O-YOROI SAMURAI ARMOR - BLOG III

NICHOLAS LEBLANC

ORNAMENT IS DESCRIBED AS A THING USED TO ADORN SOMETHING BUT USUALLY HAVING NO PRACTICAL PURPOSE: DECORATION ADDED TO EMBELLISH. IN ARCHITECTURE, ORNAMENT CAN TAKE ON MANY FORMS AND LANGUAGES. WHERE CAN ONE DRAW THE LINE BETWEEN AN ORNAMENTED MOVE AND A CALCULATED FUNCTIONAL MOVE IN ARCHITECTURE?

TADOA ANDO IS THE ARCHITECT THAT I HAVE CHOSEN TO ACCOMPANY MY VIEWS ABOUT ORNAMENTATION. ANDO IS A PRACTICING ARCHITECT FROM OSAKA JAPAN. HIS STRICT UPBRINGING BY HIS GRANDMOTHER HELPED MOLD HIM INTO A RESPONSIBLE AND CONSCIOUS DESIGNER. HE HAS STRONG BELIEFS ABOUT UN-NECESSARY AESTHETIC ELEMENTS. HE BELIEVES ARCHITECTURE IS NOT PURE AESTHETICS BUT IS CALCULATED AND INFORMED MOVES THAT EXPRESS WISDOM.

THE CHICHU ART MUSEUM BY TADAO ANDO IS LOCATED ON NAOSHIMA ISLAND IN THE INLAND SEA OF JAPAN. IT IS DEDICATED TO A PERMANENT EXHIBITION SPACE FOR 9 WORKS OF ART BY ONLY THREE ARTISTS, CLAUDE MONET, WALTER DE MARIA AND JAMES TURRELL. THE TRADITIONAL FUNCTION OF AN ART MUSEUM IS TO DISPLAY AN OBJECT FOR WHAT THE OBJECT IS AND THE MESSAGE THAT IT CONVEYS TO THE VIEWER. THE SPACE MUST BE NEUTRAL IN ODER TO ALLOW THE ARTWORK TO BE MORE EFFICIENT. IN SHARP CONTRAST, THE FUNCTION OF THE CHICHU ART MUSEUM IS TO HOUSE WORKS OF ART. THE VIEWER MUST BE CONVINCED THAT THE ARTWORK IS APPART OF THE ARCHITECTURE AND ARCHITECTURE APPART OF THE ARTWORK. THE ARCHITECTURE AND ARTWORKS CANNOT BE CONSIDERED SEPARATELY AND THEREFORE THE CONNECTION CANNOT BE BROKEN.

EACH PIECE OF ART HAS THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL GALLERY SPACE. THESE SPACES ARE TAILORED AND CONFORM TO THE NEEDS OF THE ART PIECE THAT INHABITS THE SPACE. CALCULATED MOVES ARE MADE BY ANDO IN EACH GALERY TO CREATE A UNIQUE SPACE - A UNIQUE HOME.

THE O-YOROI SAMURAI ARMOR AND THE CHICHU ART MUSEUM ARE BOTH FREE FROM ORNAMENTATION BECAUSE OF EVOLVED KNOWLEDGE OF FUNCTION. 15TH CENTURY ARTISANS HAVE MASTERED THE CRAFT OF AN EFFECTIVE DEFENSE DURING WAR. IN TURN, THE SHAPE, MATERIALITY AND CONSTRUCTION OF SAMURAI ARMOR BECOME CALCULATED MOVES TOWARDS THE FUNCTION. TADAO ANDO HAS GAINED KNOWLEDGE FROM PAST EXPERIENCE TO DESIGN SPACE THAT FOLLOWS THE FUNCTION OF A HOME - A PLACE WHERE SOMETHING BELONGS.

Vertical housing project in Johor, Malaysia

This vertical city housing project was designed by Malaysian architect Tay Yee Wei. The fast growing urban population is a great issue in Asia. Inspired by Le Corbusier’s theory “a house is a machine for living”, Wei proposed this vertical modular housing idea, in respond to speed and flexibility the cities need.

Tey Yee Wei proposed a vertical city populated with hexagonal housing units. His intent was to design an architecture that can be constructed quickly and can grow or shrink in the 3^rd dimension as needs arise, hence Wei designed a “frame & plug-in” system, using prefabricated building elements.

Like the Capsule tower in Japan, a primary structure is to be constructed first, housing unites are to be made separately and plugged in only when needed. However, unlike the Capsule tower, these new hexagonal units allows varies combinations, creating unique and dynamic homes based on the size and needs of the family. The city builds and owns the primary structure, then residents may purchase a “lot”, and customize their own homes to be “plugged” into the primary structure. Many open “lots” can be dedicated to shared spaces, such as green space, recreational area, or research facilities.

The using of prefabricated elements effectively shortens the time for construction. Since the housing units are constructed separately, they could be built simultaneously as the primary structure, and residents can move-in as soon as the structure is finished. Besides the fast construction, the design also wins in its adaptability. Not only the homes can be easily added or removed, the concrete structure could also be dismantled and transported to other cities if no longer needed, depending on the fluctuations in population and economy.

Cassie Q.

Tatami - Blog 3

Tadao Ando

Church of the Light, Osaka, Japan

Style and Themes

Tadao Ando often uses Zen philosophies when designing his structures and spaces. A common theme he expresses in this work is the dual nature of existence. The space of the chapel is defined by light, the strong contrast between light and solid. In the chapel light enters from behind the altar from a cross cut in the concrete wall that extends vertically from floor to ceiling and horizontally from wall to wall, aligning perfectly with the joints in the concrete. At this intersection of light and solid the occupant is meant to become aware of the deep division between the spiritual and the secular within him or herself.

One feature of the Ando’s interior spaces is its profound emptiness. Many who enter the church say they find it disturbing. The distinct void space and absolute silence amounts to a sense of serenity. For Ando the concept of 'emptiness' is very different. To him, emptiness is what transitions one into the spiritual realm.

The walls of Ando

The one element carried through Tadao Ando's structures is his idolization of the reinforced concrete wall. The importance given to walls is a distinct departure from Modernist architecture. These massive solid walls are 15 inches in thickness. It allows complete control in lighting, and face finish.

How this relates to tatami mats:

            In a typical traditional Japanese house, Sunlight gently filters into the interior space through a shoji screens into and on the floor covered with tatami mats. In Japan, proper etiquette insists on removing all footwear when entering a house. Feeling the soft but firm texture of tatami evokes the sensation of walking barefoot on the grass. Traditionally, this is made entirely from rice straw, which offers the perfect degree of firmness, while allowing the air to pass right through it. This allows the air to adopt the natural fragrance of the straw material, and give the sensorial and nostalgic experience of walking through a straw field.

             A simple but sophisticated concept of material selection, and conceptual naturalness. The natures of the materials selected carry a spiritual and nostalgic second meaning, allowing one to engage the material at a personal level.

Tim Stanley

The Layered House

Tectonics in architecture can be seen as combining fundamental elements that affects the whole structure when constructed. The kaidan dansu relates to tectonics in that it serves one of the most essential and functions of life, performed most commonly by light: hiding and revealing space.

The Layered House by Jun Igarashi Architects, is a project located in Hokkaido, Japan, that analogically relates to the kaidan dansu. It is built in an old city along a street where warehouses and farms are located. This house is designed for a family of four and the architects goal was to connect the outer space with the interior, by creating series of rectangular cuts through walls which allow the natural exterior light to project inwards.

This function of hiding and revealing space, is fundamental to all facets of architecture, as light is the canvas upon which a space may be built, however a lack of light will leave the form of a space undefined and hidden. This notion of the absence of light hiding fragments of a space, relates directly to the kaidan dansu's ability to hide the floor of a house. In other words, the kaidan dansu is analogous to a light switch, having the ability to control the extent of one's knowledge of a particular space. The light defines the function of the space and also the negative space, what is empty. The illumination from the skylight shows layers in itself, and it creates the illusion of layering and depth, and defines all the fragments.