午夜剧场

There still seem to be few people aspiring to study architecture at 午夜剧场. While there are now laboratories where one can study architecture in the Faculty of Science and Technology and the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies, back around 1968 when I was a student at 午夜剧场 Senior High School wanting to enter the world of art, the options were even narrower. The Faculty of Letters had aesthetics, but it was a time far removed from architecture. It was an era when the fact that Waseda had no School of Medicine and 午夜剧场 had no architecture was said to be one of the seven wonders of Japan's educational world.

What is architecture? Despite being most closely related to our daily lives, it might be something we aren't very conscious of. In other words, is it like air? No, that's not it. I think it's the difference between so-called buildings or "bills" and "architecture." However, if I were to explain that difference here, I probably wouldn't be able to introduce this manuscript—that is, my book—so I will save it for another occasion. I will just add one thing: when you go on a trip and ask, "Did you see that?" what you are usually referring to is architecture.

Similarly, even as I work as an architect, things are quite difficult largely due to Japan's (unique) social structure, and it is hard for people to understand what an architect is. Therefore, I began writing the book "Toward Beautiful Houses," using the "house"—the most relatable form of architecture for everyone—as an example. I broke down the experience of feeling "Wow, that's beautiful!" (not limited to architecture) and applied it to houses, explaining things like light, wind, windows, furniture, fittings, what it means to be Japanese, and what modernism is. I have explained these clearly, interspersed with episodes involving clients I met through my actual work.

However, while I was supposed to be unraveling how an architect thinks about what is necessary for beauty, the discussion gradually shifted toward Japan's unique social systems. Why don't Japanese streets become as beautiful as those in foreign countries?

Why are areas like Den-en-chofu, Shoto, Seijo, and Ashiya, which were once called high-end residential areas, becoming less beautiful now?

Conversely, why are such buildings being born? I couldn't help but ask: are these buildings that were born because they were desired?

Ken Yokogawa

Sayusha

240 pages, 2,860 yen (tax included)

*Affiliations and titles are those at the time of publication.