Graduation Project: Research

Just like any other architecture / spatial design student, the fourth study year will be enclosed with a  graduation project consisting of a short thesis and a spatial design.

My fascination at the moment is the Japanese traditional architecture space called Engawa, which lies inbetween the outside garden and the inner rooms of a building. With the Engawa as a base, the theme for the research will be the  relationship between inside and outside. 

Engawa in a small house (minka) at Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum, Japan, July 2014.

From Oct - Dec 2014, research will be conducted about Engawa and Japanese traditional architecture. Information and pictures about contemporary architecture will serve as an inspiration. 
From Jan - May 2014, a design will be created in response to the research, which is planned to be  presented in June.

The research will be started with a questionnaire in which the goal is to compare Japanese (traditional) houses with dutch (western) houses. The subjects are people who have lived in both types of houses so they can explain their experiences. The questionnaire is divided in 4 parts which can be found here:

Part 1. http://www.smaster.jp/Sheet.aspx?SheetID=95813
Part 2. http://www.smaster.jp/Sheet.aspx?SheetID=95817
Part 3. http://www.smaster.jp/Sheet.aspx?SheetID=95823
Part 4. http://www.smaster.jp/Sheet.aspx?SheetID=95825

The deadline for the questionnaire is set at October 22 2014. 

Edo Tokyo Museum

 One of the museums I would like to show is the Edo Tokyo Museum.

The permanent exhibition is about the Edo period in Japan (17th until 19th century) with models with sizes from 1:100 to 1:1. It was amazing to see the huge wooden structures and get to know the lifestyle of the japanese citizens at that time.

Japanese theatre, scale 1:1. 

Influences from Europe change the japanese architecture, scale 1:1.

 When a friend from my internship and me saw the smaller scale models, we were shocked by the amount of detail shown. Every character was actually doing something (shopping, doing the laundry, dancing, selling goods, chasing a dog) and we were really glad that at the office we did not need to make models with such a power of expression. Respect for the patience that the makers of the models had!

Rich area of the city, scale 1:50.

Just amazing how the movement of the water is expressed, scale 1:100.

The more wood you waste, the more respect you get? scale 1:10.

To zoom in, there were binoculars available since the models were so big.

 Beside the models there was a step by step display of how wood printing worked. As one who likes to draw it was very interesting to see that each colour of one picture had its own wooden block with the shape carved out. Something I might try in the future.

Upper row: actual print, middle row: print of the wooden block, lowest row: carved wooden block.

 To give you the real experience of a local at that time, there were a banner and two containers to carry. The the banner was via a chain attached to the ceiling to prevent it from falling to the ground and in both containers was a weight of 5kg.

Me barely carrying the banner.

My friend from the internship lifting the containers: "Ah! This is so heavy!"

 The museum had a lot of other funny objects for display, such as weapons, boats, kitchen tools and even cooking books. My favourite part was actually the smell of the wooden theatre that was spread through the huge hall. That reminded me of the idea that when experiencing a space not only the eyes, but all five senses are used: another aspect to take in accordance with for my future design projects.

A short visit at the Kengo Kuma office

A short while ago, I had the opportunity to visit the architecture office of Kengo Kuma and Associates. http://kkaa.co.jp/
Being one of the bigger offices which produces very interesting architecture, I wanted to a part of my internship here. But as they only accept Master graduates it was not an option for me.

At the entrance of the office. 

The person who showed me around told me that the working hours were very long (from around 9am until 10pm-2am) and late and that often the staff members have to come in on Saturdays (and/or Sundays) as well. Interns will make mostly models, but if they are applying for being a staff member, they should be able to work with technical drawings, contact with clients and presentations as well.
Different from other architecture offices, at Kengo Kuma's the interns will get paid. And if they like you, you may take a test of which the results will determine wether the office keeps you as a staff member or not. The salary is very low at the beginning and will gradually grow over the years you work for the company. This system is quite normal for Japanese offices.
There are people with different nationalities working at the office and a lot of them are from Asia and Europe. It seemed like a pretty diverse working area.

Front facade of the office Kengo Kuma and Associates. 

The office used to focus on creative and conceptual design, but in my eyes, these days the concentration lies a little more with commercial projects that are very profitable for the office, but less innovative. Although the office works a lot with scale models and plans, which in my opinion is an important process, I am not sure if this would really be my taste and style of working.

My search for a fitting office continues.

Tokyo Architecture Collection

Some time ago I visited the Tokyo Architecture Collection, which is a competition for 15 chosen Architecture Design Master students to exhibit their graduation works. All of them have a different theme or concept and they will present it to the examinators. The winner will receive money to improve their skills and creativity in architecture.

I have chosen a few projects to present here.

Entrance Hall

 Project 1: water.

This student made 15 study models in 150 hours to examine how water can be used in architecture.

A girl who made 15 study models in 150 hours.

Project 2: bird watching.

A study for watching birds from above ground level.

Final model for watching birds.

Project 3: living in harmony between the mountains and the sea.

This idea emerged as a reaction on the Kanto natural disaster and the student wanted to create an environment profitable for both humans and nature.

Houses in the mountains.

Houses next to the sea.

 Project 4: living in different levels.

I liked the fact that the model was made in sections so you can have a good look at the inside of the design.

It was really fun to walk around this model.

Project 5: opening up a space to wind and closing it for rain.

This design reminded me of a project I did with the title Miyazaki Atelier in which the walls can be opened and closed by steel slabs. Though the functions are different: one is for water and air and mine was for controlling light.

Cubical shaped houses stand inside the wooden frame. 

Project 6: playing with mathematical shapes.

In Japan I noticed that a lot of models are made by styrene board or wood. At my school in the Netherlands we use all kinds of materials and I was glad to see one student working with steel and experimenting with the beautiful colours and characteristics of it.

A lovely imperfection of the shapes.

 Project 7: a stable for horses.

To me it looked like a car park designed for horses. It was an interesting concept to "park" horses on upper levels. Especially in areas with limited space this might be a good solution.

If you look closely, you can see a horse walking the slope upwards.

 Project 8: Hotel hanging from a wall.

My favorite was the laser cut card board model of a hotel hanging from the edge of a cliff. At first the model was made out of very thin and fragile parts and above that it was hard to believe that this construction would not tumble down into the valley.

For some reason this design also reminded me of the mines in the movie The Mask of Zorro.

Last nude drawing

The last nude model drawing we did was in a lying position on a couch. I had a hard time constructing the upper body and the couch was distracting. The stomach and legs came out in a spacious way and I am content with that part.