shigeru ban – DesignApplause

2014 pritzker architectural prize: shigeru ban.

Mar 26, 2014

above> shigeru ban | photo richard drew/ap

Japanese architect, Shigeru Ban, a 56-year-old architect born in Tokyo, was named the winner of his profession’s top honor. Ban is the seventh Japanese architect to receive the prize since it was established in 1979, following Kenzo Tange in 1987, Fumihiko Maki in 1993, Tadao Ando in 1995, and the third in the past five years with the team of Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa in 2010, and Toyo Ito last year.

His body of work is diverse, brilliant, a mix of both minimal and complex architecture, art and poetry. Seemingly minimal with conventional architectural materials and complex by structural necessity for his use of exposed wood, plastic and paper. Like all master craftsman, despite the diversity there’s a signature presence. Strikingly, amid all his architectural achievements is his passion for humanity. Quite a combination and frankly needed.

“Receiving this prize is a great honor, and with it, I must be careful,” said Ban, who splits his time between offices in Tokyo, Paris and New York. “I must continue to listen to the people I work for, in my private residential commissions and in my disaster relief work. I see this prize as encouragement for me to keep doing what I am doing – not to change what I am doing, but to grow.”

paper log houses in kobe | 1995 | © Takanobu Sakuma

House Paper Tubes in Kobe, Japan. DIY refugee shelters Ban have proved very popular and effective solution for housing low cost emergency to natural disasters, these have been used in Japan, Vietnam, Turkey, India and China, Haiti, Rwanda and other countries worldwide.

cardboard cathedral | 2011 | stephen goodenough /afp/ getty images

wall-Less house | 1997 | © hiroyuki hirai

above/below > His early residential commissions feel a bit like he became bored and quickly finished projects without walls, windows. Maybe he was the perfect foil for those clients who wanted something different and he solved their problems within a limited budget. Usually a great degree of space and quite utilitarian. His later homes are still very zen-like with more than a dash of sumptuous.

villa vista | 2010 | © hiroyuki hirai

metal shutter house | 2010 | © michael moran

above > Many solutions are changelings, able to morph into one function or another, mostly indoor – outdoor excursions.

above/below > An architect’s home reveals their sensitivities, built in 1997, resides in a forest and the challenge met was no trees were cut down.

[ jury citation 2014 ]
Since its establishment thirty-five years ago, the goal of the Pritzker Architecture Prize is to recognize living architects for excellence in built work and who make a significant and consistent contribution to humanity.

Shigeru Ban, the 2014 laureate, reflects this spirit of the prize to the fullest. He is an outstanding architect who, for twenty years, has been responding with creativity and high quality design to extreme situations caused by devastating natural disasters. His buildings provide shelter, community centers, and spiritual places for those who have suffered tremendous loss and destruction. When tragedy strikes, he is often there from the beginning, as in Rwanda, Turkey, India, China, Italy, and Haiti, and his home country of Japan, among others.

His creative approach and innovation, especially related to building materials and structures, not merely good intentions, are present in all his works. Through excellent design, in response to pressing challenges, Shigeru Ban has expanded the role of the profession; he has made a place at the table for architects to participate in the dialogue with governments and public agencies, philanthropists, and the affected communities. His sense of responsibility and positive action to create architecture of quality to serve society´s needs, combined with his original approach to these humanitarian challenges, make this year´s winner an exemplary professional.

The recipient has an exceptionally wide-ranging career. Since founding his first office in Tokyo in 1985 and later expanding to New York and Paris, he has undertaken projects that range from minimal dwellings, experimental houses and housing, to museums, exhibition pavilions, conference and concert venues, and office buildings.

An underpinning uniting much of his built work is his experimental approach. He has expanded the architectural field regarding not only the problems and challenges he tackles, but also regarding the tools and techniques to deal with them. He is able to see in standard components and common materials, such as paper tubes, packing materials or shipping containers, opportunities to use them in new ways. He is especially known for his structural innovations and the creative use of unconventional materials like bamboo, fabric, paper, and composites of recycled paper fiber and plastics.

In Naked House, he was able to question the traditional notion of rooms and consequently domestic life, and simultaneously create a translucent, almost magical atmosphere. This was done with modest means: walls externally clad in clear corrugated plastic and sections of white acrylic stretched internally across a timber frame. This sophisticated layered composition of ordinary materials used in a natural and efficient way, provides comfort, efficient environmental performance and simultaneously a sensual quality of light.

His own studio, atop a terrace at the Pompidou Center in Paris for the six years he was working on the museum project for Metz, was built using cardboard tubes and a membrane covering the arched roof. He has also used transportation containers as ready-made elements in museum construction. His body of work is proof of his ability to add value through design. Further new conceptual and structural ideas were developed and can be seen in PC Pile House, House of Double Roof, Furniture House, Wall-less House, and Nine-Square Grid House.

Another theme that runs through his work is the spatial continuity between interior and exterior spaces. In Curtain Wall House, he uses tent-like movable curtains to easily link interior and exterior, yet provide privacy when needed. The fourteen-story Nicolas G. Hayek Center in Tokyo is covered with glass shutters on front and back facades that can be fully opened.

For Shigeru Ban, sustainability is not a concept to add on after the fact; rather, it is intrinsic to architecture. His works strive for appropriate products and systems that are in concert with the environment and the specific context, using renewable and locally produced materials, whenever possible. Just one example is his newly opened Tamedia office building in Zurich, which uses an interlocking timber structural system, completely devoid of joint hardware and glue.

His great knowledge of structure and his appreciation for such masters as Mies van der Rohe and Frei Otto have contributed to the development and clarity of his buildings. His own architecture is direct and honest. However, it is never ordinary, and each new project has an inspired freshness about it. The elegant simplicity and apparent effortlessness of his works are really the result of years of practice and a love for building. Above all, his respect for the people who inhabit his buildings, whether victims of natural disaster or private clients or the public, is always revealed through his thoughtful approach, functional plans, carefully selected appropriate materials, and the richness of spaces he creates.

Shigeru Ban is a tireless architect whose work exudes optimism. Where others may see insurmountable challenges, Ban sees a call to action. Where others might take a tested path, he sees the opportunity to innovate. He is a committed teacher who is not only a role model for younger generation, but also an inspiration.

For all these reasons, Shigeru Ban is the 2014 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate.

1> curtain wall house | 1995 | © hiroyuki hirai
2> nine-square grid house | 1997 | © hiroyuki hirai
3> naked house | 2000 | © hiroyuki hirai
4> hannover expo japan pavilion | 2000 | © hiroyuki hirai
5> picture window house | 2002 | © hiroyuki hirai
6> glass shutter house | 2003
7> paper temporary studio atop pompidou center in paris | 2004 | © didier boy de la tour
8> nicolas g hayek center | 2007 | © hiroyuki hirai
9/10> nine bridges golf club | 2010 | © hiroyuki hirai / © jongoh kim 2010
11/12> centre pompidou-metz | 2010 |© F Martin / © james ewing
13> cardboard cathedral | 2013 | © stephen goodenough
14> swatch corporate headquarters | in progress
15> mount fuji world heritage center | in progress

[ shigeru ban architects ]

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house vision. kenya hara.

May 12, 2013

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House Vision was a three-week-long exhibition last March in Tokyo. Curated by Kenya Hara, it’s his vision of the future of the Japanese house, looking ahead 30-40 years. He along with his inner circle of visionary’s believe it’s their responsibility to make their visions in their heads a reality, i.e., as real as an exhibit can be: at 1:1 scale where visitors walk-in, touch, can “get it”. Much of the materials have be repurposed from something else, another group environmental statement. The design team includes shigeru ban, sou fujimoto, jun inokuma, toyo ito, toshiharu naka, yuri naruse, hirokazu suemitsu, hiroshi sugimoto, sumitomo wood and riken yamamoto, among others.

kenya hara

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3-4> #1 beyond the residence | lixil x toyo ito
5-6> #2 house of movement and energy | honda x sou fujimoto
7> #3 local community area principles | riken yamamoto & hirokazu suemitsu & toshiharu naka
8-10> #4 house of suki | sumitomo forestry x hiroshi sugimoto
11-12> #5 house of furniture | muji x shigeru ban
13-14> #6 superlative space | toto x yuri naruse & jun inokuma
15-16> #7 edited house | tsutaya books x real tokyo estate
18-18 > store
1,2,19-21> house vision

photography courtesy of nacása & partners inc | naoyafujii

[ house vision ] [ hara design institute ] [ muji ] [ random publishers ]

Here is what I think may be one of the coolest shows of the year by my favorite guy Kenya Hara. From the [ Architecture for Dogs ] in Miami to [ House Vision ] in Tokyo, this guy is arguably one of the greatest curators alive.

DIY architecture for dogs. Designmiami 2012.

Dec 10, 2012

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There is so much to see at DesignMiami and Art Basel it’s hard to see everything. So you ask, “See anything interesting?” This year ‘Architecture for Dogs’ caught most everyone’s interest. This is an exhibit in the Design District, about 10 minutes from the Design pavilion and Art Basel. Kenya Hara, the art director for Muji assembles 13 notable architects and designers to do what they do best: conceptualize. Each concept comes with a free downloadable blueprint as well as instructions and videos demonstrating customization. You can pick by dog, degree of difficulty or simply your favorite. The end products are so cute you don’t even need to own a dog. Hara sees the project as an opportunity to explore architecture in a different way. And that’s what’s really so interesting along with the DIY concept.

beagle house / interactive dog house | mvrdv
The curved shape invites the dog to enter the house, stimulates play and offers a comfortable and quiet space. Every time the dog enters or exits, the house answers with a subtle motion. The rounded bottom touches the ground gently with little friction. The rope attached to the house makes it easy to move for both dog and owner, and humans can easily carry its wedge shape. The interaction with humans is made more obvious since the curved lines reach human eye level. The firm and active Beagle has inspired us to design a simple, strong and playful object.

papier papillon | shigeru ban
With just two wires, the paper tube found inside the ubiquitous cylinder of plastic wrap changes shape, making a space for dogs. You can make a bed, a swing, a maze-like environment, even a chair or table for yourself.

architecture for the bichon frise | kazuo sejima
The fur of the bichon frise is distinct. Extremely white, soft and fluffy, it’s like cotton candy, or a whisp of cloud. This architecture resembles the bichon frise–with its fascinating fur, but one size larger. Our goal was to create a shape that would be completed by the reclining bichon frise. Dog and architecture would become one.

no dog, no life! / boston terrier | sou fujimoto
This is the house where the dog lives, inside the house where the people who own the dog live. This architecture is a living space for the dog, as well as furniture for the people, a garden within the house, as well as a gentle boundary between the people and the dog. Humans artificially turned dogs into pets. Dogs, as pets, therefore lose their animal understanding. NO DOG, NO LIFE! is a new architectural space meant to act as a framework within which humans and dogs can, as they live together, interact proactively.

dachshund smooth / architecture for long-bodied-short-legged dod | atelier bow-wow
Because of their short legs, it’s hard for dachshunds to meet their masters’ eyes. Also because of their short legs, it’s hard for them to get up on chairs. Is there no good way to get closer to the eyes? Stairs? Let’s make it long enough so a person can lie down too. Sunbathing with your dachshund on the veranda is good. If you connect several, they can go anywhere, and form any shape. Multiple stacks in an atrium space make a ramp for the dogs to go upstairs.

mobile home for shiba | toyo ito
Whether it rains all day, or the asphalt is hot, whether the dog has aged and its legs and loins are sore, dogs want to go out for a walk with their owners everyday. I attached tires to a well-ventilated wooden basket. The crate floor is designed to be as close to the ground as possible so that the dog could board and disembark by itself. In addition, because it can act as a bed that fits in the entryway or inside the house, it is even more of a mobile doghouse.

mount pug | kengo kuma
Mount Pug is a mesh-shaped “mountain,” assembly of thin and long 600mm (plywood) pieces as “branches.” By combining the unevenness of each branch to form in hexagon and triangle, the “branches” begin to support each other as if the cells of living creatures. The “mountain” can gain enough strength from it without nails or a bond. Pug is clever and mischievous. It makes full use of the mesh as its nest and plaything. Toys and snacks can also be hung on the mesh.

dog cooler / spitz | hiroshi naito
My beloved dog, Pepe, who the year before last passed away at the ripe age of sixteen, and who spent with me the busiest years of my life, was a dear friend. Summer in Japan, hot and humid as it is, is the worst climate—for people and dogs. His favorite summer spot was the ofuro-ba, or bathing area, where he would lower his body temperature by lying on the tile floor. By inserting a plastic bag filled with ice into the highly thermally conductive aluminum pipe, you can expect quite the cooling effect. I decided to tuck wood slats in between the metal tubes, to allow the dog’s claws to get a firm hold. Connecting the metal to the wood with rubber hose allows the dog to feel comfortable and relaxed on this cooling contraption, which can be adapted to the layout of your room. This piece is my tribute to Pepe.

pointed t / japanese terrier | hara design institute / haruka misawa
Take one large sheet of heavy paper. Cut a part off and fold it. Hang it from the ceiling and you have a territory for your dog in the room. You don’t need nails or any construction tools. A house without walls, whose roof just floats, is completely different from traditional doghouses, creating an ambiguous space for the dog. When a Japanese terrier is in the house, his head is completely hidden, but you can see his skinny legs through the gaps, prancing along, and it looks exactly like he’s wearing a big pointy hat. For the dog, it’s a house, but for humans, it’s a unique dog object.

wanmock / jack russell terrier | torafu architects
Observing the favorite place of this dog, whose qualities make him a good partner for people, we found that he’s happiest on his master’s clothes. The smell and the feeling of the fabric set the dog at ease. So we devised a piece of furniture for the dog to inhabit that would incorporate the master’s clothes. For summer, a material that lets the air through; in winter something thicker; the clothing can be changed with the seasons. We came up with two building methods and frame materials, plywood or decking, the choice of which can be determined by the user’s DIY skills. In Japanese, a dog says, “wan”. The name “Wan-mock” combines the woof and the piece’s signature “hammock” style.

paramount for toy poodle | konstantin grcic
I have recently come across an article about the so-called “Mirror Test”, which is used by neurologists to examine the self-awareness of animals based on whether or not they can recognize themselves in a mirror. Among the ‘lesser’ creatures the great apes, dolphins, elephants, and rats are the only ones confirmed to recognize the image in the mirror as themselves. Humans, out of interest, are only able to accomplish the test after they’re 18 months to 2 years old. Dogs have been ruled complete failures at self-awareness which can be explained by the simple fact that they are relying primarily on senses other than sight. Having said this, there is a group of poodle owners who are gathering in respective internet forums to debate their fervid disagreement with this assumption. They claim that their poodles are reacting positively to mirrors and displaying unmistakable signs of self-awareness.

d-tunnel / teacup poodle | kenya hara
I thought up a device/installation that equalizes human scale and dog scale, or in other words, a scale modifier. For instance, each step of a stairway is 15cm high, around the world. This came to be naturally because of the height of humans and the length of their feet. The same goes for the existence and size of doors, in fact, the size of houses and cities are predicated on the human body. Accordingly, dogs, who spend their lives at the side of humans, must accept human scale. This architecture is an apparatus for the purpose of naturally bringing dogs and humans eye to eye. As for those super-small dogs, who spend all their time looking up, definitely let them try it out!

chihuahua cloud | reiser + umemoto
The Cloud is architecture that travels with the dog, a second skin that communicates the uniqueness of any given Chihuahua’s body and temperament. Designed to suit the specific needs of this feisty breed, the Cloud creates a climatic buffer to shield the dog from cold, and provides protection for the general weakness of the dog’s bones—including the soft spots around the skull (moleras) and the sensitive area near the eyes. In the Cloud the dog is warm, protected, and secure. Furthermore, the Cloud serves as a veil that neutralizes preconceptions about the size of Chihuahuas. The illusion of larger mass is befitting of the Chihuahua’s big personality. For the DIY enthusiast, the intricate process of crafting the Cloud creates an opportunity for the owner to make something special for their pet, thereby strengthening their relationship.

[ architecture for dogs ] [ hara design institute ] [ muji ] [ designmiami ]