conservation of a city centre as a whole or mark Kyoto’s 1200th anniversary, there was not a in parts, is an especially difficult task owing to the single concrete measure for preserving Kyoto’s expansion and growth of the city and the fragil- urban heritage. Quite contrary, using Kyoto’s an- ity of the wooden building stock. High land va- niversary as a pretext, everything possible was lues together with high plot ratios, in particular, being done, as Prof. Peternolli has noted, to ho- pose challenges to city planning policies. The mogenise the city’s cultural identity and totally transfer of development and building rights is used extinguish its true value and meaning to the successfully in many places to move the value of world. All this was done in the name of progress air space above preserved environments to areas and internationalisation that remains one of the more conducive to high rises and effective land- most over-used local mass media slogans that ap- use development. This course of action would peared during the build-up to Kyoto’s 1200th demand not only a radical reassessment of Kyo- anniversary celebrations. This vaguely defined ‘in- to’s future but also significant financial commit- ternationalisation’ meaning different things ac- ment as have many similar efforts to safeguard and cording to circumstances, speakers and audience protect culturally important cities across Italy, is not what is needed. What is required is the pro- France and other parts of Europe. On the other tection and restoration of Kyoto’s extraordinary hand, there is no doubt that Kyoto, as one of the cultural heritage, from the monumental religious great cities of the world, is worthy of and deserves buildings to the simplicity of private homes, as the such action. best and perhaps the only way to preserve the At the moment far the most important docu- international value of the city.179 ment relating to the future of Kyoto is the new The new station building and the Kyoto Ho- master plan which was enacted in 1993. The plan tel project are just few examples which illustrate shows in a specific manner the future profile of the lack of attention resulting from inappropri- Kyoto and the orientation of its policies, which ate perception of heritage and, at least for the are exhibited in it. In order to progress with ur- outside observer, an almost incomprehensible in- ban improvement that invigorates tradition, the sensitivity towards those values. Another such plan introduces a special way of thinking that aims questionable project was the recent plan by the to lead as it is formulated ‘to conservation, renewal municipal authorities to construct a copy of a and creation that give life to regional particular- Parisian bridge between the Sanjo and Shijo ities’. The plan will, accordingly, advance with a Bridges over the Kamo River in one of the most finely detailed urban improvement plan that sensitive spots of the historic townscape. The strives for harmonisation with the natural envi- project has, however, been cancelled because of ronment and the historic particularities in each the opposition of the local citizen groups and area. One of the three key areas which is men- residents.

245 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS In such a place as the historic city centre of Kyo- change. Seen as a part of change, preservation takes to, the minimum demand should be that the basic it place among other fruitful and creative ways of principles of city planning are brought before the treasuring heritage. On the other hand, without public and evaluated in a wider perspective. Deci- a past that is malleable as well as generously pre- sion-making may be obscured because there is served, the present will lack models to inspire it great municipal interests in keeping the status quo. and the future will be deprived of a lifeline to its When there is a question of large financial inter- past.What is needed in the surveyed quarters, is ests, the preservation question naturally tends to stay an adequate urban conservation plan. Such a plan in the background. An extremely energetic action would speak for the preservation interest and it would be, therefore, be required, perhaps on a na- would add an important viewpoint to the gener- tional, or even on an international level. The pres- al landuse plan. The urban conservation plan ervation efforts carried out by the national author- would indicate such spatial arrangements as the ities, or the worry expressed by foreign visitors has characteristic plot division system, typical street so far not been sufficient to convince the local alignments such as the narrow tenement lanes and authorities of the need to place Kyoto and its her- also, the enhancement and better appreciation of itage in a wider perspective. 180 If the current pol- the traditional dwelling patterns. The focus of city icy continues, the author is concerned that the planning would be moved from the mere change good image of a Japan that respects its heritage and to appericiating the environmental patterns of the cultural traditions will be seriously damaged. historic environment and the context. Urban conservation would not be limited to Conservation Plan as an preserving ’as such’ but the plan would allow changes, even to build new buildings to replace Enhancement of Living Tradition older ones. The new buildings would not neces- The major goal of the current research was not sarily follow the style of the old buildings but they to make each and every home a protected cultural could have their own contemporary style. Above property, but rather to help citizens and heritage all, it should be a question of balance between authorities to work together to solve some of the maintenance and adaptation rather than a ruth- key problems faced by the townhouses and the less and barbaric misuse and destruction of the urban heritage. As shown by our case examples existing fabric and heritage. When the emphasis such an approach is especially important in the is on the heritage values of an environment, the central area of Kyoto where most of the houses strategy will directly serve those who are using lack distinct or clearly definable architectural or that environment and living in it, in other words, historical values, but are still important examples the local residents. of a traditional lifestyle and dwelling patterns. In In Finland, for instance, there are many good such places the everyday buildings should not be examples of how new buildings have been adapt- preserved merely for their historicity alone, but for ed to a historical context thereby adding to the their value to the wider community. This is be- old environment not only new physical elements cause architecture cannot be assessed in the same but also entirely new cultural meanings. Examples way in which one judges a painting, since the built of such successful urban adaptations can be found, environment is not merely an art, but a setting for for instance, in Porvoo and Tammisaari if we look everyday life, and thus artistic qualities cannot be only at Finland. In such a wider framework of abstracted without considering those functional conservation, the potential landmarks will find characteristics and the role these buildings play in their place naturally and with less enforcement. the everyday lives of ordinary people. Identifying urban conservation, not as a rigid pres- Preservation narrowly understood cannot im- ervation of a physical structure, but as an enhance- provise or adapt to the implacable pressures of ment of its heritage values, the heritage area could 246 even be given a much-needed socio-economic In a more general level, there is a growing boost. In a such framework of thinking a conser- need to perceive the cultural heritage in the light vation plan would promote investment by legiti- of its cultural context. This thesis identifies this mising its organically transformed urban space. need and likewise, stresses the importance of the Retaining some of the original landmarks in con- local context. In the hoko neighbourhoods the nection with tourism would promote business, too. tradition of the urban festival lends urban pres- In the light of present trends, however, it is more ervation and cultural protection a special cultural than likely that in the hoko area there will be little and architectural historical interest. The hoko left for the coming generations to appreciate. neighbourhoods - even in the residual state in which they have survived - provide coherent evidence of outstanding cultural and historic The International Perspective values that may deserve even the status of a The new perception of conservation requires, that ’world heritage site’. the concept of heritage and urban patrimony that The conclusions of this work do not apply was at the heart of the Venice Charter be more only to Kyoto but are closely related to the ur- precisely defined. This view makes it imperative ban conservation problems of wooden towns in that the interpretation of a historic monument general. Because of the fragility of the wooden and historic place should be extended not only town tradition and the authenticity problems in- to its physical environment but to its socio-cul- volved, the methodological approach should be tural environment as well. The highest attention paid special care. The wooden town heritage must be given to the relationship between the cannot be evaluated using same criteria as towns heritage and the community that has inherited it. built in stone or brick; change and a certain de- This view is particularly important in the hoko gree of ‘unauthenticity’ must be tolerated and ac- neighbourhoods, with their culturally-rich dwell- cepted, if any of this wooden heritage is to be ing patterns, with their role in the kimono pro- saved. The houses and their architecture cannot duction and trade and with such outstanding tra- be ‘frozen’ if they are to continue as living envi- ditions as the Gion Festival. ronments.

247 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS

PART IX

POSTSCRIPT 250

251 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS

Chapter 23 The Changing Stage of the Tradition - Living Tradition or Panda’s Cage?

In his introduction to Yanagi's book, a Japanese beauty apparent in the tea ceremony, which re- ceramist Shoji Hamada writes about the violence quires the presence of an observant person, also of modern objects, a quality originating from a plays an important role in such traditions as the liberated individual’s creative energy that causes Screen Festival. a feeling of emptiness and violence. Abstract Furthermore, beauty is an essential element in works are not born from an experience of a gen- a Buddhist, and particularly a Zen Buddhist uine inner world. Their emptiness is that of nihi- understanding of the world. According to the lism and destruction. The traditional Japanese Buddhist philosophy, merely looking at a beauti- room never created an image of poverty or ab- ful object makes a person see ‘his own inner sence despite having few pieces of furniture. home’. Therefore, whoever acquires a beautiful With its palpable materiality and warmth it is a object, ‘in reality buys himself and whoever looks far cry from any abstracted or simplified concept at a beautiful object, recognises his original of space. The traditional aesthetics of objects cul- self’.181 In the Gion Festival, thousands of pairs minated in the tea ceremony, where instead of of eyes watch and are being watched. For the ar- mere ritual, the aesthetic focus is created by tisan and the exhibitor, another person’s obser- objects and forms, as well as by the thoughts and vation is important because it is a manifestation feelings aroused by them in the viewer. The of one’s own existence. A look contains a choice of objects, the colours and materials of subconscious touch. the room, the garden and decorations can be The most important thing, however, is the seen as agents enabling people to sense, experi- ability to produce something of one’s own. ence and actively participate in the creation of Therefore, the displayed objects and antiquities beauty in everyday life. This dynamic concept of should not be evaluated solely according to their 252 aesthetic and historical value alone, if the exhibi- Something more is needed to allow the com- tor has displayed the objects with a pure heart and plex of various voices and meanings to emerge his or her own sense of beauty. The importance and come into the light. Town planning, if only of the display tradition is, therefore, not primari- concerned with efficiency ratios or functional ly in its historical or aesthetic value, but in the zoning, strives to force the environment into a meaning it holds for the exhibitor. logic-rational order. This order is not commen- The Japanese tea ceremony developed criteria surate with culture, since culture can be seen as a for beauty based on tangible features such as form, structure consisting of layers. The inadequacy of colour and design. Zen appreciated shibui, pro- the one-sided, purely rationalistic approach in the foundness, simplicity and ‘the inner radiance’ of present-day Kyoto and in its historic neighbour- objects. Beauty was not merely a physical charac- hoods, has probably become evident throughout teristic, but also a mental attitude towards objects. this research. The Japanese gardeners or tea masters viewed The fading away of the display tradition their environment with care and tenderness. Or- threatens not only the physical symbols such as dinary objects became beautiful when someone the buildings and the exclusive, antiquarian cared for them. In this way, beauty consisted of screens, but also the central meanings of the festi- both beauty and ugliness. This tender attitude is val. Maintaining original meanings in changing a far cry from the rude way the traditional circumstances is problematic, if not impossible. environment is viewed and even actively destroyed Common values that bind people together have in many places today - even in Kyoto. disappeared from the modern world. This has Even beauty is based on values and thus, proper also happened in Japan, where on the other hand, methods of criteria cannot be defined before the many traditional values have been carefully pre- concept of ‘value’ is determined. If a lifestyle is served. A change in the physical environment comprehended as an attitude towards values, no necessarily means a change in the interpretative such thing as an outdated lifestyle exists. Ac- environment as well. “A moon that raises above cording to modern progressive thinking, cultural the Higashiyama Hills and above a modern sky- innovation is possible only in a modern society. scraper is not the same”, as Prof. Yamasaki has put However, the attitude towards traditional customs it.184 and values has to be re-evaluated everywhere, This is one of the reasons why objects made since people in their own lives need to experie- in a different cultural background seem to lose nce rituals passed on by tradition, with new mean- some of their essential quality when moved to ings added through historical changes. another environment, away from their ‘home’. It Objects and buildings are not merely orna- is pleasing in itself that the screen display tradi- ments or physical constructions. They also express tion continues in modern office buildings with man's view of the world. As Alberto Alessi, for the historical screens on display. However, the instance, has observed, objects are ‘an excellent dimensions, materials, structures, colours, lighting system of communication’.182 In traditional soci- and use of the display building are often entirely eties and communities, objects such as houses, clo- different from the original environment of the dis- thes, ritual and utility objects were much more play, and these contextual changes affect the than a simple code language for a current fash- meaning of the objects. ion or a trend.183 Objects were used to express the The dimensions, colours and materials of the community’s values of life in various ways and screens were originally designed to be in harmony rituals. A specialist interested only in dates, mer- with certain interior spaces and rooms. In partic- its in art history, or aesthetic values, cannot be an ular, the Japanese have a profound appreciation of authority for a method of interpretation darkness. As Tanizaki described: acknowledging cultural meanings and values.

253 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS “… And so it came to be that the beauty of the Japanese lifetime visited the decorated festival float in his room depends on variation of shadows, heavy shadows neighbouring block. against light shadow - it has nothing else. Westerners are In the post-modern world tradition begins to amazed at the simplicity of the Japanese room, perceiving copy itself. Reality becomes fiction and images. in it no more than ashen walls bereft of ornaments”.185 Yesterday’s pilgrims have become today’s tourists. Some Zen temples offer weekend packages for Individual screens were sometimes and even to- instant enlightenment, including vegetarian meals day are, decorated with gold painted figures. In the and Spartan conditions with no heating or other darkness of the room such screens are an impres- conveniences. Participation in imaginary realities, sive sight. Looking at these screens in a brightly- however, affects the way in which reality is organ- lit modern hotel lobby is completely different ised and experienced. Jencks argues that “eclecti- from peeping at them in twilight through a wood- cism is a natural development in a culture of en lattice window. This change is most apparent choice”.188 Places portrayed in a certain way, par- in displays viewed through glass windows from ticularly if they have the capacity to attract tour- the street. Also, a direct physical contact, the feel- ists, may begin to ‘dress themselves up’ as the ing of closeness between the objects, the dis- fantasy images prescribe.189 In other words, peo- playing person and the spectator, characteristic of ple have an image of the place before they even traditional displays, is lost. visit it. Nowadays Kyoto people are torn between the Architect Arata Isozaki was not so far from the present and the past. As Kristeva says: “Nothing truth, as already observed, when he compared the keeps them there any more, and nothing ties position of the ‘maintainers of cultural heritage in them here yet”.186 People feel they do not be- Kyoto’ with the giant panda, locked in the cage long anywhere. The tighter the bond is with of the modern heritage and tourist industry.190 their past, the farther away they seem to be from While the Gion Festival has expanded into a mass the present. They are tempted to speculate with event, quite a few of the participating kimono and gain profits from the past, but they also love families have become bored with the roles of ‘pre- their old environment and suffer having to give server of tradition’ or tourist clown. More and it up. For kimono enterprises and families that more exhibitions are on display only privately. A participate in the display tradition, the future noticeable proportion of the exhibitors of 1992 seems desperate, or at the very least, uninter- did not appear in the festival in 1993. Crowds esting. Many people who were interviewed dur- attracted to historic sites and structures themselves ing the Yamahoko programme, said that they will demean the experience. go on with the display tradition and keep their Tourism and mass media have affected the way houses in order, but they do not know or even people think about their cultural heritage. The care to know what will happen to the display tra- elegant posters in travel agencies are filled with the dition when they are gone. One of the inter- home displays, and the owners of the rare wood- viewees, self-conscious and slightly bitter, en townhouses have become popular TV-stars. crystallised the thought: “An old Kyoto attitude However, the publicity brought by the mass me- is to mind one’s own business”.187 dia has not been altogether negative. The display It was amazing, indeed, to discover that many tradition has become livelier and is now an im- interviewees knew other displays only through portant factor in many kimono companies with tourist pamphlets and art literature. They had nev- regard to sales and public image. Nor has the com- er actually seen them, even though some of the mercialisation of the festival, with renowned com- displays were located only a few hundred metres panies appearing as sponsors necessarily meant the from their own houses. The coordinator of the deterioration of the aesthetic and cultural stan- Kita Kannon Yama float had not even once in his dards of the festival. To mention only one exam- 254 ple are the elegant and artistically presented pack- collectors and museums, away from the historic ages of sake vine used as a decorative element of environment to which they still organically be- the Shinto altars in the festival displays. long. The rapid expansion of the museum culture What one eventually discovers in a Japanese ur- and the flourishing heritage industry, both start- ban festival is the ritual way of comprehending ing around the 1970s, have affected the commer- time and space. Time, instead of being a linear cialisation of history and culture. Over 500 onward-moving concept, is considered to exist in museums have been opened in Japan during the many dimensions. When time is perceived in such past fifteen or twenty years. As for instance, He- a way, should not the attitude towards preservation wison has argued, “post-modernism and the her- also be changed? The old buildings are con- itage industry are linked, since both conspire to tinuously maintained and preserved because the create a shallow screen that intervenes between values they portray are seen as important and our present lives and our history.... In these worth preserving. Understood in this way, urban circumstances history becomes a contemporary conservation is not only about conserving the creation, more costume drama and re-enactment shells of an ancient way of life, but it has a living than critical discourse”.191 History becomes a meaning which people can discover again and creation of the present, more like masquerade, and again for themselves. Instead of a homogeneous- repetition, than a critical discourse. We are ly shaped, perfect and unchanging concept of doomed to search for history through our own time, we face separate fragments of reality, none pop-idols and images, while the true history es- of which tells the complete truth, but all of which capes our reach. exist side by side. With the linearity of time gone, We end up in a paradox. The reason for pro- history can be rewritten. tecting the cultural heritage is in its marketing and sales possibilities. Searching for routes may at its worst end up in fiction or in pastiche, a mere sales image. Under these circumstances tradition can, even at its best, be only museum culture, while true history appearing here and now is too ordi- nary to interest anyone. While the kimono indus- try in Kyoto has to face possibly the greatest financial difficulties of all time, and the wooden houses deteriorate while awaiting repair and reno- vation, Kyoto advertises itself as an elegant wood- en town, using aesthetically pleasing and carefully designed photographs. Inside the Museum of Kyoto an ‘authentic’ Kyoto streetscape has been reconstructed only a few hundred metres away from the hoko neigh- bourhoods, while outside the museum old town- houses (those which are still left) wait for the bulldozers and new high rise buildings appear here and there, ruining quiet neighbourhoods that are still well-preserved. Another irony of the mo- dern museum culture is that historical screens, which are still the property of local kimono fam- ilies, are moving into the possession of antique

255 CONCLUSIONS OF THE WORK THE OF CONCLUSIONS 16 17 Living Tradition or Panda’s

PART X

SUMMARY 258 259 Summary SUMMARY

The research deals with the urban conservation patterns and their disposition in the urban space, of Kyoto’s wooden town heritage. The focus of in other words, the whole character of Kyoto’s ur- the research is on the Gion Festival and in the ban heritage. cultural significance of the urban space. Everyday Until now, with the exception of historic mon- values play an important role in the work. The uments, only very few everyday structures have research is in ten parts. come under protection in Japan and in even those cases, the buildings have been mainly preserved as Description of the Field of the museum objects. Even in Kyoto, where the city Research and Urban Conservation. government has been sensitive to preserving landscapes and urban neighbourhoods of special Problems Involved historic and architectural value, efforts to preserve Kyoto’s wooden townhouse architecture and ur- less famous and architecturally less distinguished ban heritage in the grid-plan area is in many ways vernacular buildings and architecture have been unique, both as regards the stages of its city few, if any. In 1991, in the list of cultural assets of development and as an architectural phenomenon. Kyoto, besides temples and other historic monu- Scores of sophisticated analyses have examined the ments, altogether seven privately owned buildings Japanese quality of space and its indigenous build- were registered. Among them were five ordinary ing types. In these analyses traditional Kyoto townhouses. Meanwhile it was estimated that in townhouse, kyo¯-machiya, has been a superb exam- the historical grid-plan area alone there were al- ple, which has even affected the concept and de- together 40 000- 80 000 wooden townhouses left. velopment of modern western architecture. In The failure to preserve traditional Kyoto town- Japanese architectural history the evolution of the houses is most evident in the city centre. Although Kyoto townhouse, the wooden lattice facade and the concept of historical neighbourhood was es- the variety and richness of its dwelling patterns sential in preserving the historic preservation ar- are regarded as examples of elegance unknown in eas, the concept has been limited to areas with other Japanese cities. special architectural or historical value. Although At the present moment Kyoto’s urban heritage fine representatives of Kyoto’s architectural her- is faced with various threats which all have dele- itage and historic environments, they are all areas terious effects on its character and on its life. Such which illustrate some special type or function of threats are both the threatening effects of town urban environment such as geisha areas and pil- planning as well as the lack of appropriate urban grim routes. The protection of these areas is nat- conservation policies. The necessary conceptual urally welcome but the protected districts concern developments that were needed in the context most often outlying parts of the city, which were and the city planning policies and decision-mak- not and even now not are, in immediate danger ing do not coincide. The building ratios exceed in a way the urban neighbourhoods in more cen- many times the traditional land use. City planning tral areas are. Moreover, the limitations in the pro- clauses and regulations that have dealt entirely tected areas leave too many areas and city with technical controls such as height constraints, neighbourhoods in the city centre for boundless floor-area ratios and light angles may have worked damage. effectively from the rational point of view. What Focusing on monument conservation and the they have failed to do is to identify the role of protection of a few carefully selected areas has lead urban morphology, building typologies, dwelling to the compartmentalising of the city and to a 260 failure of city planning and heritage authorities to mono designers and other kimono-related arti- identyfy heritage values of the urban fabric. Lim- sans. Many of the displays have many years of iting the scope of protection to certain carefully patronage with many beautiful museum-piece selected areas, the city planning authorities have screens. Even today there are screens which are been unable to create a wider impact that would specially designed to be displayed in the festival. benefit protection of the urban heritage as a The history of the Muromachi area also explains whole. It is evident that the heritage evaluation the excellent artistic quality of the displayed art methods and criteria in use have played more than objects and screens. With this background the a minor role. Screen Festival is unique, not only in Kyoto but in the whole of Japan. In the thesis the screen Case Study Area and the Tradition display tradition is seen as a key example of cul- tural values and traditions that developed in the of the Screen Festival city centre in the urban context of the Kyoto The case study area comprises thirty-five hoko townhouse. neighbourhoods in the Muromachi area of the Municipal authorities have paid attention to town. The neighbourhoods are known being re- the Screen Festival tradition only when it has been sponsible for organising the Gion Festival, a tra- able to boost tourism as a clearly measurable tour- dition that has continued uninterrupted in the ist value. In other words, the focus has been on a city centre of Kyoto since the beginning of the few, carefully selected landmarks and antique 16th century. The hoko neighbourhoods were se- screens. Only one display has so far been protected lected as the case study area because of their cul- by law. The more ordinary home displays as well tural traditions and their great cultural significance. as the whole wooden townhouse context have The Gion Festival is one of the three great town been given less if any attention. There is an acute festivals of Japan and one of the most splendid lack of appreciation of such social and cultural val- among them all. Within the Gion Festival tradi- ues as the inter-relationship between the house tion, the author focuses on the tradition of the and the street and their cultural expressions dur- Screen Festival, the display of folding screens by ing the urban festival. Having failed to enhance traditional kimono families. The survey area is one such values the city planning has resulted not only of the major centres for Japan’s kimono trade. in the making of deserted spaces in the city, but Once a year, during the urban festival, streets also in the disappearance of cultural patterns and in the city centre are gorgeously decorated includ- local landmarks vital for the city. Moreover, a set ing the display of antique screens. The light wood- of cultural values, such as the special Japanese en ko¯shi, lattice partitions, which are the major understanding of space, has been sacrificed over architectural elements of wooden-frame town- more practical and material values. houses, are temporarily removed, and the interi- At the present moment the display tradition is or of the house is exposed to the street as if it were in a drastic process of change. The total number a stage. The rooms, which open to the streets, are of screen displays has sunken very low and the decorated with folding screens and other home wooden townhouse context as a scenic stage of treasures owned by Muromachi kimono families. the festival is getting rare. Among the 56 displays The wooden town architecture plays a vital role that were recorded during the field surveys, 26 as the scenic stage of the festival. displays were found in new, multi-storey structures Many of the displaying kimono families were, that were built in reinforced concrete or steel. The and still are, wholesale dealers of luxurious ki- increasing number of window displays is one of monos and other kimono textiles adding to the the unfortunate trends that threats key meanings splendour and artistic quality of the displays. in the festival. In addition, a growing number of Among the displaying persons there are also ki- displays are screened off from public view.

261 SUMMARY time honoured cultural patterns as the open wall Fieldwork as an Evaluation Tool and entrance pattern. In both these patterns the For the thesis, the author measured more than one audience can visually enjoy or even partially en- hundred (mostly traditional wooden) buildings ter the interior of a traditional townhouse that analysing their facade types in every detail includ- normally is not open for public view. ing building materials, categories, styles and their number of floors. The analysis, which consists of Questioning the Heritage the streetscapes of three hoko neighbourhoods, is Evaluation Methods in Use. The the first systematic urban conservation documen- tation in the Muromachi area so far. The neigh- Methodology of the Work bourhoods are in the thesis analysed in their For the thesis the author developed a variety of present condition with all the changes and alter- methods of architectural assessment both on the ations they have gone through time; in other general level and for the chosen place. Heritage words not as our pre-conceived images of them evaluation practices in Kyoto base conservation might be. Through the fieldwork such criteria as largely on architectural and historical criteria rath- the ‘beauty of streetscape’ and criteria of authen- er than accommodating some of the perceptions ticity were tested and analysed. and reactions of everyday users of historic envi- Traditional dwelling patterns in the survey area ronments. As a result, some interest groups remain are in the thesis examined through a number of under-represented in the evaluation process and pre-modern dwelling plans such ‘the sleeping some views may never be represented by ‘experts’. place of an eel’, unagi no nedoko, and the tenement Many of the elements that make up the ‘whole pattern, nagaya. The former illustrates the ‘classic’ place’ remain unidentified, despite the fact that it Kyoto dwelling pattern that evolved in the deep is the whole rather than the parts that will have and narrow building sites. The pattern gives char- heritage value and meaning. In the thesis the au- acter and identity to the city structure as a whole. thor pays attention, in particular, to the selectivi- During the urban festival the deep site visible ty of the criteria and their inability to identify through the open wall is also one of the great heritage values of the ordinary building stock and charms of the screen displays. Furthermore, the such cultural traditions as the Screen Festival. author participated in a municipal documentation An important part of the approach in identi- work that consisted of seven historic urban dwell- fying cultural values is acknowledging the impor- ings. Through this fieldwork the author could tance of place. A special attachment to place may observe municipal evaluation methods on-site. include a long-standing spiritual or religious at- Furthermore, an indispensable material for the tachment or other long-standing value-categories thesis was provided by an extensive field work that such as a continuous use. The Gion Festival tra- was organised as a multidisciplinary joint-project dition, which has continued in the city centre of by Prof. Koji Nishikawa’s laboratory’s research Kyoto for centuries, is itself already such a value- team. The author worked as a member of the category. Furthermore, focusing on a few, specially team. In this field survey that took place in three selected landmarks, has not enhanced continuity following years during the Gion Festival, all the and everyday use. The use category is especially screen displays that were found in the city centre important in Kyoto where traditional townhouses were documented in every detail including the were never just residential spaces but had impor- examining of more than one hundred neighbour- tant production (silk textile industry, pottery) and hoods and 160 antique screens. Rather than be- cultural functions (tea ceremony, flower arrange- ing an historical or art historian survey the focus ment) as well. Although the Screen Festival will of the research was on the urban settings of the continue in modern business facilities set up by displays. The research identified, for instance, such wealthy kimono companies, the loss of ordinary 262 home displays will evidently reduce the value of as a living tradition. Those individuals who value the whole place and thus, key meanings in the fes- the tradition and participate in it contributed to tival. its continuation, helping to shape the culture of The methodological approach taken in the the place. This included not only the displaying thesis aims thus at an approach where dwelling person but the accidental visitor (even the re- patterns and cultural patterns are identified as an searcher herself may contribute to the value or entity. The inter-relationship between the urban valueless of a place) and the audience as well. The dwelling and the street, and the manifold expres- experience of place was thus widely shared dur- sions this relationship takes during the urban fes- ing the festival. The place became a landmark tival, is one of the key areas to be focused on. through all the collective associations and partic- Heritage argumentation methods are seen as an ipation. important tool how to cope with and enhance the Aside purely historical or aesthetic value-cat- protection of heritage. Individual and collective egories there were many other, equally important interpretations, cultural values and readings are value-categories. Among these were such catego- seen to add to the significance of the place. They ries as the special way the screens or other art are seen as elements that should be included as ar- objects had come into family ownership and the gumentation criteria in the evaluation work. ”story” of the screens. An important aspect of the The two Japanese concepts hare and ke, sacred total value of the screens was their place. The and everyday space, play an important role in the materials (wood, plaster, tiles), lightning condi- interpretation of what is the cultural significance tions, scale and proportions of traditional Kyoto of Kyoto’s urban space. The role of street as com- townhouses differ greatly from that of a modern munal space, the pre-modern concept of business facility (steel, reinforced concrete). The ryo¯gawacho, ‘neighbourhood on both sides of the contextual value category also included such street’ and the cultural significance of the urban things as the psychological ‘remoteness’ of the festival are analysed and evaluated in terms of their display room, darkness or ‘difficulty to see or find’. contribution to the analysis of Kyoto’s urban In other words, anything that contrasted with the space. The urban institutions of the area are in the commercialised, over-crowded mass performance. thesis illustrated by a number of pre-modern Many of the kimono home displays were located building types such as common facilities, local in well-preserved historic neighbourhoods en- Shinto shrines and Buddhist halls and local store- dowing them with a special sense of authenticity houses for festival floats. Many of these building and charm. Therefore, more than any individual types are unique for the survey area and cannot museum-piece screen, it was the whole urban be found in other areas of the town. setting, which contributed to the value and mean- ing of the displays and to their value as ‘landmark’. The conclusions of the thesis suggest that the Conclusions value of the Screen Festival tradition (or any The value categories in use have in Kyoto been culturally dependent local tradition) cannot be specialist oriented, and have been able to identi- assessed through selected, expert values alone, but fy only to a limited extent the culturally depend- also other values and meanings must be taken into ent and place-oriented value categories. Less or consideration. The Australian Heritage Commis- in sufficient concern has been given to such qual- sion even equates the broadest definition of so- ities as individual or collective interpretations or cial value to its cultural significance. This means the display setting as a whole. A number of indi- that the cultural and individual experiences that vidual and collective value categories are in the shape people’s own views of place are important survey area connected to a group of people who and they should have their own place in the eval- value the place and who help to keep the display uation methods of heritage.

263 SUMMARY In general, the problems identified in the pro- tection of the Screen Festival tradition were not a separate question, but illustrated urban conser- vation and heritage evaluation problems that were characteristic for the city centre of Kyoto as a whole. The wooden town heritage cannot be as- sessed through selected (expert) values alone, but also other values and meanings must be taken into consideration. The wooden town heritage is ap- preciated, not only because of its visual and his- torical characteristics but also because of its capacity to hold cultural values and ways of life. The conclusions of the work do not apply only to Kyoto but are closely related to the urban con- servation problems of wooden towns in general. Because of the fragility of the wooden town tra- dition and the authenticity problems involved, the methodological approach should be paid special attention. The wooden town heritage cannot be evaluated using same criteria as towns built in stone or brick. Changes and alterations must be tolerated if any of the wooden town heritage is to be saved. Social values, cultural practices and in- dividual and collective interpretations add impor- tant elements in the evaluation practices of heritage. 264 265 References

Chapter 3 Chapter 4 1 “Book to Focus on Ornate Floats of Kyoto 13 Masafumi Yamasaki, Kyoto Its Cityscape Traditions and Festival”, The Daily Yomiuri Shinbun 1993. Heritage (Tokyo: Process Architecture No. 116, 2 Herbert E. Plutschow, Historical Kyoto (Tokyo: The 1994), p.18, p. 21. Japan Times Ltd.1986), p. 119. According to Prof. 14 Edwin O. Reischauer, p. 134. Masuda, even 30 000 houses were destroyed in the 15 Ibid., p. 128 Shirakawa area of the town. Masuda, T., Japan 16 Hiroshi Mimura, Hajime Shimizu, “Issues and (1969), p. 174. Prospect for Development and Conservation in 3 Bakufu, central government; literally ‘tent Inner City Area of Kyoto” (Tokyo: International government’. Commonly translated in English as Seminar on Planning and Management of Asian ‘shogunate’. Since the Kamakura period the term Metropolises 1985), p. 5. became the generic term for all later governments 17 Stewart, p. 85. of the warrior class. Ewdward O. Reischauer, Japan. 18 Atsushi Ueda, The Inner Harmony of Japanese House, The Story of a Nation, p. 46. p.172. 4 The Old Capital (San Francisco: North Point Press 19 Peter J. Fowler, The Past in Contemporary Society. 1987), p. 75 Then, Now, p. 27. 5 Edward Morse, Japanese Homes and Their Surroundings (Rutland, Vermont & Tokyo: Charles E. Chapter 5 Tuttle Co. 1986), p. 180. 20 Masafumi Yamasaki in his lecture on the Kyoto 6 Every historic float except Hoteiyama in townhouse at Kyoto University 1992. Ubayanagicho¯. 21 Kyoto Its Cityscape Traditions and Heritage (Tokyo: 7 The three floats are: Gaisenfunehoko, Takayama, Process Architecture No. 116, 1994), pp.46-59. Hoteiyama. 8 To¯ro¯yama, Shijo¯kasahoko, Ayagasahoko were Chapter 6 excluded the nomination because they are recent 22 Chris Fawcett, The New Japanese House. Ritual and reconstructions. Antiritual. Patterns of Dwelling (London: Granada 9 Since 1975, five individuals and three organisations 1980), pp.10-11. have been recognised as holders of traditional 23 Arata Isozaki, Katsura Villa - Space and Form (New conservation techniques necessary for York 1987). architectural preservation. Knut Einar Larsen, 24 Stewart, p. 63. “Authenticity in the Context of World Heritage: 25 Koseki, p. 15. Japan and the Universal”, p. 71. 26 Vesterinen, Japanin kulttuurin antropologista 10 Kyoto Fu Bunka Zai Hogo Kikin (ed.), Kyoto no tarkastelua (‘Anthropological Observations of Bunka Zai Chizu Cho¯ (‘Map on the Cultural Assets Japanese Culture’), p. 246. of Kyoto’), 1984. 27 Steven Baker et al. (ed.), Gaijin Scientist (Tokyo: 11 The Burra Charter 1996. The British Chamber of Commerce in Japan 12 Kyo¯ no Sumai. Chiiki to Bunkazai to Shite no Minka 1990), p. 5. (‘Dwelling in Kyoto. Historic Urban Dwellings as 28 Quoted by Hannu Marttila in “Kirjailija joka sanoo Local Landmarks’), Kyoto 1993. itseään Todeksi” (‘A Novelist who Calls Himself Truth’) , Helsingin Sanomat 1994. 29 The life’s work of Soetsu Yanagi includes, among other things, the founding of the Japan Folkcraft 266 Museum (Mingei-Kan) in Tokyo. He is known in of My Inspiration; in Response to Reyner Banham” Japan as the founder of the Japanese Folkcraft (Space Design 8904,) p. 013 Movement. 40 Fred Thompson, “Japanilainen ulkotila ja läntinen 30 On the subject, also, see Markku Graae, yhteinen tila – vertailua” (‘Japanese Outdoor Space “Käsityöläisen identiteetti” (‘The Identity of an and Western Public Space, Comparison’), Arkkitehti Artisan’), Muoto 1993, pp. 51-53. (‘Finnish Architectural Review’) 1/1996. 31 A sharp and even now very timely critique was 41 According to the Yamahoko survey the standard provided by the Nobel prize winning writer width of the common facility was 6.7 metres and Yasunari Kawabata in The Old Capital (San Francisco: the depth of the site 37 metres. In other words, the North Point Press 1987). sites were very similar in size to the ordinary 32 According to Yanagi, objects that cannot be used dwelling sites. have something negative in themselves although 42 In Japan known as kekkonshikijo¯, wedding place. they are perfectly beautiful. Soetsu Yanagi, The 43 Masuhiko Hayakawa, Gion Matsuri ni Okeru Byo¯bu Unknown Craftsman - A Japanese Insight into Beauty Kazari ni Kansuru Kenkyu¯ (‘A Survey on the Screen (Tokyo: Kodansha International 1982), p.179. Festival’), Kyoto: Kyoto University 1978, p. 11. 33 Ilmari Vesterinen, Lohikäärme ja Krysanteemi. 44 Louis Frederick, Daily Life in Japan at the time of the Näkökulmia Itä-Aasian kulttuureihin (‘Dragon and Samurai, 1185-1603 (Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Chrysanthemum. Viewpoints to East Asian Company 1988), p. 59. Cultures’). Hämeenlinna: Karisto Oy 1988. 45 Mrs. Ito, when I talked to her during the field 34 Mr. Imae commenting on the field survey in his work. house 1993. 35 Ilmari Vesterinen, Lohikäärme ja Krysanteemi. Chapter 7 Näkökulmia Itä-Aasian kulttuureihin (‘Dragon and 46 The BST is a law that applies to all buildings Chrysanthemum. Viewpoints to East Asian throughout Japan. BST consists of both building Cultures’), p. 110. codes and zoning codes (standards ensuring the 36 ibid., p. 109. safety of urban areas). Zoning codes are enforced 37 Marcia Muelder Eaton “Estetiikan ydinkysymyksiä” within the city planning areas. (‘Key Problems in Aesthetics’) in Basic Issues in 47 According to the building standard law: “...In order Aesthetics, p. 171. to prevent destruction of buildings by fire, the 38 In Europe the ma concept has become known principal building parts shall, in principle, not be especially through the ma exhibition which was made of wood if the building has a height of more organised by Arata Isozaki and which visited Paris, than 13 metres or has eaves at a height of more New York and was even seen in Helsinki at the than nine metres or has a floor area of more than end of the seventies. The modern puristic concept 3000 sq.m.” Outline of the Approval & Certification of time has been sharply analysed, for instance, by System under the Building Standard Law (Tokyo: The Richard Sennet, in his analysis of the Farnsworth Building Centre of Japan 1990), p. 22. House of Mies van der Rohe. For Sennet the 48 Masafumi Yamasaki, Kyoto, Its Cityscape Traditions and house represents a kind of crystallisation of the Heritage (Tokyo: Process Architecture No. 116, spatial concept of Modernism. Richard Sennet, The 1994), p. 147. Conscience of the Eye. The Design of Social Life of 49 Referred by Tomoko Shibazaki in “Kansai Architects Cities (New York: Knopf 1990), pp. 112-113. Converge to Save Traditional Wooden Homes in 39 Ishii has defined the temporary characteristic of Kyoto”, The Japan Times, 9.10.1990. Japanese culture as ‘art of fast changes’. This is 50 Diane Durston, Seven Paths to the Heart of the City portrayed in the ability to instantaneously (Tokyo: Kodansha International 1987), p. 6. transform an ordinary profane space into a 51 Mrs. Sugiura, when I visited her house for the first ceremonial, sacred one. Kazuhiro Ishii “The Sources time in 1991. 267 52 Yamasaki 1992, commenting on the poor Kyodo Jutaku Kenkyukai (ed.), Machiya Kata Kyodo understanding of traditional architecture by Ju¯taku no Kaihatsu to Moderu Kensetsu Sokushin ni university students. Kansuru Cho¯sa Kenkyu¯ (Kyoto: Kyoto Shi Jutaku 53 Steven Baker et al., Gaijin Scientist. How to find a post Kyoku 1992), p. 7. in Japan and what it’s like when you get there. (Tokyo: 65 In 1988, at the peak of the building boom, among The British Chamber of Commerce in Japan 1990), the 3448 new apartments produced, 1622 (47%) p. 5. were in the ‘one room manshion’ category. 54 Ms. Tomoko Izumita 1994, a Japanese landscape Furthermore, among these, 63 apartments were in architect, when observing some well preserved the super expensive category. Two years later, the wooden townhouses in Finland. number was 154. In 1990 there were 2036 new 55 Assoc. Prof. Masui 1990, when commenting his own apartments. In Japanese the name of such luxury topic of research: the early modern (Tokugawa era) apartments is: okushon. ibid., p. 83. township community. 66 Kazuo Hayakawa, Housing Poverty in Japan, p. 5. 56 Masafumi Yamasaki, Kyoto Its Cityscape Traditions and 67 During the five-year period 1987-1991 among the Heritage (Tokyo: Process Architecture No. 116, houses produced 60.2% were tenant houses, 39.6% 1994), p. 12. ownership houses, and only 0.1% cooperative 57 In the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area the average size of dwelling houses. In addition, when the profile of the the building sites was 961 sq. m. and in the Tokyo- contractor was examined, 82.6% were from Kyoto Yokohama area 810 sq. m. in buildings with more City and 17.4% from outside Kyoto. As many as than three floors. Machiya Kata Kyodo Jutaku 6.1% of outside contractors were from Osaka. Kenkyukai (ed.), Machiya Kata Kyodo Jutaku no Machiya Kata Kyodo Ju¯ taku no Kaihatsu to Moderu Kaihatsu to Moderu Kensetsu Sokushin ni Kansuru Kensetsu Sokushin ni Kansuru Cho¯sa Kenkyu¯ , p. 8. Chosa Kenkyu¯ (Kyoto: Kyoto Shi Jutaku Kyoku Especially, see Fig. 2.1.2, Table 2.1.3. 1992), p. 13. The size of the sites, see Table 2.2.6, 68 Masafumi Yamasaki, Kyoto Its Cityscape Traditions and same page. Heritage (Tokyo: Process Architecture No. 116, 58 Kyo¯-Machiya. Kyoto: The Kyoto Museum 29.9.- 1994), p.146. 28.10.1990. 69 Barry B. Greenbie, Space and Spirit in Modern Japan 59 Diane Durston, “Saga of Tokusayamacho¯”, Kyoto (New Haven and London: Yale University Press Journal 9/1989, pp. 6-8. 1988), p. 36. 70 David B. Stewart, The Making of a Modern Japanese Chapter 8 Architecture 1868 to the Present Moment (Tokyo: 60 Koji Nishikawa, Teiji Ito, “Japan: Two Ancient Capitals Kodansha International 1987), p. 15. and the Menace to Them”, The Conservation of Cities 71 Hiroshi Mimura et al., (eds.), Kyo¯machiya, Juunin no (Paris: Unesco 1979), p. 122. Kokoroiki - Do¯ naru? Do¯ suru? (‘The Fate of the 61 Tapio Periäinen 1995, commenting on the level of Kyoto Townhouses?’ city planning in Kyoto in the 1960s. After the 72 This category included: kimono textile industry, comment he added, that in that respect things had, industrial art, Japanese style confections. unfortunately, not much changed. 62 This was the situation in 1992 when I interviewed Chapter 9 Dr. Lim Bon at Kyoto University. 73 Shigeyoshi Murakami, Japanese Religion in the 63 Riitta Salastie, Masaya Masui, “Trends and Meaning Modern Century (Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press of Land Ownership in Yatacho¯ and Shinkamanzacho¯ 1983), p. 24. in Two Cross Sections in 1912-1992”, Proceedings of 74 Among them, 158 were in the first category, shitei, the Research Meeting, pp. 845-848. and 119 in the second category, to¯roku. Kyoto Shi 64 Buildings which had more than three floors, were Bunka Kanko¯ Kyoku (ed.), Kyoto Shi no Bunkazai counted in the multi-storey category. Machiya Kata (‘The Cultural Assets of Kyoto City’), p.29. 268 75 Ibid. 88 Masafumi Yamasaki, Shin Miyako no Sakigake (1990). 76 General Plan Map of Kyoto, Map No. 3, 1987. 89 Kyoto City and People in Transition, p. 91. 77 A description of the four historic preservation areas: see Riitta Salastie, Kioton kaupunkirakenne ja Chapter 11 ympäristötyypit (Helsinki: Helsinki University of 90 On the subject, among others, Veeser and Hunt. Technology 1989), pp. 126-139. 91 Hubbard, Philip, “The value of conservation”, Town 78 One such preservation struggle which took place Planning Review 64(4), 1993, p. 365. in the environs of the Yasaka Pagoda is described 92 Per Kirkeby, p.42. and documented by Masafumi Yamasaki in “Kyoto 93 Mrs. Sugiura, a talk between her and the author. no Keikan Mondai to Kenchiku no Kadan”, Kenchiku 94 Harsha, Munasinghe, Urban Conservation and City Jaarunaru 7/1991, pp.8-17. Life, Case Study of the Port City of Galle, Acta 79 Giovanni Peternolli, “The Image of Kyoto Between Universitatis Ouluensis, Oulu 1998, p. 55. Past and Present” in Kyoto in the Fifties as Seen by 95 Australian Heritage Commission, What is Social Fosco Maraini, p. 25. Value?, p. 6. 80 In new buildings the maximum height has been 96 The Old Capital (San Francisco: North Point Press reached only partially. In the 31 metre height 1987), p. 77. category the average height of a building was 97 Ito Teiji, Koji Nishikawa, “Japan, Two Ancient 19.5m, in other words 61.5% of the allowed height. Capitals and the Menace to Them” in The Furthermore, in the 45-metre height category the Conservation of Cities, p. 122. The irony is that most height was no more than 45.8% of the maximum of the everyday buildings that have been height. Machiya Kata Kyodo Jutaku Kenkyukai (ed.), protected and preserved so far, are actually, Machiya Kata Kyodo Ju¯taku no Kaihatsu to Moderu museums. Kensetsu Sokushin ni Kansuru Cho¯sa Kenkyu¯ (Kyoto: 98 Dr. Shintani 1992, commenting on the problems in Kyoto Shi Ju¯taku Kyoku, 1992), p. 12: Table 2.2.5. the listing system. 81 See, for example, Barry Hillenbrand, “Kyoto’s 99 Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Demon for Progress, Greed and Indifference are Cities, p. 193. Ruining the Charm and Treasures of Japan’s most Revered City”, The Times 1.7.1991, p. 46. Chapter 12 82 Peter J. Larkham, “Conservation in Action. 100 Dr. Shintani, commenting on the difficulties in the Evaluating Policy and Practice in the United fieldwork and documentation in 1992. Kingdom”. Town Planning Review 64(4), 1993, p.352. 101 As architect George Woolston described the 83 Masafumi Yamasaki in “Historic Urban Environment phenomenon in “Popularisation of building with Historic Suburban Nature for Livable City”, inventory procedures”, in Anu Ahoniemi (ed.), (Kyoto: 1987), p. 13. Conservation Training - Needs and Ethics (ICOMOS - 84 Kyoto Shi Bunka Kanko Kyoku (ed.), Kyoto Shi no CIF Training Committee Meeting Suomenlinna Bunkazai (‘The Cultural Assets of Kyoto City’), Helsinki Finland 12.-17.6.1995), p. 172. Kyoto 1992. 85 Among the five listed everyday buildings, three are Chapter 13 located in the hoko neighbourhoods: the Sugimoto, 102 Recently among others, Leon Pressoyre: La Hata, Ban house. Convention du Patrimoine mondial, vingt ans apres 86 Kyo¯-Machiya. The Kyoto Museum 29.9.-28.10.1990. (Paris:Editions Unesco 1993). Referred by Larsen in The estimations vary between 40 000 – 80 000 “Authenticity in the Context of World Heritage: preserved townhouses. Japan and the Universal” in Knut Einar Larsen and 87 Gunther Nitschke, “A Sense of Place, Urban Nils Marstein (eds), Conference on Authenticity in Preservation and Renewal in Kyoto”, Kyoto Journal Relation to the World Heritage Convention (Tapir 4/1987, p. 19. Forlag 1994), p. 65. This idea was also discussed in 269 the author’s licenciate thesis (Helsinki: Helsinki 116 Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American University of Technology1989). Cities, p. 198. 103 Nobuko Inaba, “What is meant by ‘Another 117 Ibid., p. 197. Approach’ to Conservation?” in Anu Ahoniemi (ed), 118 David Lowenthal, The Past is a Foreign Country, p. Conservation Training - Needs and Ethics (Helsinki 356. 1995), p. 152. 119 David Lowenthal, “Criteria of Authenticity”, p. 56. 104 Knut Einar Larsen, “Authenticity in the Context of 120 Hubbard, Philip, “The Value of Conservation”, Town World Heritage: Japan and the Universal”, p. 73. Planning Review 64(4), 1993, p. 365 105 Ibid., p.72. 121 What is Social Value? Technical Publications Series 106 Larsen gives an excellent analysis on the concept of Number 3. Australian Heritage Commission authenticity as it is understood and practised 1994. throughout the building repair and conservation 122 Dr. Shintani 1992, the Cultural Heritage Office. process in Japan. See, Larsen, Architectural Preservation in Japan (Trondheim: Tapir Publishers Chapter 15 1994). 123 See, for instance, Kisho Kurokawa, Rediscovering 107 Eugene Benda, Kyoto City and People in Transition Japanese Space (Tokyo: Weatherhill 1988), p. 21. (The Kyoto Museum 1991), in the preface to the 124 Naoki Tani et al., “Kinsei (Machi) Kyo¯dotai ni Okeru exhibition catalogue. Toshikyo¯ju Systemu ni Kansuru Kenkyu¯” (‘Research 108 Knut Einar Larsen, Nils Marstein (eds), Conference on the Urban Dwelling System in the Pre-Modern on Authenticity in Relation to the World Heritage Period’), in Ju¯taku So¯go¯ Kenkyu¯ Zaipan Kenkyu¯ Nenpo. Convention (Tapir Forlag 1994), pp. 35-64. Toshi Ju¯taku, 16/1989. 109 Larsen, in “Authenticity in the context of world 125 Outside the Yamahoko area the common facility is heritage: Japan and the Universal”, p. 74. found only in one neighbourhood, Matsubara Naka 110 Herbert Stovel, “Cultural Diversity and the no Machi. Ethics of Conservation” in Anu Ahoniemi 126 The lack of common facility was actually evidence (ed),Conservation Training - Needs and Ethics of the overall collapse of the cho¯ community. (Helsinki 1995), p. 153. 127 According to the Yamahoko inventory the common 111 Koren, Leonard, Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets facility served as the exhibition facility in 22 and Philosophers (1994). Yamahoko communities. 112 Larsen, in “Authenticity in the context of world 128 In the Yamahoko survey a great variety of functions heritage: Japan and the Universal”, p. 74. was identified such as public gathering place, 113 See, for example, the guide books that the Kyoto festival management, working space or flower City has published on historic preservation areas. arrangement classroom. Also Yamasaki presents the principle of pattern 129 An important source for the Yamahoko books in Kyoto Its Cityscape Traditions and Heritage documentation was provided by the measurement (Tokyo: Process Architecture No. 116, 1994). In works and architectural historic surveys by Prof. Finnish the material has been published in the Tani, who surveyed the common facilities in the licentiate thesis of the author (Helsinki 1989). mid 1970s. 114 Masafumi Yamasaki, “On the Historic Townscape 130 According to the Yamahoko survey these Conservation Area in Kyoto” (Kyoto: Kyoto communities were: Kankohokocho¯, University 1987), pp. 1,2. Niwatorihokocho¯, Hakurakutencho¯, Eboshacho¯, Koromotanacho¯. Chapter 14 131 This was the situation in 1993. Three years later, in 115 ICOMOS (1987)- “First Brazilian Seminar about the 1996, the conservationists had won the fight for Preservation and Revitalization of Historic protection. The structures had been carefully Centres”. ICOMOS Brazilian Committee, Itaipava. repaired and they were in excellent condition. 270 132 The common facilities of Hokahoko, Mo¯so¯yama, (Kyoto: Nagata Bunshodo 1984). Araretenjinyama, Hoshoyama. 148 The author used the same classification methods and categories as used by the Nishikawa laboratory Chapter 16 in the four historic districts. 133 Bruno Taut, Houses and People of Japan, p. 236. 149 The author sorted the shops into five categories: 1) 134 Gallian has recorded the history of the family in her restaurants and cafes, 2) shops in the field of doctoral thesis. A wooden plate from the construction traditional industries, 3) food shops and 4) other. ceremony is preserved. According to this plate the There were: five restaurants or cafes; two shops ceremony took place on 23.4.1870. Claire Gallian, in the field of traditional industries (the articles L’Evolution du Mode d’Habiter et ses Consequenses pour were umbrellas and Nishijin textile bags), four food la Protection du Patrimoine Architectural et Urban au shops. Other listed products were: thread, Japon (Kyoto: Kyoto University 1989), p. 38. raincoats, electric equipment, hearing-aids, 135 Mr. Sugimoto1992, when the author visited the house. pharmacy, cigarettes, men’s shirts and flags. In addition, one ‘Sewing Academy’, one kiosk and Chapter 17 three barbers or hairdressers were recorded. 136 Louis Frederick, Daily Life in Japan at the time of the 150 Masafumi Yamasaki, “On the Historic Townscape Samurai, 1185-1603 (Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Conservation Area in Kyoto” (Kyoto: Kyoto Company 1988), p. 59. University 1987), p. 2. 137 Edwin O. Reischauer, p. 101. 151 Edward Morse, Japanese Homes and Their 138 Yasunari Kawabata, The Old Capital (San Fransisco: Surroundings (Rutland, Vermont & Tokyo: Charles E. The North Point Press 1987), p. 81-82 . Tuttle Co., 1986), p. 251. 139 Illustration of the Gion Festival 1596-1658. 140 Historical Record on the Gion Festival 1757. Chapter 20 152 Kyo no Sumai. Chiiki to Bunkazai to Shite no Minka Chapter 18 (Kyoto: The Cultural Heritage Office of Kyoto City 141 From average 192.5 inhabitants per neighbourhood 1993). The houses portrayed in the book were: the in 1960 to 75.9 inhabitants per neighbourhood Kobayashi, Matsumoto, Naka, Nakae 1 and Nakae 2 in1990. houses. 142 Altogether 27 new apartment buildings were built 153 In Kyoto the business is known as kobon some. in the D-group of neighbourhoods. The total 154 With an attached writing alcove, shoin. number of new apartment buildings in the hoko 155 Dr. Shintani, commenting on the architecture of the neighbourhoods in 1992 was 32. house 1992 . 143 Koromotanacho¯, Shijocho¯, Ubayanagicho¯ excluded. 156 In Japanese: kyo some ginsai ku¯gei. Source: Dwelling Standard Register. 157 In Kyoto known as kofuku no roshi. 158 191 cm x 95.5 cm. Chapter 19 159 not uranagaya, the back street nagaya 144 Kawa means leather. 161 Information of Mrs. Sugiura; also see Edwin O. 145 Shiryo. Kyoto no Rekishi (Kyoto: Heibonsha 1981), pp. Reischauer on the land reform programme in Japan 6-17. in 1947-49, p. 234. 146 Kyoto Shi no Chi Mei (Tokyo: Heibonsha 1979). 162 The youngest daughter married and moved away in 147 Kuya, also called Koya was a monk of the Tendai 1994. school of Buddhism who lived in 903-972. He entered the priesthood at an early age, and wandered about Chapter 21 the country, building bridges, digging wells etc. While 163 Screens which are owned by the hoko urging people to recite Buddha Amida’s name. neighbourhoods and preservation organizations H. Inagaki, A Dictionary of Japanese Buddhist Terms were outside this study. 271 164 sumie: literally ink painting 180 There has been increasing apprehension about the 165 In 1991 51 displays were investigated. In 1992 the future of Kyoto’s architectural heritage amongst number was 47. In this research we noted the the international preservation community. One total number of different displays, in other words concrete expression of the international debate is, 56 displays. for example, the ‘Save Kyoto Movement’. 166 Masuhiko Hayakawa, Gion Matsuri ni Okeru Byo¯bu 181 Soetsu Yanagi, The Unknown Craftsman - A Japanese Kazarini Kansuru Kenkyu¯ (Kyoto: Kyoto University Insight into Beauty (Tokyo: Kodansha International 1978), p. 21. 1982), p. 155. 167 In 1977 14 structures were of traditional 182 Alessi 1994, in an interview in Vogue Interior, the townhouse, machiya style, five had shop sign, number of issue unidentified. kanban facades, one was rebuilt in the townhouse 183 For more on the subject, see Christer Bengs style, six were office buildings and four other “Kaupunki korjausrakentamisen kohteena”, structures. ibid., p. 16. Korjausrakentamisen tutkimusohjelma 1986- 88 (‘City 168 Mr. Kojiro Yoshida 1993, commenting on the recent as Subject of Renovation. Research Program for history of the Screen Festival when I visited his 1986-88’). Helsinki: Valtion Teknillinen house in Rokkakucho¯. Tutkimuskeskus (The State Research Center) 1989. 169 “Machiya o butai mitai ni okasete soko wa Byo¯bu 184 Masafumi Yamasaki, “Historic Urban Environment Matsuri no hitotsu no ookina imi o sagashite miooka...“ with Historic Suburban nature for Livable City”, Dr. Iwama 1993. International Seminar on Innovative Planning Strategies 170 Mr. Sugiura1992, talk with the author. for Metropolitan Development and Conservation 171 Mr. Kojiro Yoshida, as he said in our interview in (Kyoto: Symposium of World Heritage Cities 1992). 1993. 185 Junichiro Tanizaki, In Praise of Shadows (Rutland, 172 Edward Morse, Japanese Homes and Their Vermont & Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Co., 1988) , p. 18. Surroundings (Rutland, Vermont & Tokyo: Charles E. 186 Julia Kristeva, Muukalaisia itsellemme (Gaudeamus Tuttle Co. 1986), p. 316. 1992), p. 21. 173 Mr. Matsuuma in 1991 during the site survey in his 187 Kojiro Yoshida, his comment on the urban house. preservation 1993. 174 Mr. Imae, in 1992 when the author surveyed the 188 Charles Jencks, The Language of Postmodern Architecture display. (London: 1984) p. 127. quoted David Harvey in The Condition of Postmodernity : an enquiry into the origins Chapter 22 of cultural change (Oxford: Blackwell 1990). 175 David Lowenthal, in The Past is a Foreign Country, p. 189 David Harvey, The Condition of Postmodernity: An 356. Enquiry into the Origins of Cultural Change (Oxford: 176 Laura Tuominen, 1900-luvun rakennusperintö. Blackwell 1989), p. 301. Luettelointi- ja suojelukysymyksiä. Helsinki: 190 City Planning Symposium “Kyoto - City and People Ympäristöministeriö (‘The 20th Century Built in Transition”. Kyoto 29.11.1991. Heritage. Preservation and Listing Issues’ Ministry 191 Robert Hewison, The Heritage Industry: Britain in a of Environment, Report), 8/1992, p. 63. Tuominen Climate of Decline (London: Methuen 1987), p. 135, gives an excellent summary of the value criteria quoted in David Harvey, The Condition of and listing systems heritage authorities currently Postmodernity : an enquiry into the origins of cultural use in different countries. change (Oxford: Blackwell 1990), p. 62. 177 Ibid., p. 63. 178 Strike, James, Architecture in Conservation, Managing Development at Historic Sites, p.14. 179 Giovanni Peternolli, “The Image of Kyoto“, Kyoto in Please note: notes 11, 17, 18, 19 are to be found in the Fifties as Seen by Fosco Maraini, p. 30. chapter 10 and note 12 in chapter 2. 17

272 18 Living Tradition or Panda’s

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Calligraphic works: Shingai Tanaka

If not otherwise indicated, photographs by the author. 282

18 19 Living Tradition or Panda’s