Japan (1998.04-2003.03): Six Igneous Years I

There is no architecture without a SITE and, if we look carefully, the site is never empty. It has a lot of information.

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I always liked Japanese architecture. Perhaps because I grew up watching Mazinger-Z on TV.

Even before going to Argentina was an idea, I had started to meet people who had experience in Japan. Among others, the conversations with architects Santiago Porras and álvaro Varela, former students of The University of Tokyo, or To-dai, reinforced my decision to travel to the Land of the Rising Sun.

álvaro put me in contact with Prof. Hidetoshi Ohno, who accepted me in his Laboratory. Prof. Ohno is a great scholar, and an extremely patient person, from whom I learned, among many important things, to appreciate the hidden connections that exist in our surroundings.

After my first meeting with Prof. Ohno, I was introduced to Genki-san, my senior, or senpai. He was exactly like Koji Kabuto, Mazinger′s pilot, although Genki san is always smiling. We spent some time visiting the school. After the tour, I asked about the cafeteria.

“What do you mean Pedero-san?” (This is how my first name is pronounced in Japanese)

“I mean, the place where you go to drink a coffee, eat something, take a break…”

“Yes, of course, follow me”. Obviously, I didn’t explain myself clearly enough… So, I followed Genki-san. To the basement of the building, right behind the stairs.

“Here you go, Pedero-san!”. And what I found there was a vending machine for cold canned coffee and another vending machine for snacks. Fortunately, we could prepare our own coffee in the lab, and there were plenty of nice little restaurants around Hongo Campus.

In principle, I was going to stay in Japan for only 2 years. To gather the information that I needed to write my PhD thesis in Madrid. But after this time, I could speak a little Japanese and I was used to the wonderful city of Tokyo. I met Hanna and I fell in love with her. It was clear to me: I had to stay longer in Japan. And we did.

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Our natural tendency when we visit a new place is to superimpose our way of thinking, and interpret it according to our prejudices. This is not a good strategy. Without considering the context, it is impossible to understand the site. There is no way around it.

As simple as that? Yes, but it′s not easy. It requires good research.

If you are curious about other architecture lessons in Japan, and more importantly, how to design a project that really belongs to your site and leaves a positive impact, visit my website and subscribe to my newsletter:

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P.S.: All my past could be part of your future… when you click the link above.

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