2014 SUMMER
JAPAN FIELD TRIP School of Design Polytechnic University Environmental & Interior Design
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編 者 Geraldine Borio Cal Chan Collin Shen Elvis Leung Isabella Au Jackie So Kuris Ng Pamela Yung Samuel Wu Sarah Imran Venus Lung Wing Yip
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INTRODUCTION
Content
INTRODUCTION
7-9 11-15
ROUTE
17-83
PROJECTS STUDENT’S REFLECTION
85-125
REFERENCE TEXT
127-143
INFORMATION
145-149
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序 文
INTRODUCTION
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INTRODUCTION
Design & Nature Under the theme of “Nature & Design” this year’s field trip proposed to explore the complex relationship of the Japanese with nature through the eyes of different designers. Following the road trip format we embarked our two-week journey firstly in Tokyo and later, gradually headed towards Niigata Prefecture (North). We travelled whilst making some stops in Karuizawa, Nagano and finally the more remote areas of the countryside that are difficult to access without a private transport. Travelling from the dense megalopolis where nature is most introverted and sophisticated we later experienced how the essence of nature becomes a generating design force in the countryside and mountainous areas. Studying architecture, landscape and interior through site visits, talks, meetings, exhibitions as well as various readings. Architecture, landscape, interior, site visit, talks, meetings, exhibitions, reading
“ Traditional Japanese culture is invariably described as being predicated on a deep love of (and harmony with) nature, while contemporary ecological destruction is seen as a Western-influenced aberration. Undoubtedly, the Japanese take sensual pleasure in more or less direct encounters with natural phenomena evidenced in the preference for eating raw (even live) food, the appreciation for aesthetics of weathered materials, or the lack of insulation in buildings. Likewise, the effects of seasonal change-blossoming appearing, leaves changing colors, the availability of particular food are celebrated. Yet the Japanese attraction to nature is not so much a desire to experience it in a natural state, so to speak, but to make it somehow filtered, enclosed, domesticated, ritualized-naturalistic but never fully natural. The sensitivity to nature evinced in traditional landscape design condensed courtyard gardens (tsuboniwa), picturesque stroll gardens (kaiyushiki), abstracted stone gardens (karesansui), borrowed scenery (shakkei), even bonsai and ikebana may also be interpreted as originating in a latent fear of nature in the wild. “ Thomas Daneill, Nature and Artifice, in After the Crash: Architecture in Post-Bubble Japan.
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ROUTE
見 学 の ル ー ト
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Itinerary 22/7 TOKYO -Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, Shinjuku -GA gallery, Shibuya -Meiji Koen, Shibuya -Meiji Jingu, Shinbuya -Yasutaka Yoshimura Architects Inc., Jingumae, Shibuya -Hong Kong – Japan welcome party, Creative hub 131
23/7 TOKYO Sketches: View: Garden: Exhibition:
-Relationship of people & nature in the city, Asakusa -Dentsu Building by Jean Nouvel, Shiodome -Small House by Kazuyo Sejima, Aoyama -Nagakin Capsule Tower, Shimbashi -Hamarikyu Gardens Tea House, Shimbashi -Maison Hermes Ginza, Ginza
24/7 TOKYO Meeting: View:
-Atelier Bow-Wow, Suga-cho, Shinjuku -Moriyama House by Ryue Nishizawa, Kamata
25/7 TOKYO Meeting: View: Exhibition:
-Akihisa Hirata Architecture Office -Collezione Tokyo by Ando Tadao, Aoyama -Prada Aoyama by Herzog & De Meuron, Aoyama -Nezu Museum by Kengo Kuma, Aoyama -Human Architecture, TOTO Gallery, Nogizaka
26/7 TOKYO - KANAGAWA View: Food:
-Musashino Art University Museum & Library by Sou Fujimoto, Kodaira,Tokyo -TAMA Art University Library Setagaya, Tokyo -KAIT Space, Atsugi, Kanagawa -Home Cooked dishes by Food Coordinator at Traditional Japanese family home
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ROUTE ROUTE
View: Design: Park: Shrine: Meeting: Food:
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27/7 KANAGAWA, NAGANO -Jinchokan Moriya Historical Museum, Chino -Takasugi-an Tree Tea House and Flying Mud Boat by Terunobu Fujimori at Chino Cultural Complex, Chino -Ogasawara Museum by SANAA, Iida -Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre by Toyo Ito, Matsumoto, Nagano -Suwa Daijinja, Suwa -Imperial Palace, Matsumoto
28/7 KARUIZAWA, NAGANO Cycling Day around Karuizawa View: -Senju Museum by Ryue Nishizawa -Memorial Stone Church by Uchimura Kanzo -Karuizawa Taliesin Nature: -Kumobaike Pond Relaxation: -Hoshinoya Karuizawa’s Onsen 29/7 KARUIZAWA - GUNMA - NIIGATA Nature: Museum: View:
-Shiraito Falls -Tomioka Silk Mill, Tomioka, Gunma -Onishi Town Hall by Kazuyo Sejima, Fujioka, Gunma
30/7 TOKAMACHI, NIIGATA Museum: Food: Shrine:
-Echigo-Matsunoyama Museum of Natural Science, Matsunoyama -Soba Noodle Lunch at Yoshiya with Bab san -Jinguji Temple
31/7 NAGAOKA, NIIGATA Nature: View:
-Terraced Rice Fields, Yamakoshi -Alpaca Farm, Yamakoshi -Chuetsu Earthquake Memorial, Yamakoshi -Bull Fighting Arena, Yamakoshi -House of Light by James Turrell, Tokamachi
1/8 TOKYO View:
-Fuji Kindergarten by Tezuka Architects, Tachigawa 15
ROUTE
Museum: View: Shrine: Palace:
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PROJECTS
プ ロ ジ ェ ク ト 分 析
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Moriyama House | Ryue Nishizawa by Elvis Leung
20m
SANAA Completed 2005 Residential Ohta-ku, Tokyo N
In this house, the client is given the freedom to decide which part of this cluster of rooms is to be used as residence or as rental rooms. He may switch among the series of living rooms and dining rooms or use several rooms at a time according to the season or other circumstances. The domain of the residence changes in accordance to his own life. Thus, creating a house in which the client may enjoy various spaces, lifestyles, and places of dwelling upon a particular spot of this house.
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PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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1:200
Ground G/F Floor PLAN SCALE 1:200
1:200
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PROJECTS
1/F PLAN SCALE 1:200
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PROJECTS
Section A
1:100
SECTION SCALE 1:100
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MAU Museum & Library | Sou Fujimoto by Kuris Ng
100m
Sou Fujimoto Completed 2010 University Museum & Library Kodaira, Tokyo N
Musashino Art University Museum & Library is a new combination of library and art gallery building. Its space considers the balance between books, bookshelf and the nature elements; Light and the atmosphere where the spiral continued bookshelf boundary itself instead of giving harsh separation. The introduction of the spiral bookshelf act like a forest which allows users to enjoy the endless books in the full lengthed bookshelf forest, the open-archive units allows the light go through the space to enhance the atmosphere of the indirect light and the bookshelf-trees wrapped the space. Moreover, the external material reflects the views around as to merge the space into nature, the composition of external and internal space share the same natural element to achieve.
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PROJECTS PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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PROJECTS 01 A
01 A
2/F PLAN SCALE 1:800
1/F PLAN SCALE 1:800
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PROJECTS
G/F PLAN SCALE 1:800
SECTION SCALE 1:600
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Tama Art University Library | Toyo Ito by Pamela Yung
50m
Toyo Ito Completed 2007 Library Hachioji, Tokyo N
This is a library which located in the Tama Art University. (Tama Art University is a private university is Tokyo, Japan.) It was built by a wellknown Japanese architect calls Toyo Ito. He was one of the leading architect and has been awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2013. The library is a place where everyone can discover their style of “interacting” with books and film media as if they were walking through a forest or in a cave; a new place of arcade-like spaces where soft mutual relations form by simply passing through; a focal centre where a new sense of creativity begins to spread throughout the art university’s campus.
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PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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PROJECTS
G/F PLAN SCALE 1:100
1/F PLAN SCALE 1:100
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SECTION SCALE 1:200
PROJECTS
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KAIT Project Space | Junya Ishigami by Isabella Au
50m
Junya Ishigami Completed 2008 University Studio Atsugi, Kanagawa N
The KAIT studio used up 305 light columns as structure making the building appear weightless and elegant. The transparent enclosure and the roof windows making you get to the feeling of working outside and the sunlight comes from the roof top creates the ambience of a tree-filled forest, making the building combining with the natural landscape. The columns, which seems arbitrary arranged, in fact, it is specifically placed to create the sensation of the zoned space.With the columns, it is no need for the clear dividor of space.
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PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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PROJECTS
Scale 1 : 400
PLAN SCALE 1:600
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PROJECTS
Scale 1 : 400
ROOF PLAN SCALE 1:600
ELEVATION SCALE 1:600 Scale 1 : 300
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Takasugi-an | Terunobu Fujimori by Jackie So
10m
Terunobu Fujimori Completed in 200 Public Chino, Nagano N
The Teahouse is named Takasugian which actually means “built too high” Unlike traditional teahouse, the form and materials are designed according to Fujimori’s concept. He wants to express the simplicity and calm atmosphere with the nature. That’s why only bamboo sticks and plaster are used for the interior part. The teahouse is built atop two chestnut trees,cut from a nearby mountain and transported to the site. Fujimori wants to achieve the bird’s eye view of the valley where he grew up. So, it is no longer built on the ground. The ladder extended from the house is the only way to get into the house. However, Despite the new appearance and features, Fujimori still incorporates characteristics of a typical teahouse like a chimney and a hearth to create this teahouse as well as pushing the upper limit of teahouse.
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PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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PROJECTS
A
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PLAN SCALE 1:50
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PROJECTS
ELEVATION SCALE 1:25
SECTION SCALE 1:25
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Ogasawara Museum | Kazuyo Sejima by Samuel Wu
100m
SANAA Completed 1999 Museum Iida, Nagano N
Ogasawara Museum is built in the Muromachi heritage site, right opposite to the retained writing-desk alcove (Shoin) for the previous Shogun. It exhibits items from the Muromachi period. The museum revealed as a suspending linear structure, curved according to the landscape’s contour line. To “hide”the museum, the exterior is covered by glass with lining patterns which gives an impression of Nature. Moreover, the museum itself is divided into three parts: viewing area (lobby), and two exhibition areas. For the function of the viewing area, the interior is painted in black to let people focus on the view. Contrarily, the exhibition area is painted in white to let people focus on exhibits. Visitors are required to walk pass a ramp surrounded by tall plants before entering the museum. The first view of the interior is a painting-like framed view, framing the heritage forecourt with the Shoin. The front facade is mainly covered by glass, with silk-screen printings shades on it. Framed view area is clear glass without printings, further emphasising the view.
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PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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1/F PLAN SCALE 1:600
G/F PLAN SCALE 1:600
PROJECTS
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ELEVATION SCALE 1:600
SECTION SCALE 1:600
PROJECTS
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Matsumoto Performing Arts Center | Toyo Ito by Collin Shen
1:10000
100m
Toyo Ito & Associates Completed 2004 Public Facility Matsumoto City, Nagano N
The Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre is a very important project to Toyo Ito as it was the turning point from abstract post modernism to the concept of nature and vitality. In order not to disturb the neighbourhood, its outer height is limited to only two floors. Also, to meet the requirements of performance, the stage is moved to the middle of the centre where the middle height is three floors. The facade of the exterior wall is covered by concrete but the texture looks more like marble which shows the designer’s sense of material and nature. The window patterns also make the concrete surface more vivid and they are also the connection of exterior environment and interior space. The reflection of floor and lighting effect of the wall create an atmosphere of starry night in the capacious ground floor. The roof is also an important area to show the liveliness of the architecture. Clipped grassland and trees create people great experience to get close to nature and create comfortable condition to appreciate the beautiful scenery of Marsumoto. Some artificial patterns on the grass imitate the building facade, which surprises people expressing the joy the designers hoped to achieve.
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PROJECTS
Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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G/F PLAN SCALE 1:1600
PROJECTS
1/F PLAN SCALE 1:1600
2/F PLAN SCALE 1:1600
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SECTION SCALE 1:2000
ELEVATION SCALE 1:2000
PROJECTS
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Senju Hiroshi Museum | Ryue Nishizawa by Sarah Arifah Imran
20m
Ryue Nishizawa Completed 2011 Public Karuizawa, Nagano N
Created to house the works by Japanese painter Senju Hiroshi, this museum was designed to unite his large scale art with the breathtaking slopes and nature of Kazurizawa. Japanese architect Ryue Nishizawa designed the museum as a place where viewers could truly relax and contemplate in time whilst admiring Senju’s well-known waterfall paintings. The museum adopts an organic form wherein its open space is lavishly embraced with light. It features four “pockets” of contained nature which works with the interior of the building as to allow a feeling of openness with the exterior environment. The luminance is controlled by the play of materials like glass, such that greenery is able to trickle through, creating a unique, inspiring atmosphere.
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Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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PROJECTS
PLAN SCALE 1:3000
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ELEVATION SCALE 1:500
SECTION SCALE 1:500
PROJECTS
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Onishi Town Hall | Kazuyo Sejima by Cal Chan
50m
SANAA Completed March 2005 Municipal Facility Onishi, Fujioka, Gunma N
After visiting The Onishi Town Hall, I found it is actually a good and beautiful design which aims to gather people who living nearby in order to serve and unite the community. However, during the day I arrived and visited, no one was present to enjoy such a great facility space. There are nice gym rooms, common rooms and a really impressive semi- underground’s basketball court. The Onishi Town Hall is actually formed by 3 particular buildings. As shown in the floor plan, the left hand side one is a semi-undergrounded basketball court. It serves different kind of functions as I have experienced and visited there. It can be used for different sports game. On the top right hand corner, it is a counter for information and registration. Lastly, the bottom right hand corner is the indoor gym room and a theatre centre which looks like a college one. For the exterior area, there is a big piece of grass land which marks the boundary of the Onishi Town Hall. For the structure of this building, it is structurally formed by many little columns which supports it as well as clear glass in order to attract sunlight as natural lighting during daytime.
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Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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IndoorBasketball Court
PLAN SCALE 1:500
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SECTION SCALE 1:300
Section V
PROJECTS
1:300
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Kawanishi Camping Cottage B | Atelier Bow-Wow by Wing Yip
20m
Atelier Bow-Wow Completed 1999 Camping Cottage Kawanishi, Niigata N
The Kawanishi Camping Cottages are placed on sloped landscape, which Cottage B, also known as the “Y Cottage”, is designed to fit the slope perfectly with reasonable functions. Each branch of the “Y” has different volumes and levelling, also stating different functions among the 3 branches. The branch with the entrance is a kitchen, with full fenestration towards the lake in front of it. The kitchen table is levelled to fit both standing position for cooking and sitting position for meals. The smallest branch on the left is lavatory and bathroom, where the other one is free space for any activities. Kawanishi is a place with heavy snows expected nearly 3-4 meters during winter, therefore the roofs are made pitched, and beams can be added outside windows preventing snow pressing to windows. During other seasons, the nature scenery outside is enhanced by having black wood interior surfaces, emphasising the colours and vividness outside.
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Architect: Date: Program: Location:
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SECTION SCALE 1:250
ELEVATION SCALE 1:250
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PLAN SCALE 1:250
SECTION SCALE 1:250
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Fuji Kindergarten | Takaharu+Yui Tezuka by Venus Lung
100m
Tezuka Architects Completed 2007 Educational Facility Tachikawa, Tokyo N
Fuji Kindergarten is an oval shape building, made for 500 pupils plus their teaching staffs, and the building embraces 3 zelkova trees. This project incorporates childhood education closely to the architecture. Without end walls, without dead ends; the oval structure’s interior is only partitioned with furniture. Having very little partitions between classrooms, kids have to learn to concentrate in class through focusing under noisy situations. Interior lighting are scattered on the ceiling, one light bulb only serves illumination for a small area. Light switches are accessible to children, hanging from the ceiling, giving them starting point to learn about electricity. Both the ground and the roof are accessible, a slide with its staircase act as linkage between ground and roof, promotes active movements for kids. Two of the zelkova trees grows through the building, nets are hanged tightly around it, creating play areas for children under natural shades, allowing them to have close contact to nature from a young age. Handrails line around the eaves which allows children’s limbs to crawl through them but not their heads, safety of children has also been taken into consideration. Fuji Kindergarten is not made to be a aesthetic shelter for education, but the architecture facilitates to make this a place to nurture education.
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STUDENT’S REFLECTION
学 生 の リ フ レ ク シ ョ ン
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Reflection: Moriyama house x Kait factory x Matsunoyama museum by Elvis Leung After the 2 week trip in Japan, I am really amazed and admired by how the Japanese brilliantly use nature and blend them with architecture-- turning it into a product for up selling Japan. Like the Prada flagship store, which recreated an artificial landscape inside the building, makes you feel you are shopping inside a spider web. We have been to a lot of famous and unique architectures during the study trip, from urban to rural, they all aimed to appreciate nature. There were three buildings which caught my attention the most. They used totally three different approaches to appreciate nature, but there is still one element to link them all – Chaos, which is the new order.
REFLECTION
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The first one we visited was Moriyama house from the white school. The architect separates the house into 8 blocks randomly on the site, where the residences moving between rooms can experience the garden. Such annex would be like tiny apartments, it also could be a single house, where residences can always sense the garden and a unique skyline on different view point. Although they are ”randomly” located, there are still according to a certain grid to form a sense of nature. It feels like you walk into countryside by one step. the KAIT factory, another white school. It is one large building with a lot of structural pillars placing chaotically in a glassy box. you can glimpse a sense of nature once you step in. Ishigami recreate the nature by using the light and shadow, the void and solid, the sound and silent. Also the flexible interior offers a range of activities within the one room, it blur the edges between internal programs like a forest.
There are million ways to achieve one same purpose, to me I have fallen in love with the new order – chaos. It mimics the order of nature that cannot be calculated. It is all sensational.
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REFLECTION
The last one is from the red school, Matsumoyama Museum. It is like an earthworm crawling around. The layout inside the museum is like organs placing randomly but welly connected. And also there is a spine run though from toe to head. In winter, snow can be stacking to 4-5m high. The spine can bring you from the darkly “underground” to the brightly sky to enjoy the moment of the clouds and snow become one.
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Reflection: Musashino Art University Museum & Library by Kuris Ng Reflection of field trip –Kuris Without a doubt Japanese is good at applying nature into every aspect; clothing, food, housing and transport with taking the inner spirit and characteristic of nature, instead of apparent the outer beauty of nature. Japanese is well analysis the nature elements from its movements, characteristic and morphology. Then, diversify into something structural and readable code into every aspect. Besides, Japanese even focus on the details and process as to demonstrate the max of nature power and beauty to hundred percent. It’s so impressive that how they figure it out and how they present the atmosphere or spirit of nature harmony.
I found that the no-boundary design is common use in Japanese architectural design whereas forest and nature do not have any clear boundary for itself but only use the density, color, light and shadow to define the forest and urban. Those elements have been used in architectural. It uses natural elements to define a boundary instead of having a solid wall to separate different zones. The Moriyama House has shown the use of no-boundary method by placing different size of plants to enhance the definition of each block. Moreover, designer use different usage blocks to create a community which is similar to the nature using different type of trees and density of greens to composite a small forest out. That’s the forest atmosphere came out.
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REFLECTION
This trip is about nature and design, my first cognition of nature in architecture is movement, light, atmosphere and morphology. How to shape the artificial or solid element (architecture) into something organic and formless? It is the most difficult question in the nature design but not the shallow way to put greens on only.
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The randomness of greens placement also plays the key element to achieve the visible boundary with nature harmony but it is hard to present in architecture do random and natural without a messy mood. The KAIT Space project has done an amazing demonstration in the forest like column structure within the studio; designer has studied the morphology of forest randomness and took it into the space. While I was in the studio I observed how the columns looks random built but actually with pattern and every zones, furniture, machine and plants has followed the flow, when everything put together, it feels so calm and match. Besides, artificial elements can also well match to achieve the invisible boundary, for example, the musashino art university museum & library; diversify the concept of endless forest into a long length spiral bookshelf to create its own boundary and using open and half open archive to create zoning and path or even arrange different books into different specific shelf to create zone and boundary invisibly, it’s an artificial but subtle way to show boundary and nature both!
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REFLECTION
The invisible boundary plays a main character in between the nature and architecture. In direct, visible boundary takes an advance not to block the nature view, so that the user in the interior can straightly feel or see the nature is wrapped around. In addition, the visible boundary acts a softer and subtle role to define zones which the subtle way can enhances the connection between nature and design; letting the lights, smell and sight to get inside the house and the interior react with the heats, shadow and smell to those natural elements, this is where the nature reaction starts!
The hatchway emphasized the theme of the houes, which is the light. Besides, more natural light can come in, making the house can have less artificial light. Further more, beautiful sky view can be captured too, making a natural painting on the ceiling.
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Reflection by Pamela Yung
The trip to japan is full of surprises and unexpected elements. Truly, I have been to Japan this wonderful country for many times, but it’s a shame that I have never been to green places that out of the cities. Therefore, this is a very great experience for me to start over and to discover Japan again in a new angle. The second part of the trip, which is second week that we spent time in the country side of Japan I can really experience a lot. Long time ago, Japanese people already think that nature is very valuable , therefore, they spent a lot of effort to analyze and generate the way to live with the nature. Naturalism is the main idea that we want to investigate in the second part of the trip. In my opinion, the best way to have a friendly relationship with the nature is to live simply, and this is the second idea that the Japanese promote which is simplicity.
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How to live simple but comfortable, is what we are trying to find out in the second part of the trip, and the best place to try out is in country side and in camping house. When we go to camping, we only will bring the essential stuffs with us, this give us the chance to eliminate the unnecessary stuffs in our daily life, and try to live simple. Same for the architectures, like the camping house, only essential elements will be left behind in the house, it make us realize which is a must and which is just a decoration in our living place.
Arrangement of the Tatami in the biggest room. For traditional Japanese, they do everything on the tatami floor. Eating, sleeping, studying, playing etc. It is empty land for them to do whatever they want. Tatami is easy to clean, and it is cool during summer, warm during winter.
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House of light is a good example which exaggerated the essential of living, which is light, space and clean. There are holes on the roofs, which can capture extra light. The room used the traditional Japanese room style (which was using tatami) that leave a lot of spaces in the room. Living-blank in a space make the place more flexible. Further, when people is the only thing that left in the room, people can be more efficient. I personally agree of this living style, since it can mentally clear a lot of unnecessary desire. People nowadays over exploration for the nature to fulfill their desire, but actually we can live much more simple. After this trip, I can briefly understood the idea of simple living. And, this is the correct direction for me to keep on explore.
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Reflection by Isabella Au
‘Nature is a product of design in Japan’, a statement, which can conclude my 11-day’s experience in this study trip. From the city of Tokyo to the countryside, instead of saying we are having a trip to visit architectures, it is a trip of getting to the nature. Every time when I enter the architectures, I was very impressed by the sensational control of the Japanese architects. The beautifully placement of light & shadow and the perfectly merging with the natural landscape, gives you a strong sense of entering the forest instead of a cold building. It is the feeling that rarely cans u feel or experience in Hong Kong or other commercial cities. Besides, the interiors of the architectures are expanding to the nature landscape; you can always find no boundary between nature and architectures. The uses of natural landscape as backdrop makes you feel staying outside even you are insides.
KAIT Project Space, designed by Junya Ishigami. It is a white school design. Ishigami used up 305 columns as the structure of the architecture, making it appears weightless and transparent. When you go into the glassy box, the roof windows create the light & shadow and the scattered columns making you have a sense of entering a tree-filled forest. With the surrounding of natural landscape, the whole architecture is not only looks like invisible but also invisible in sensation. Besides, the columns, which seem randomly arranged in the space, in fact, it is specifically placed to create the sensation of the zoned space. It seems random, messy but beautiful and natural.
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REFLECTION
In Japan’s architecture design, nature and landscape is a crucial issue for the designers, no matter their designs are in red or white school. When they get into designing a building, architects always include nature in their design via carefully control of the sensation, the nature landscape and the geography, etc. Therefore, nature is perfectly merged and delicately designed with the architectures. To fully illustrate the statement, I am going to explain it via sharing my experience to these 3 architectures.
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Tama Art University Library, designed by Toyo Ito. It is a white school design. Ito uses the dome shape as the main theme of the architecture, creating a sense of cave when you enter the space. The architecture was built on the slope, when we enter the space, it was impressed that Ito keep the geographic of the site. The steep of the slope continue into the ground floor of the building, it is a great use of the natural environment and creating a very unique ground floor. Despite of keeping the natural landscape as the surrounding of the building, it is another way to make good use of the nature and make it perfectly combine with the interior and architecture.
From the three architectures, you can say they are designing architectures but actually they are designing more than that – Nature. At the end of the trip, I am not only being fancy about the great architectures but get to know the attitude of the Japanese architect toward the nature and their design vision.
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Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre, designed by Toyo Ito. It is a white school design. The building is located in the hub of the city, surrounded by other buildings. In order to bring nature into the architecture, Ito designed the leaf-patterned facet. In the daytime, the light goes into the space through the leaf-shaped window, creating the light and shadow. When you walking through the corridor, the light and shadow gives you a sense of walking through a tree-filled forest. Although the architecture located in the city, you can still have the feeling to the nature in the space. Besides, the large roof garden seems to be the destination after a journey along the leaf-shaped shadow.
^ Onishi Town Hall The layering of glass walls allow sunlight to pass through the whole architecture and make it like an outdoor area.
< The whole greenery scene is integrated into the architecture through the open views of glass walls
^ The Performing Arts Centre The geometric forms of windows create interesting framing of outside view , at the same time 102 filtered strong sunlight.
Reflection by Jackie So
I was impressed by the way how Japanese put nature into architectures as a key element. The green has become part of the architecture. The atmosphere of the building relies on the open environment. Like the Onishi Town hall built by SANAA, the glass wall shows open view of outside which created an atmosphere like you feel no restriction even in an inside area. The layering of glass walls enable us to see through the whole environment even standing in one area. The green is like pictures surrounding people walking inside. Not only seeing the green, but also feeling the nature with sunlight through the windows. The reason why I think it is similar with the Kait Project is the see-through environment. It is combined of thin columns and a roof which no planes are used to define the space. You can see the whole space in a glance. With the glass walls and open views, you feel like in outside area even sitting inside the architecture.
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< The whole greenery scene is integrate the architecture through the open views walls
^ The Performing Arts Centre The geometric forms of windows create interesting framing of outside view , at the same time filtered strong sunlight.
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Among the architectures we have visited, most of them take sunlight as their main light source with different ways of expressions. This is the way how they design with light. For example,the Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre has a series of geometric triangular form of windows that filtered strong sunlight into softer light. Some of them also framed the views from outside. I like the way they make use of the windows to be part of a design detail to play with situation of light.
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Reflection by Samuel Wu
Japanese Architects are talented to design buildings that cooperating with the Nature. Both schools, the Red and White, are trying to achieve the same goal but in different perspectives. After the trip with visiting works from both schools, the architects from the Red school gave me a stronger impression. In the visit, one of the architecture from the White School is the Senju Museum. The museum is done by Ryue Nishizana and feelings of a manmade Nature appears in my mind while we are visiting. The Senju Museum is built on a slope which an exterior garden surrounded by and also an inner garden inside the museum. The museum exhibits the drawings from Senju of the waterfall. The concept of building the museum is obvious that seems to replicate the journey to the waterfall. With this observation, I feel the Nature is controlled by architect that made the Nature as a part of exhibition.
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In the Red School part, the visit of the Matsumoyama Nature Science Museum gives me an impression of a man-made structure is struggling to survive under extreme nature conditions. The architect, Tezuka, had made many structure and construction details to the museum that make sure it stands still in the Winter with heavy 4-5m snowfall. For example, the 4.5cm thick glass panel is strong enough under heavy snow; the double layer facade with warm air running in between is providing a natural installation when outside is too cold. Thus make me understand how much effort do we have to pay to make an architecture to stand in front of the Nature. By comparing to the White School, it might be too simple for the Nature to confront a steel framework with glass panels structure. With so many precautions designed that working for the same purpose, for myself, I appreciate the Red school more.I can feel the power of Nature from the architecture. We could only survive with respects to it even though we are able to build fantastic architectures.
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PLAYING WITH SUNLIGHT
SUNLIGHT
WINDOW
PLAYING WITH SUNLIGHT
CREATE SHADOW SUNLIGHT
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CREATE SHADOW
Traditional Japanese wall made ofTraditional paper andJapanese wood facade of PRADA Tokyo by Glass Herzogfacade & de Meuron wall made Glass of paper and wood of PRADA Tokyo by He
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Reflection by Collin Shen
Japanese architects are very good at utilizing nature elements to provide architectures beauty, comfort and vitality. Among the well-used natural factors, sunlight is one of the most conventional and successful sources concerned by designers. Both traditional Japanese buildings and Japanized modern architectures possess abundant evidences showing the wisdom of the environmental-concerned architects and designers. In terms of channel, window and roof are very popular and efficient factors among the whole constituent parts. In addition to providing light, ventilation and a feeling of openness, window and roof enhance interior light and shadow equally and evoke the infinite space of the world outside by connecting the interior space and exterior environment through the sunlight path. In the reflection essay, I aim to parse window and roof in specific Japanese architectures in terms of sunlight using.
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In Japanese traditional houses, sliding wooden doors is very common to see with functions of window, door and wall isolating exterior environment and interior space. Comparing with shutters that have the similar characters of slight, dynamic in controlling sunlight ventilation, sliding wooden doors have stronger and more flexible structures that could subtly transfer a wall to a window, a door and even an embedded balcony. Comparing the two status before and after the transformation, semi-blocked sunlight creates comfortable and hazy atmosphere without halos and shadows disturbing interior tranquility in sunny weather or winds and rains damaging in inclement weather, by contrast direct sunlight shoots into the interior space strengthening air ventilation, visual permeability as well as spatial continuity and transparency. Besides traditional houses, modern commercial architectures can also make good use of windows to play with sunlight.
SUNLIGHT
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The stone church Karuizawa Japan by KendrickKellogg
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Musachino Art University Museum & Library by Sou Fujimoto
The stone church Karuizawa Japan by KendrickKellogg
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Musachino Art University Museum & Library by Sou Fujimo
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Tree shadow on the window of Senju Museum
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Senju Museum by Ryue Nishizawa
Tree shadow on the window of Senju Museum
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Senju Museum by Ryue Nishizawa
The glass facade of PRADA Tokyo designed by Herzog and de Meuron is one of the masterpieces showing that. The angled frame formulates the geometric form of the architecture. Glasses inlayed on the framework are specially produced with smooth bubbles filling up. Because of sunlight refraction, the glass facade creates distorted, elegant shadows on the floor and hazy, colorful surface of the interior wall that impelling customers focusing on the whole interior space, atmosphere and exhibits instead of spinning outside world. Subtly the designers blocked outdoors visually but unchoked sunlight path making the interior space self-assertive but not totally isolated. The concepts between the old and new design are different in approach but equally satisfactory in result.
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Apart from window, roof is also an impressive channel using sunlight. Sou Fujimoto made well use of roof in his project of Musachino Art University Museum & Library. The span of the building is huge, which adds the pressure of interior illumination even though sunlight comes in on the all four two-floors high edges of the architecture. However, Fujimoto incised the roof horizontally and took half of the cover away, making sunlight shoots in directly. With the ceiling structures’ blocking, the nature light looks not dazzling but softly permeates the sky into the capacious library creating a half-isolated space with both sense of comfort caused by openness and sense of safety due to the existence of boundaries. Such trick is also used in the KAIT factory and achieved the similar effect. Roof sunlight is also used in churches creating atmosphere of heaven. The stone church Karuizawa Japan designed by Kendrick Kellogg is one example. The whole architecture is formed by a series of stone curves arranged in different angles and directions. From the outside the form is easy to realize but in interior space the form creates a secret and complicated world. Just like what Okakura said in The Book of Tea: “ The reality of building does not consist of the four walls and the roof but in the space to be lived in.”
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The stone church Karuizawa Japan by KendrickKellogg
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SUNLIGHT CREATE SHADOW
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The stone church Karuizawa Japan Musachino Art University Museum & Library by Sou Fujimot Musachino Art University Museum & Library by Sou Fujimoto by KendrickKellogg
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Tree shadow on the window of Senju Museum Tree shadow on the window of Senju Museum Senju Museum by Ryue Nishizawa
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Senju Museum by Ryue Nishizawa
What impressed me are the glass lines connecting the voids between huge stone curves that are the only light resource in daytime, they are both a part of the architecture and a part of the sky. Different angles of stones create various shape and width of voids highlighting the rough and straightforward outlining of the roof and incising sunlight path into pieces, which is sacred and imposing. Except huge architectures, roof sunlight is also used in dwelling projects like the House of Light. The removable canopy makes it possible that people can appreciate the sky like a painting through a square hole on the roof without being disturbed when it is raining or snowing. The opened canopy also optimizes sunlight and air ventilation of interior space as well as connection between the house and nature.
In conclusion, comparing with many European architects steeping in the world of form, Japanese designers have lived for centuries in a world of relationships. Among the relationships between human beings, between human beings and things, and between human beings and nature, the last one is the most obvious to observe in Japanese architectures in my opinion. And what impress me the strongest is the relationship between sunlight and architecture. Sunlight is not only a light source, it is more like the soul of space, it provides architectures life and makes interior not just interior but a part of nature.
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Finally, plants are the nature factors adding contents to sunlight and shadow. They make Japanese traditional paper window like screen and make interior space like exterior environment. In traditional poems there are always equanimity and beauty created by plants and plantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; shadows. The artistic conception is also used in design of sunlight. In Senju Museum designed by Ryue Nishizawa, Exterior gardens are installed in the interior layout making the huge span not to affect the peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s experience of closing the nature. Blended with white interior space, green gardens and sunlight show more attractive vitality and aesthetic perception than they commonly are. It seems that the architecture creates an interior of exterior by using sunlight and plants. Such courtyards are also popular to see in both other Japanized modern architectures and Japanese traditional buildings.
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Reflection by Sarah Arifah Imran
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Roofs are a symbol of protection and shelter against the elements. That which differentiates a building from four conjoined walls. What made these roof designs ever so timeless? And more interestingly, how does nature play a role in the underlying logic behind the form and materials used? These were the questions I asked myself. It has been made crystal clear by legends such as Le Corbusier that human beings are constructing much more powerfully than ever before. That we have the intelligence to design and build our away across without having to fear the elements. After the wildfire of modern design concepts have sprouted its way into the bloodstream of culture as we know it, it seemed as if we’ve been stripped of tradition. It was time to rebel. Time to play. It seemed as if the idea of the roof was abandoned when they flattened. What I dislike about these flat roofs is that because of the absence of form and showcased materiality, there’s little left to ponder about its relationship with the nature. For instance, the action and reaction with the light. With the weather. With the temperature. With the seasons. After all, the roof is the first part of the building in contact with the sky above and what it’s to offer. My desire to dig deeper had led me to analyse the relationship between roofs of old temples and homes with nature in Japan. For example, what made traditional temple roof designs seem so attractive that it caused for tourists to flock around them waving cameras about ready to be clicked away? It seemed not only was it their elegant design which caused the architecture to remain as if frozen in time, but perhaps it had something to do with its relationship with nature which helped keep their physical body almost intact? Its approach that helped them befriend the elements- making them last for over hundreds and thousands of years. In Tokyo, I observed that in the city with its densely aligned streets that if it were not for area landmarks, I could not tell one district from another. They all looked almost identical to me. What I also did notice at first which I’ve never seen before were the slant-sliced buildings of Tokyo which is the result of their building regulations which require at least 30% of natural sunlight to enter. These unique triangular cut edges made it seem as if one day these buildings decided to stop growing and construction left at a halt. Its amusing silhouette: an incomplete structure missing that last piece of puzzle.
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After hopping from temple to temple, I found out that its area climate played one of the biggest roles in the materials used to create their roofs. And subsequently, the form it takes. From the ceramic tiles of Asakusa to the metal roofing of Chino which allowed its templesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; roofs to have a very smooth curvature to the straw material used in Niigata. However, the effect of nature was most evident as we travelled into the countryside. Niigata was a very bizarre place to be in especially for me who came during the summer time. Its roof designs were very new to me and unreal. Unreal because initially I did not understand why they were designed this way. Right away I had a feeling that something wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t quite right about this place. It was then revealed that in Niigata, extreme weather conditions in winter where snow piles up to 4 meters are the reason why houses are designed for survival. There were four attitudes people had to the raging snow: to carry it all; to have it all fall; to have it lay to be cleared with elbow grease; or to be devoured and leave the region until it was over. And the severity of the blizzard could be guessed by what kinds of roofs were built. For instance, I saw that around the mountainous areas were where the wackiest of roofs were built with angles cut in all angles and directions. These regions are the places which take the hardest hit. On the other hand, around the town Centre was where you would see more flat and everyday gable roofs. I decided to conduct a little experiment to set the timer for 5 minutes and count the types of roofs I saw whilst driving through Toramachi near the town centre. (Results shown in diagram.) My hypothesis was proven to be correct when I was later informed that the road I was travelling along had less severe snow (about 3m). The design of the roofs could be used to guess the weather, climate and the behaviour of nature around the area. I think what I find interesting is that with traditional architecture is that it somehow fears the elements. Its design is built to survive and be protected by nature. This attitude is what I rarely see in modern architecture which makes me question whether they would last. After all, these ancient temples have been standing for centuries. This trip has made me open my eyes to new details I have been blind to before. Many new questions left unanswered have made me more eager to learn. Perhaps the end of this study tour could only just be the beginning for future research.
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Reflection by Cal Chan
The Onishi Town Hall, where I responsible to work on before visiting Japan. The style of this designed architchecture is somehow matching to my personal design style which is “neat, simple & tidy”. It makes me feel more interested in reading and finding its information. It surprises me that it is a common and public place for the people and community there. I feel like it is such a gift to those people there which they can enjoy such a facility like gym room and basketball court. I was looking forward to be there since I am deeply falling into doing exercises. On the 29th July, 2014, this is the day which I finally arrived the Onishi Town Hall. The environment is comfortable and tightly bringing the natural with the building. To me, it is a quite typical Japanese style design. It is short in height and surrounded by glasses; just like many other Japanese buildings. Comparing with another site visit - KAIT University’s workshop, both of them are based on the same theory, i.e attracting the sunlight inside to be the indoor lighting. So, the KAIT University’s workshop is one of my favourite site as I have mentioned in the trip during the final discussion at The Y-Shaped Camp House. Overview this Japan study trip, beside I was impressed by the designs of the Japanese style buildings, the culture and behavior of the Japanese people are core element and value of their country. Especially, when we stayed overnight at the old, vintage village house, I can really feel how friendly the tour guide, the chef...etc are. It is a really unforgetable experience I have ever had in Japan.
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Reflection by Venus Lung
Among projects that we visited along the trip, something does not change a lot: highly glassy appearance. It is understandable that using so much glass at this country of frequent earthquakes and natural disasters could be dangerous, but being very glassy has the irreplaceable charm, it is always captivating to experience glassy architecture. Along the trip I have recorded what glassy architecture can do, and learnt more about this material. Thinking over again, if glass wasn’t used in those projects, what could be done to simulate those effects? I find it so difficult to do so… or say it is nearly impossible. Its ability to manipulate light is hardly simulated by other materials.
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Herzog & de meuron’s Prada flagship store at Aoyama displayed two interesting effects by using curved glass. It can converge light at the exterior, and looks like many spotlights installed on the building. It can also distort light in the interior, having irregular light refraction, light shades make the interior looks so unrealistic, so do distorting the view outside. Onishi Town Hall displayed orientating glass in parallel can display continuity effect, due to slightly reflective feature of glass. Scenes that are cropped can be continued by such way. MAU Library and Museum has glass façade, displaying the inner layer of wood cabinets. Having glass covered on top, all the heavy and tall wooden bookshelves that compose the architecture appeared a lot lighter in weight. Reflecting a bit of views surrounding it is like deducting opacity of the structure, lowering transparency.
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Other than using glass simply as a separating medium, glass does well in manipulating light. I think when we speak about designing with nature, the most essential part and basics is about lights. I realise that Japanese architecture does very well playing with light, simply with light they can create spaces and appearance of different sensations. They relish sunlight a lot, which they won’t lose the balance between light and shades. Interior spaces won’t be overwhelmed by shades, and too enclosed by itself. Views of the surroundings are more inviting to the interior than having two separated space, exterior and interiors are like merged together.
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Once I returned Hong Kong, I found architecture in Hong Kong look so “proud”, not as modest like Japanese architecture. Both places have lots of architecture with mass use of glass, yet Hong Kong’s seem to look like “Yea, I am here, see how modern and outstanding I am!” Moreover I do not find much of similar effects achieved by glass that I saw in Japan on Hong Kong’s architecture (mainly referring to those at Central). Japan being a place with culture relishing nature nurtures architecture with very different impression, it would be really nice having similar effects on Hong Kong’s future architecture, infusing those concepts into designing minds.
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Bibliography Ryue Nishizawa, Studies by Office of Ryue Nishizawa, Contemporary Architect’s concept Series 4 (2009) Thomas Daniell, After the Crash Architecture in Post-Bubble Japan, Princeton Architectural Press (2008) Terunobu Fujimori, Y’avant Garde Architecture, Gallery Ma Book (1998)
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Accomodation TOKYO カオサンゲストハウス Khaosan World Asakusa Hostel Address: 3-15-1 Nishi-Asakusa, Taito-Ku, Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan 111-0035 Tel: +81-3-3843-0153 http://www.khaosan-tokyo.com/en/world/ CHINO,NAGANO Grandma’s House, Chino KAKUIZAWA,NAGANO ゲストハウス 凜 Guesthouse Rin Karuizawa Address: 22-4 Nakakaruizawa Karuizawa-machi, Kitasaku-gun, Nagano-ken Japan Tel: 0267-41-0557 TOKAMACHI,NIIGATA 松之山町小學三省ハウス Sansho House Address: 327 Matsunoyamakotani ,Tokamachi, Niigata Prefecture 942-1402 Japan Tel: 025-596-3854 http://www.sanshohouse.jp/index.php KAWANISHI,NIIGATA 川西町営コテージ Kawanishi Camping Cottage A and B(Y-shaped House) Address: Kawanishi, Nakauonuma-gun, Niigata Prefecture TOKAMACHI,NIIGATA 光之館 The House of Light Address: 2891 Ueno-ko, Tokamachi, Niigata,948-0122 Japan Tel: 025-761-1090 http://www.machidukuri-kawanishi.com/src/yakata.html
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Team
Reiko Kageyama Shiho Sugita Food-coordinator Operator
Geraldine Tutor
Yoh Miyachi Trip planner
Sachi Miyachi Operator
Wada san Driver
笠原嘉久 Guide
井上洋 Guide
Bab san Guide
Cal Student
Elvis Student
Kuris Student
Isabella Student
Wing Student
Pamela Student
Samuel Student
Collin Student
Sarah Student
Jackie Student
Venus Student
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