Jo Nagasaka / Schemata Architects
The evolution of Jo Nagasaka’s design process is unveiled in a unique publication about his practice. This book tells the story of Schemata Architects, encapsulating the essence of the studio’s work. Highlighting methods and processes through a series of essays, the designer offers insight into how concepts are developed in order to realise the wideranging portfolio of Schemata Architects that are showcased in the book.
2 Jo Nagasaka
It’s been 19 years since our team was formed: Jo Nagasaka / Schemata Architects. First, let me explain the book title. After I studied architecture and graduated from university, I started my own architectural practice working on furniture design, which was the best thing I could do at that time. After a while, I started to feel that Jo Nagasaka as a furniture designer is treated differently from Jo Nagasaka as an architect by the media. Hoping to integrate both aspects of myself, I decided to add the ‘/’ symbol between my name and the company name when we launched our current website. Five years passed, and people are beginning to understand the relationship between the two. With this book, I hope readers will have a better understanding of the essence of both aspects of our work. Jo Nagasaka May 2017
World Basics
150
ESSAYS 0 ≠ White
Shibari 6
166
Unplugged 170
Subtraction 12
En Route Ginza
Addition 20
172
Renewal of Knowledge
26
Takahashi Hiroko Oshiage 180 Studio
Designing a Process
32
Okomeya 190
Designing Movement 38 in the Age of Moving Images
Blue Bottle Coffee
198 234
Misuse
44
Cabane de Zucca Daikanyama
Pre-Established Harmony
50
Still Moving
244
Vitra Exhibition 2015
252
House in Hatogaya
260
PROJECTS Sayama Flat
70
Descente Blanc
270
Flat Table
80
Sponge Table
294
House in Okusawa
86
298
Happa Hotel
94
Twintsugi & ColoRing Shrine Table PROJECT INDEX
302
BIOGRAPHY
303
CREDITS
304
Paco 102 Aesop Aoyama
110
Hanare
118
Today’s Special
128
Takeo Kikuchi Shibuya
136
YCAM Archives
142
Schemata Architects
3.1 Phillip Lim Microcosm 156
3
PREFACE 2
Jo Nagasaka
4
5
Schemata Architects
Essays
Essay 3
Jo Nagasaka
20
21
Schemata Architects
Addition
Addition
Jo Nagasaka
22
‘The positive effect of addition is evident not only in appearance; it also encourages residents to think proactively’ I often come across a construction site of a generic built-for-sale wooden house where the roof and the walls are already secured to protect it from the weather, yet the interior is unfinished and structural elements are exposed. Seeing this, I always think, ‘Why don’t they hand over the house at this stage? It would be much cheaper and the interior would be much better.’ In contrast to the generic exterior appearance, the rough textures of the building materials were exposed in the interior, creating a state of ‘incompleteness’. Here, one could start the act of ‘addition’ from the ‘negative’ or ‘below zero’ state to create a space. In this way, elements added to the ‘structural frames’ or the ‘negative’ state would stand out in the space. We could say this is totally the opposite process that we followed for Sayama Flat, where the space was made by subtraction (see p.70). I always wanted to build a house in this way. The positive effect of ‘addition’ is evident not only in its appearance. This house refuses residents to accept the life as it is; it encourages residents to think proactively and create with their own hands. There is no apparent distinction between construction and completion; the life in this house changes slowly and gradually, before anyone realises it. As time goes by, they may feel a need to make changes because their life has gone through a gradual transformation. Due to the fact they are used to adding elements on their own, they can add naturally without hesitation to create gradual changes. When I imagine architecture like this, I feel that architects should be able to plan and redefine ‘completion’ of architecture more freely. I started thinking about this notion of ‘addition’ when seeing how residents have added new elements after living in Sayama Flat for some time and thought, ‘I kind of like the way
1 In the end, the client of Sayama Flat covered the back 6 wall with plywood panels because he didn’t like it 6 exposed (credit: Shinkenciku-sha). Essay 3
23 Schemata Architects
2 & 3 The base structure is steel, to achieve wide spans providing access for vehicles, and the 6 ceiling is wood, allowing for easy maintenance by the owner; infrastructure pipes penetrate 6 the slab and run horizontally also allowing for easy maintenance (credit: Takumo Ota). Addition
24 Jo Nagasaka
they add new things.’ Until this moment, I used to arrogantly feel disappointed seeing unexpected ways clothes were on display in a shop interior I had realised, or unexpected types of furniture in a house that I’d designed. Until then, ‘completion’ of architecture had meant the day when I handed over the building to the client 1. After experiencing Sayama Flat, I naturally felt the urge to create architecture that would gain its beauty after people live in it. I somehow realised that during another residential project, Hanare (see p.118). From the start, the client gave us two requests; one was to treat this house as a place of experiments, and he wanted to continue to build as necessary after the initial completion. The second request was to adopt a separate tender construction method so that he would thoroughly understand and be actively involved in the entire planning and construction processes. Both requests turned out to be quite effective at a later stage but we didn’t know it then. Though we had done the separate tender construction in some interior design projects, we had no experience in conducting the separate tender construction in architectural projects. It turned out to be very challenging for us, and we tried to plan the construction process and design as simply as possible so that we can understand the entire flow and interconnection between all processes. For example, the electric wiring is exposed and piping penetrates the holes on the walls and sticks out of the wall perpendicularly; doors are not fitted in the walls but are hung directly from the ceiling and can be moved when necessary. The client pays special attention to the quality of things he touches every day; on the other hand, he is comfortable with the way the structural frames and infrastructures are exposed. Such contrast of meticulousness and roughness creates a kind of ‘contradiction’ that I find amusing and, as a result, generated ample room where new ‘characters’ can be received generously – this is a space allowing for ‘freely connectable or dis-connectable relationships’ among things and people in architecture 2, 3.
4 The model of ‘Build by Yourself House’ made for the 6 Makes House Exhibition; the concept model is going 6 to be realised in House in Otsu. Essay 3
5 Architecture and furniture 6 are connected using wood 6 L-angles.
7 This project will mostly be built by the kiri-dansu craftsmen, 6 with our help designing the structural frames.
Addition
Jo Nagasaka
Schemata Architects
6 Existing workshop at Monmaya where the artisans craft 6 the traditional cabinets (credit: Shiori Kawamoto).
25
We are currently working on a house in Otsu, Japan that would be handed over in an ‘unfinished’ state, which I described in the beginning of this essay. Basic structural frames and the exterior of the house, as well as basic services such as toilet, bath and kitchen – in other words items difficult to handle by the inexperienced – are designed by us (the architects) and built by a contractor. After this stage, the client (who is an artist) and his wife would do additional works as necessary. The handover date of the house to the client does not necessarily mean the completion date because they would keep building as they continue their life inside. There may never be ‘completion’ or ‘deterioration’ in this house. The construction is in progress right now 4, 5. We are currently designing a factory and a showroom for Monmaya, a 100-year-old manufacturer of kiri-dansu – which are traditional Japanese chests of drawers made of paulownia wood. This is a similar case to the house in Otsu; the building is planned to be handed over after completing the minimum necessary construction of the roof and the walls. Since kiri-dansu is a luxurious household item and not too many households own them today, the industry may gradually decline but it will probably never flourish in today’s society. People in the industry have to think very hard how to sustain their business. Kiri-dansu manufacturing is one of the traditional crafts in Japan, and the craftsmen tend to be passive and are not consciously thinking of their future. We took this opportunity to plan a new strategy. The interior construction of Monmaya would be handled by the craftsmen, so that they would gain some experience in teamwork and make efforts to solve problems that may arise, discuss and come up with viable solutions together. Since they are professional craftsmen who build furniture, they should be able to build their space by themselves 6, 7. ‘Architecture allowing for addition’ would be increasingly needed from now on, rather than architecture completed and simply handed over to its users.
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Schemata Architects
Projects
70 Jo Nagasaka 1
Project – Residential
71 Schemata Architects
S aya m a F l a t Usage Residential Floor area 2227 m2 Location Sayama, Japan Date 01/2008 Photos Takumi Ota
Sayama Flat
72 Jo Nagasaka
This building in Sayama accommodates 30 housing units defined as ‘nLDK’, a standard housing plan composed of ‘n’ which equates to the quantity of bedrooms, plus living room (L), dining room (D) and kitchen (K). It was a 38-year-old construction at the time of the renovation, and the client wanted to convert it from commercial use to individual apartments. The building is located a 15-minute walk away from Sayama Station, where the train journey takes 50 minutes to get to Shinjuku Station. Due to its suburban position to the far northwest of Tokyo, the client set the rent low to entice tenants, and consequently we were required to keep the construction cost below an equally low level of approximately JPY 1 million per apartment. Within this budget, we were not able to afford all the components of standard design process, such as making models, doing design studies, drawing documents, presenting to the client and getting approval in advance for each apartment. Instead, we selected four apartment units and experimented with the ‘DIY construction’ method: we would make design decisions on-site during the demolishing and constructions stages; and the client would check and approve the result there without the intermediate ‘design’ process. All four cases were successfully approved, and we continued this DIY method to renovate the rest of the apartment complex. Our DIY process basically started from removing unnecessary walls to bring more light into the dark and gloomy space. We realised that this demolition process in itself was very effective for improving the space. Thus, we chose to design and recompose the space by ‘subtraction’, which was also an effective method within the limited budget. By removing walls here and there, an unexpected encounter of different elements was experienced. For example, the paper screen wall in a Japanese room would meet the Western-style kitchen by demolishing the wall in between – and a new spatial order would emerge. Aiming to create such unexpected beauty, we proceeded with the design concept of ‘subtraction’ throughout the construction. All spaces are comprised of existing components, which were basically ordinary furniture and fixtures used for a long time. Such ‘ordinariness’ creates a certain tolerance to accept something foreign or extraordinary to enhance the room itself. I believe that the method of subtraction should not only be limited to interior design, but we should also invent an effective method of subtraction to be applied to urban planning in a ‘shrinking’ society like Japan.
Project – Residential
73 Schemata Architects 2
1 The kitchen in the Western style room and shoji screens in the Japanese style room are exposed face-to-face. 2 Nothing but shoji screens remain of the Japanese room.
Sayama Flat
74 Jo Nagasaka
3 Project – Residential
75 Schemata Architects
Sayama Flat
76 Jo Nagasaka
‘We experimented with the DIY construction method, choosing to design and recompose the space by subtraction’
4
Project – Residential
77 Schemata Architects 5
3 The sliding doors on the left were originally closet doors; they transformed into partitions after the shelving was removed. 4 We renovated the entire building and the exterior facade was simply repainted. 5 All walls around the living room were removed and two different rooms remained on the right and left sides.
Sayama Flat
78 Jo Nagasaka
6
7 Project – Residential
79 Schemata Architects 8
BEFORE
AFTER
6 Due to the limited budget, we designed everything on the construction site, while taking notes on the drawings of the existing structure. 7 The wall between the living room and the bathroom was removed to reveal the envelope of the bathroom unit. By removing all walls around the living room, a new spatial relationship is assigned between adjacent rooms.
8 After the partition was removed, a clear division within the two zones of the interior is evident.
Sayama Flat
80 Jo Nagasaka Project – Furniture
81 Schemata Architects
Fl a t Ta b l e Usage Furniture Location n/a Date 06/2008 – ongoing Photos Schemata Architects, Peter Gruenzel and others
1 F l a t Ta b l e
180 Jo Nagasaka 1
Project – Retail
181 Schemata Architects
Ta k a h a s h i H i r o ko O s h i a g e S t u d i o Usage Retail (store/studio) Floor area 324 m2 Location Tokyo, Japan Date 09/2014 Photos Shiori Kawamoto
Ta k a h a s h i H i r o ko O s h i a g e S t u d i o
236 Jo Nagasaka
‘Chromate finish applied to the steel components differentiates from the past and communicaties the brand’s aesthetics’
Cabane de Zucca’s former flagship store in Omotesando in central Tokyo was well-known to me during my high school days. I knew about it, even though I was not fashion conscious at that time. The minimalistic space finished with galvanised steel, which was rarely used as an interior finish back then, was so intriguing that I would often peek inside the store from the street. This impression was still vivid in my memory when I was commissioned to design a shop for its Zucca Dayz collection in Daikanayama, just a short distance away from the original location. In our quest to realise an equally intriguing space, chromate finish was applied to the steel components to differentiate from the past and create a unique impression, while communicating the brand’s aesthetics and legacy through our design. The freestanding scaffolding framework, capable of responding to various needs in the same way as standard wall units, were installed as the main element constituting the minimalistic space. In our overall design concept, it was important to also create a welcoming entrance for customers stepping in off the street. In order to create an inviting atmosphere, we provided a zone that was akin to a gallery space near the entry area, where the firm could hold exhibitions in collaboration with other brands. Spatial elements dispersed throughout alleviate a sense of tension in the space.
Project – Retail
237 Schemata Architects 2
1
An all-glass facade with the store name afixed on the window allows passers-by to view the store and bespoke furniture we designed for Zucca Dayz.
2 The interior incorporates a grid-like concept, from the furniture designs to the layout of fluorescent tube lighting overhead.
Cabane de Zucca Daikanyama
238 Jo Nagasaka 3
3 Furniture made from panels of larch plywood and concrete are positioned around the periphery of the retail space. 4 The island-style display rack system was made of chromate-treated steel, which gives the material an iradescent appearance.
Project – Retail
239 Schemata Architects
11
4 5
A
A 3 22
1 Shop/product displays 2 Gallery/exhibition space
3
3 Paydesk/counter 4 Changing rooms
5 Storage
Section A
Cabane de Zucca Daikanyama
270 Jo Nagasaka Project – Retail
271 Schemata Architects
Descente Blanc Usage Retail (stores) Floor area 62–178 m2 Location Tokyo and Osaka, Japan Date 09/2015– 09/2016 Photos Kenta Hasegawa
1 Descente Blanc
278 Jo Nagasaka
1 Project – Retail
279 Schemata Architects Descente Blanc Fukuoka
280 Jo Nagasaka
‘In this retail design concept, we incorporated a vertically-movable hanger rack system’
Project – Retail
281 Schemata Architects
1
5
A
A
A
A
8
4
First floor
2 2 1
6
A
A
A
A 1
3 3
4
5
3 Ground floor
2
1
5
7
1
Section A
1 Shop 2 Product displays 3 Paydesk/counter 4 Changing room
5 Storage 6 Garden 7 Mechanical ceiling rack 8 Lavatory
Descente Blanc Fukuoka
282 Jo Nagasaka 3
1 The courtyard behind the Fukuoka store can be seen from the street through the glass facade. 2 All clothes are brought down by lowering the vertically movable hanging rack system. 3 Fitting room is enveloped in tarpaulin and zippers are used to secure them shut. 4 The hanging racks can be moved and reconfigured freely. 4 Project – Retail
283 Schemata Architects
‘At the Fukuoka store, we focused on interaction between the store and the local community, providing a rooftop open for public activities’
Descente Blanc Fukuoka
284 Jo Nagasaka
1 Project – Retail
285 Schemata Architects
Descente Blanc Osaka
286 Jo Nagasaka
3
1
2
Project – Retail
In the Osaka store, a manual lifting system is used; the displays are freely arranged with the hanging part arranged at 1700 pitch as a trigger.
2 Employees can easily access the stock once the display is lowered manually. 3 For the storage units, we designed simple shelves made of steel and MDF.
287 Schemata Architects
‘At the Osaka store, the hooks can be individually operated at each spot, and two hooks can be connected with a hanger rack in both X and Y directions’
Descente Blanc Osaka
298 Jo Nagasaka
Tw i n t s u g i & C o l o R i n g S h r i n e Ta b l e Usage Furniture Location Tokyo, Japan Date 04/2016 Photos Takashi Mochizuki
1 Project – Furniture
299 Schemata Architects
S p o n g e Ta b l e
300 Jo Nagasaka 2
This is a combined project that includes ceramic products, Twintsugi, and a unique piece wooden furniture, the ColoRing Shrine Table. Firstly, new life is breathed into broken cups. Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with lacquer dusted with gold, silver or platinum to appreciate the joints as ‘landscape’. Here, we have reinterpreted this using the latest digital technologies, including high-precision 3D scanning and modelling. This ‘joy of joining’ is expressed by turning the broken piecess into conjoined twins, instead of applying gold. ColoRing is made by applying three layers of different colours of paint like strata on an uneven wooden surface treated by the Uzukuri method, the traditional Japanese woodcraft technique. Then, the undulating paint surface is sanded until flat to reveal tri-coloured wood grain patterns. For this work, we took inspiration from Tsugaru nuri, the traditional lacquer technique undertaken by craftsmen in Aomori, Japan. This method we have developed was made by integrating Tsugaru nuri and Uzukuri, and the new piece of furniture was inspired by a shrine table. The material is regular plywood with softwood surfaces. Usually, nobody pays attention to the wood grain of plywood, but we wanted people to notice and enjoy different the patterns by highlighting them with vivid colours.
Project – Furniture
301 Schemata Architects 3
1
The original ColoRing table was presented in Milan in 2013; the shrine table is composed of three different combinations of colours.
2 Twintsugi placed on top of Shrine Table. 3 Our first 3D-printed work was inspired from the Japanese traditional craft technique kintsugi.
S p o n g e Ta b l e
304 Jo Nagasaka
CREDITS
Jo Nagasaka / Schemata Architects Publisher Frame Publishers Author Jo Nagasaka Translator Kazuko Sakamoto Proofreader Harutaka Oribe Production Kazuko Sakamoto and Natsuko Matsui (Schemata) Carmel McNamara (Frame) Graphic Design Cathelijn Kruunenberg and Veronique de Koning Prepress Edward de Nijs Cover Photos Front: Takumi Ota and Takashi Mochizuki Back: Takumi Ota and Schemata Architects Trade distribution USA and Canada Consortium Book Sales & Distribution, LLC. 34 Thirteenth Avenue NE, Suite 101, Minneapolis, MN 55413-1007 United States T +1 612 746 2600 T +1 800 283 3572 (orders) F +1 612 746 2606 Trade distribution Benelux Frame Publishers Laan der Hesperiden 68 1076 DX Amsterdam the Netherlands distribution@frameweb.com frameweb.com Trade distribution rest of world Thames & Hudson Ltd 181A High Holborn London WC1V 7QX United Kingdom T +44 20 7845 5000 F +44 20 7845 5050
ISBN 978-94-92311-14-6 Š 2017 Frame Publishers, Amsterdam, 2017 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy or any storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, Frame Publishers does not under any circumstances accept esponsibility for errors or omissions. Any mistakes or inaccuracies will be corrected in case of subsequent editions upon notification to the publisher. Printed on acid-free paper produced from chlorine-free pulp. TCF Printed in Slovenia 987654321
‘Design by subtraction was adopted as one of our standard design methods’