KENGO KUMA
Kengo Kuma’s design process is inspired by the light and the nature of the site of the building. His influences come from unique explorations of glass, concrete, stone and wood. He is also influenced by the natural environment, which he strives to harmonize with architecture and the human body through his work.
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CONTENTS
KENGO KUMA
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[ architect’s profile] 1 Biography
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Awards
[ building of the year ] 2
V&E Dundee Museum
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Macdonald Public Facility Complex
[ innovation & technology] 16 Using Mycelium in Architecture
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Ceramic Roof Tiles as shelves
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Aluminum Panels as Vertical Planters Green Cast
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Glass Panels as an Animated Lattice
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Wooden grid as showcase
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BIOGRAPHY
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KENGO KUMA
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engo Kuma is one of the most prominent Japanese architects. He was born on August 8, 1956 in Yokohama, Japan. After going to Eiko Gakuen junior and senior high schools he joined University of Tokyo and graduated in 1979. After doing his bachelors Kuma worked at Nihon Sekkei and TODA Corporation for some time and then shifted to New York to enroll at Columbia University as a visiting researcher from 1985 to 1986. In 1987 Kuma commenced the “Spatial Design Studio” and soon launched his own office in 1990 with the name “Kengo Kuma & Associates“. He is regarded as one of the most popular contemporary architects of Japan concerned with reviving and revitalizing the traditional Japanese values and customs by blending them well with modernistic approach of current time. For this purpose the main area of Kuma’s focus are materials and their emotional connectivity with Japanese traditions. Kuma promotes the idea of drawing inspiration from surroundings and context of the project to eliminate the chances of alienation of building on its site. His efforts have exposed many innovative uses of conventional Japanese materials in throbbing market of 21st century. He has proposed new ways of incorporating built environment with natural resources like natural light and unveiled architecture as a proficient art, making life comfortable instead of something dominating our daily living. Kuma is well known for producing some statement-making architecture with traditional elements, drawings global attention towards his creation. His method of mixing hightech fashion with long-established construction manners is rapidly gaining international admiration and making its way to China as well as west.
KENGO KUMA
Kuma’s firm Kengo Kuma and Associates has its offices in Tokyo and Paris with a staff of 150. He caters to commissions of all scales, programs and functions from all regions of the world. Like many other successful architects, Kuma has also served at universities as a professor of architecture including at Columbia University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Keio University. Currently Kuma is teaching at the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Tokyo and also carrying out various research projects in his personal laboratory, Kuma Lab. Major topics related to his researches are architecture, urbanity and design.
awards • 1997 Architectural Institute of Japan Award for “Noh Stage in the Forest" First Place, AIA DuPONT Benedictus Award for “Water/Glass” (USA) • 2001 Togo Murano Award for “Nakagawa-machi Bato Hiroshige Museum • 2002 Spirit of Nature Wood Architecture Award (Finland) • 2008 Energy Performance + Architecture Award (France) Bois Magazine International Wood Architecture Award (France) • 2008 LEAF Award (commercial category) • 2009 Decoration Officier de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France) • 2010 Mainichi Art Award for “Nezu Museum” • 2011 The Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Art Encouragement Prize for “Yusuhara Wooden Bridge Museum” • 2012 The Restaurant & Bar Design Awards, Restaurant Interior (Stand alone) for Sake No Hana (London) • 2016 Global Award for Sustainable Architecture
PROJECTS
KENGO KUMA
V & A DUNDEE MUSEUM
‘living room for the city’
Dundee’s setting, on a slope towards the broad river, is wonderful urban topography, and it’s a bonus of the V&A project that it has enabled the improvement of what was a messed-up bit of waterfront. With some difficulty and expense, Kuma’s building is partly built on the water, also in the name of connection with nature. Yet once you get inside what is a blocky presence on the quay, you at first see the river only through shards and postcards of glass.
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PROJECTS
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ARCHITECT KENGO KUMA AND ASSOCIATES YEAR 2018 AREA 8500m2 C&S ENGINEER ARUP FACADE CLIENT DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL ELECTRICAL, FIRE AND ACOUSTIC ENGINEER ARUP FAÇADE OPTIMISED ENVIRONMENTS (OPEN) QUANTITY SURVEYOR CBA DESIGNER KENGO KUMA & ASSOCIATES / PIM. STUDIO ARCHITECTS CITY DUNDEE COUNTRY UNITED KINGDOM
PROJECTS
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Located along the waterfront in the city of Dundee in the northern part of Scotland, this museum is a branch of the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. In addition to exhibits of artwork in the V&A collection, contemporary Scottish art and product design from the area are on display, making it a facility that is expected to become a new cultural centre in Scotland. The site faces the River Tay, and the architecture proposes a new integrated way to achieve harmony with the environment. The façade has a variety of shadows and changes created with multiple horizontal layers of precast concrete as a way to express the beautiful cliffs of Scotland with architecture The foyer was designed as a large void that is covered with locally available wood that has a soft texture with the intention that it be used as a “Living Room” capable of revitalizing the community by providing a venue where various concerts and performances are held.
PROJECTS
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Kengo Kuma’s V&A Dundee is one of ten projects to triumph in the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland’s (RIAS) 2019 awards. V&A Dundee was among the ten winners announced at the RIAS Award 2019 and RIBA Award for Scotland 2019. the Dundee museum took home the award in the tourism and leisure category at the RICS Awards 2019. Shortlisted for cultural building of the year at Dezeen Awards 2019, V&A Dundee by Kengo Kuma was designed to evoke the dramatic cliffs along the north-east coastline . A design competition took place in 2010 to decide what the museum would look like. The Japanese architect Kengo Kuma won the competition; his design was inspired by the eastern cliff edges of Scotland. BAM Construction carried out the construction work beginning in April 2014. The original completion date was 2017 but it was delayed to 2018.
During construction a cofferdam was installed to allow the outer wing to expand onto the River Tay and 780 tonnes of pre-cast grey concrete slabs were added to the outside of the building. It cost £80.1 million to complete. The museum was also criticised by architects who criticised the unused space and called the building “boring” in the first few months after opening.
PROJECTS
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A primary structure of inclined concrete shell walls supports a reconstituted stone façade. To invoke the appearance of a cliff face, as per Kengo Kuma’s vision inspired by the coastline of north eastern Scotland, a complex algorithm was developed to translate the twisting geometry into a series of organic, irregular elements made of horizontal, straight reconstituted stone panels. Parametric modelling was used optimise the precast panels, while maintaining the random appearance, making their manufacture and transportation more economical. All 2,429 elements were compiled into a schedule of cladding panel lengths and shapes.
The double curvature of the structural walls presented a specific challenge. The panels are hung off the structure and a bespoke bracket was designed to ‘prop’ each plank away from the curved wall and at the required angle. This meant that a common fixing could be used for all the variations of cladding and became an intrinsic part of the installation process we devised.
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Due to the waterfront location, certain areas of glazed curtain wall are directly exposed to strong wave loads and required an enhanced design of robust glass build-up and steel support members and necessary levels of corrosion resistance for all elements. The facade team steered the architect through materials choices, their feasibility, appropriateness and buildability.
PROJECTS
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The new museum would not have been possible to design without the use of 3D modelling and analysis tools. The original plans devised by our engineers included walls up to 600mm thick with huge pieces of steel embedded inside. By experimenting with the shape of the building using 3D tools, the team cut the thickness of the walls by half and replaced the steel skeleton inside with much thinner reinforced bars. The building functions in a similar way to a shell in that it is a continuous, interconnected structure. The roof, walls and flooring all work together to make the building stable. Arup’s engineers considered how the twists and folds of the walls could strengthen the building. An integrated 3D model of the entire building was created as a coordination tool, meaning the engineers and contractors involved in the construction could all study a digital version of what they were about to create. The finished structure remains true to the original concept. The shape is slightly steeper and less splayed than the original design. But despite the minor alterations, the largest overhang sees the roof extend an impressive 19.8 meters beyond the footprint of the museum.
PROJECTS
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KENGO KUMA A large horizontal “hole” was provided in the centre of the building. This “hole” represents an attempt to connect Union Street which runs through the centre of Dundee with the beautiful natural scenery of the River Tay. This feature was adopted in order to create a 21st century type cultural facility that is an integral part of the environment and community which replaces 20th century type art museums that were cut off from the environment.
PROJECTS
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MAC MACDONA
ALD PUBLIC FACILITY COMPLEX
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engo kuma and associates has designed the adaptive reuse of a large warehouse located in the suburbs of paris, france to house the ‘macdonald public facility complex’. the project includes educational facilities, housing, and a gymnasium, making it a lively urban entity in a previously industrial zone. linkage with the local rail system helps to connect the site with the greater capital area. The existing structure is largely retained and organized through the addition of certain notable architectural features. programmatic elements are distinguished mainly through a large multi-level gap in the building, which functions as a public courtyard. simultaneously, a large roof serves to bring together the structure’s mixture of uses, giving it a unified identity. façades are treated with varying filters in the form of screens, shades, or vegetation.
PROJECTS
KENGO KUMA The creation of a public equipments complex within the warehouse Macdonald allows to realize the link between existing architecture and architecture to come, revealing the needs and developments of a changing society. It is also the pretext of the connexion between traditional processes and contemporary needs. Existing warehouse’s architect, Marcel Forest, described it as a base, convenient to the reception of future extensions.This one will be realized by a light metallic structure, a support of a big linear roof sheltering an ensemble of public services.
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This big roof put on the existing base, participates in the development of an architectural heritage by adapting it to contemporary functional needs. By its dimensions, its situation and its size, the existing building and its extension is to be looked as and considered on a territorial scale, offering a horizon, proposing an infrastructure. The territory becomes therefore support of the new project; the existing offers the base whereas the roof serves as an unifying element, sheltering a succession of spaces and functions.
KENGO KUMA
Using Mycelium in Architecture
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ungi are everywhere. In the air, in the water, in our bodies, in the trees, in the ceilings of our bathrooms, underground. They can be mushrooms (edible, medicinal, hallucinogenic, or very poisonous), or take other simpler forms, such as molds. They can trigger illnesses, but they can also produce antibiotic remedies, such as penicillin, or help ferment amazing cheeses and breads.
Could they also be the future of packaging and building materials? Fungi are nature’s primary recyclers. They produce enzymes that aid in the degradation of organic matter, transforming it into minerals. Typically, these life forms grow best in shaded and humid environments. Like an iceberg, the visible portion of a fungus only represents a small fraction of it. Below the surface, for example, mushrooms develop long threadlike roots called mycelium. These are extremely thin white filaments that develop in all directions, forming a quicklygrowing complex web.
When the fungus is implanted in a suitable place, the mycelium behaves like glue, cementing the substrate and transforming it into a solid block. This substrate can be composed of sawdust, ground wood, straw, various agricultural residues, or other similar materials, which might otherwise go to waste.
KENGO KUMA
Depending on the mycelium strain and the substrate used, the final product can be molded to produce insulating panels, furniture, accessories, fabrics, packaging materials, and even bricks, with good thermal and acoustic characteristics and strong fire behavior. Scientific research has shown that, in terms of physical and mechanical characteristics, mycelium-based materials resemble expanded polystyrene (often called Styrofoam), but with an improved level of biodegradability.
“In addition to the lignocellulosic substrate, the characteristics of a mycelium-based biocomposite are strongly affected by the selected fungus species and their continuous growth. Thus, the consistency of the mycelium itself is, in turn, affected by the composition and structure of the substrate.”Ecovative Design is a pioneer of myceliumbased design today, using this unconventional material to create objects such as packaging.
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To produce these objects, the substrate and fungi are combined in a solution and inserted into molds. After about 5 days of growth in favorable conditions – adequate temperature, humidity, and light – the material is solidified into the desired shape. The object then goes into an oven to completely deactivate the microorganisms present, allowing it be used as common packaging. Companies as large as IKEA and DELL have already begun using these packages, which are completely biodegradable
The Living studio in New York worked in cooperation with Ecovative Design on the Hy-Fi Project, a pavilion that was built in the yard of MoMA PS1 after winning the MoMA's Young Architects Program in 2014. With ARUP's structural advice, mycelium bricks were developed, which grew in less than a week in prismatic molds from the residue of chopped corn stalks. When constructed, the bricks formed a tower about 12 meters high. At the end of the two-month exhibition, the tower was dismantled and the bricks were taken to composters, taking advantage of their natural biodegradability.
Carlo Ratti Associati, working in collaboration with the energy company Eni, developed an architectural structure made of mushrooms that was revealed at Milan Design Week. The “Circular Garden” is a series of arches composed of one kilometer of mycelium, wherein the spores were injected into an organic material to start the growth process. As many pavilions for temporary exhibitions generate a significant amount of waste, Jardim Circular follows a more sustainable course, with its constitutive mushrooms, ropes, and shredded wood chips returned to the ground after the end of the exhibition.
The Shell Mycelium Pavillion, a collaboration between BEETLES 3.3 and Yassin Areddia Designs, similarly demonstrates alternative eco-conscious design through temporary structures. A wooden structure was covered with coconut marrow that contained the fungus. After a few days of care, the mycelium grew and formed a snow cover over the structure. The upper layer of growth died and hardened due to sunlight, forming a shell and protecting the lower layers.
In addition to architectural structures, mycelium also has potential for use in thermal and acoustic insulation. According to another initiative by Ecovative, live mushrooms packaged between wooden panels can form an effective insulating wall. In three days, the mycelium grows and solidifies loose particles to create airtight insulation, simultaneously adhering to the wooden boards and forming what is essentially an extremely strong sandwich. The result is similar to a structural insulating panel, but without thermal bridges. According to Ecovative, after about a month the mushroom insulation naturally dries out and becomes inactive.
But European researchers in the fields of computing, biology, and architecture [2] go a step further. They propose to develop a structural substrate using live fungal mycelium, together with nanoparticles and polymers, to make mycelium-based electronics through the implementation of sensory fusion and fungal decision making. “Mycelium networks will be computationally active, giving rise to entirely new biologicallybased features for architectural artifacts and materials, such as self-regulation, adaptation, decisionmaking, growth, and autonomous repair - adding new advantages and value to architectural artifacts and the environment, and providing a radically alternative paradigm to state of the art 'smart buildings' that rely heavily on technical infrastructure. ”
innovation,technology and others
Although we can gather some examples of initiatives in one article, the use of mycelium has still barely scratched the surface of its potential.
Scientific articles on the subject almost always conclude with the statement: it is necessary to research heavily and experiment carefully with the material for it to have the efficiency, competitiveness, and industrial quality needed for mass use. But researchers also agree that there is enormous potential for the material in many diverse areas. Mycelium represents a paradigm shift in the way we approach the procurement, use, and disposal of construction materials.
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Being 100% biodegradable, found in abundance on the planet, “grown” from waste, and achieving excellent functional characteristics, mycelium-based materials have enormous, yet untapped potential. But, above all, mycelium also proves that great innovations do not necessarily require new technologies or complex materials. They may be closer than we think
innovation,technology and others
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inn ova tion
INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
CERAMIC ROOF TILES AS SHELVES
In this shoe store, the architect takes advantage of the elementary form of the ceramic pieces to create all the elements that the space needs to work: walls, shelves, the staff counter, and the customers’ bench. Each piece is simple, but its sum is complex and attractive.
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INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
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ALUMINUM PANELS AS VERTICAL PLANTERS GREEN CAST Kengo Kuma & Associates have created this visually stunning mixed-use building in Odawara, Japan, featuring a living façade made of aluminum diecast panels that act as vertical planters. The slightly slanted panels are made of monoblock casting and give an organic appearance, as the cast comes from decayed styrene foam. Equipment such as watering hoses, an air reservoir for ventilation and downpipes are integrated behind the aluminum panels to allow the façade to accommodate a comprehensive system for the building.
INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
GLASS PANELS AS AN ANIMATED LATTICE In this museum, Kuma replicates the system of Cidori, an old Japanese toy, at the necessary scale to become the support for the works of art that will be exhibited i These two clearly identified entities are connected between them by a set of footbridges and are unified by the envelope made by an glass skin, composed with panels with changing opacity. nside. The resulting structure consists of a grid of 50cm square. Several tempered and laminated glass panels, with an enameled surface treatment, create an exo-structure that envelops the museum, creating movement and identity to the building
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WOODEN GRID AS SHOWCASE In this museum, the architect replicates the system of Cidori, an old Japanese toy, at the necessary scale to become the support for the works of art that will be exhibited inside. The resulting structure consists of a grid of 50cm square.