Tadao Ando Architect of Light

Charlotte Bell ID 553, Modern Design and Architecture Fall 2005

Tadao Ando
Tadao Ando is a architect of light, a master of space, and a builder for humanity (Slides 1-2). His work, realized primarily in precisely finished reinforced concrete (Slide 3), unifies building and nature to create a deep sense of sanctuary (Slide 4). Ando was born in Osaka, Japan in 1941. From the age of 10 to 17, he was employed as a carpenter, learning to work in wood in the Japanese tradition. His interest in architecture began when he obtained a book of Le Corbusier sketches when he was about 18. He relates that he traced over the drawings so many times that all the pages turned black. Ando is a self-taught architect. He apprenticed for brief periods with local designers and city planners, but primarily developed his skills by reading extensively, studying Japanese shrines, temples and tea houses, and making study trips to Europe and the United States to view, sketch, and analyze buildings by the great architects of the time. He was particularly influenced by Le Corbusier, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Alvar Aalto, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Louis Kahn (Slide 5). Although Ando opened his architecture firm in 1969, he became widely known in 1976 with the completion of a small row house in urban Osaka called Azuma House (Slide 6). The house is a simple, narrow concrete rectangle with living spaces surrounding an interior courtyard. The design serves two purposes. First, the plain unpunctuated faade creates a private barrier between the urban street and the interior living spaces, offering respite from the hectic city life. Second, the inner courtyard opens to the sky, admitting

abundant light and providing a direct connection with the outdoors. The open courtyard allows residents to experience nature without the distractions of the city. Andos intention in creating this design was to return to a traditional Japanese life-style of contact with light, air, rain, and other natural elements within the confines of a small physical space. The house, in essence, reinstates a traditional model using a modern vocabulary. In 1979, Ando received the top prize of the Architectural Institute of Japan for Azuma House. Ando himself considers Azuma House to be the point of origin for his subsequent work. His approach in Azuma House to connect the art of building to the art of living became his goal. In his own words: I try to relate the fixed form and compositional method to the kind of life that will be lived in the given space and to local regional society. In the case of Azuma House, the life to be lived was that of busy urban dweller whose opportunities to experience nature were few, but each of his subsequent designs have met the same challenge. Ando designs independent of any movement or school of architecture, responding instead to his own inner vision. The key elements of his work are walls, light, and wind, composed in surprising juxtapositions (Slide 7). He fashions enclosing geometric walls of thick concrete to create powerful and satisfying interiors that provide a private zone for the individual against the chaos of urban forces. He uses glass and the play of light and wind within his structures to bring the calming aspects of nature inside (Slide 8). His architecture flows from inside to outside, across levels, and through space. Andos work is timeless and universal. Andos primary material is concrete (Slide 9). In the tradition of Japanese carpentry, he uses precisely crafted wooden forms for his work, varnished and finely polished on the

inside to achieve a smooth-as-silk finish. The evenly-spaced holes in his walls are from the bolts that hold the forms together. Ando combines his concrete with large faces of glass and steel frames and often juxtaposes these elements with natural rock and flowing water. In the 1980s, Ando designed the Rokko Housing complex on a steep hillside overlooking Kobe Harbor (Slide 10). The complex of apartments is a collection of modular units, 18 x 18. The modules ascend the hill, adjusting to the topography, and are connected by a central staircase and public spaces. Despite their modularity, the interiors of each apartment are unique Ando considers this complex to be one of his most important works, best representing his ideas. Ando built a number of chapels during the 1980s and early 1990s. His most famous is the Chapel of the Light at Ibaraki (Slides 11-12) in which light creates a spiritual calm and sense of awe. Visitors approach through a narrow pathway between two concrete masses, making a 180 degree turn to enter the sanctuary itself. The sanctuary is dramatically lit by slits in the dense concrete walls. In the apse, the wall is perforated in the shape of a cross, admitting a brilliant stream of light into the chapel that moves across the otherwise dark sanctuary with the motion of the sun. His Church on the Water (Slide 13-14) shows the importance of water in his works. In this chapel, sited among wooded hills, visitors first enter a fully-glazed cubical room, then descend via a darkened, curved stairway into the sanctuary. The chapel opens to a dramatic vista of a cross rising from the surface of a serene lake. As with the Chapel of Light, Ando uses the dramatic juxtaposition of dark passageways with an unexpected opening to light and nature, reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wrights use of compressed entrances opening into larger and lighter spaces.

Andos fascination with water can be seen in other works as well. Both his Nariwa Museum and Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth are placed in bodies of water (Slide 15). To enter the Nariwa, visitors ascend an open-air stairway winding around the outside of a windowless concrete structure rising from a lake, with views of the landscaped grounds. The Modern Art Museum is also sited in a body of water, its glazed ground floor at water level, giving the impression from both inside and outside that the building is actually rising from the water in primordial birth. Water not only provides an opportunity for juxtaposition and attunement with nature, but also creates paths, another common theme in Andos work (Slide 16). In his Childrens Museum, Ando designed sweeping waterfall terraces between which visitors walk. Wide stone stairways and a diagonal slicing wall disappear beneath the surrounding rocks, creating a dramatic path to the rooftop terrace in the Naoshima Contemporary Art Museum. In 1995, Ando was awarded the Pritzker Prize, the highest honor given to architects. Ando defines architecture as the box that provokes. He says, I do not believe architecture should speak too much. It should remain silent and let nature in the guise of sunlight and wind speak. His gift is to create spaces that respond to human needs and spirit, juxtaposing powerful concrete walls with light and nature to create a deep sense of peace (Slide 17). Using simple materials and geometry, Ando has produced a volume of exquisite work.

Selected Works

Azuma House, Kobe, Japan (1975) (Slide 6) This narrow row house is simple concrete building. Its faade is blank except for a doorway. Inside, the living areas surround an inner atrium that admits light. The structure protects residents from the chaos of urban life yet admits natural elements of light to allow them to re-connect with nature. Chikatsu-Asuka Historical Museum, Osaka (1990-94) (Slide 7) This museum, which exhibits burial mound culture and tombs, is designed as a hill to view the surrounding excavation site. Its roof is a large stepped plaza enclosing a darkened tomb-like interior. Visitors are guided to the top of the roof by wide stone steps and a strong diagonal wall. Childrens Museum, Himeji, Japan (1987-1989) (Slide 16) Situated on a hill overlooking a lake, this museum has three parts a main museum, a plaza, and a workshop complex linked by a long pathway. Ando incorporates water in several pools and a dramatic stepped fan-shaped waterfall. Church of the Light, Ibaraki, Japan (1987-1989) (Slides 11-12) Perhaps Andos most famous work, the Church of the Light uses concrete and light to create a moving sanctuary. The building is composed of two rectangles sliced through by diagonal walls. Visitors travel along the angled wall between the volumes to the chapel entry, where they must turn 180 degrees to align themselves with the chapel itself. On the alter end of the structure, Ando has pierced the concrete wall in a simple cruciform, allowing vivid slits of light to penetrate into the minimalist space, the rays moving over time with the course of the sun. Church on the Water, Hokkaido, Japan (1985-1988) (Slides 2, 13, and 14) Located in a rural area and seeming to grow naturally from the hillside, the Church on the Water has a plan with two intersecting squares. Visitors enter into the small glazed upper space then descend into the chapel through a narrow darkened curving stairway. At the bottom is the sanctuary with a harmonious vista through the fullyglazed wall to the hills and a serene lake with a cross arising from its surface. The window-wall can be rolled aside, opening the interior of the church fully to nature. The chapel creates an introspective mood.

Collezione, Tokyo, Japan (1986-1987) (Slide 2) A commercial complex, this steel and reinforced concrete project consists of a number of interlocking geometric forms. A staircase spirals around and between the volumes. International Library of Childrens Literature, Tokyo (2002) (Slide 8) This addition to a Renaissance style library originally built in 1906 uses concrete and glass to effectively juxtapose the old with the new. The transparency of the glass allows the old structure to be fully realized. Kidosaki House, Tokyo, Japan (1982-1986) (Slide 7) This suburban residence, designed as a multi-family dwelling, consists of a cubic volume surrounded by a protective perimeter wall. The exterior and interior spaces provide a sanctuary for the families yet allow privacy in the separate living quarters. Koshino House, Ashiya, Japan (1979-1981) (Slides 2 and 7) Koshino House, set partly underground on a wooded mountain slope, consists of two reinforced concrete structures on either side of a central courtyard. Light slots in the walls and skylights create patterns of sunlight on the walls. Meditation Space, UNESCO Headquarters, Paris, France (1994-1995) (Slide 4) This small single-storey, reinforced concrete space is dedicated to prayer for eternal, global peace for people of all ethnic, religious, cultural, or historical backgrounds. The space is serene and solemn. Modern Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas ( 2002) (Slide 15) This concrete and glass museum arises directly out of a 2-acre pool, demonstrating Andos continuing ability to juxtapose mass with water and light. Built on a modular plan and using only white and gray, the building is well-ordered and calm. Ando sets up a rhythm of contrasting volumes, densities, and lightings to impart energy to the visitor. Naoshima Contemporary Art Museum, Naoshima Island, Japan (1988-1990) (Slides 4 and 16) Sited on a bluff above a quiet beach, this museum welcomes visitors arriving by boat with a stepped plaza leading up to the stone rubble walled building. Visitors enter the gallery into a two-story underground gallery 50 meters long, but only 8 meters wide. Because more than half of the complex is underground, the structure becomes part of the natural landscape.

Nariwa Museum, Nariwa, Japan (1992-1994) (Slide 15) This museum is a box surrounded by a protective wall built from old stones. Visitors ascend an angled ramp around the concrete box to approach the entrance and are treated to a view of a planted slope and a large expanse of water. The museum is a place where nature, culture and history are intertwined. Old/New Rokko Restaurant, Kobe, Japan (1985-1986) (Slide 7) Built on a steep gradient, this multi-storey complex was composed around three ancient trees. The space, an intersecting rectangle and semi-circle, has large expanses of glass to create sense of being in nature. Oxy Unagidani, Osaka, Japan (1986-1988) (Slide 3) This commercial complex consists of an off-square building surrounded on two sides by a stairwell and building-height concrete wall. One side of the building is fully glazed. The photograph shows Andos signature concrete work. Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, St. Louis, Missouri ( 1997-2001) (Slides 8 and 9) The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts building is a massive rectilinear concrete structure with cantilevered rooflines reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wrights Robie House. Ando introduced his method of forming concrete to the U.S. in this museum. Hand-constructed concrete forms were sealed and polished to create the smooth shiny concrete surface that is Andos trademark. Rokko Housing, Kobe, Japan (1981-83 and 1985-89) (Slide 10) This housing complex is built on a steep slope overlooking the city. Ando created apartments using a grid of 5.2 meter cubes, some enclosed, some open. The complex features a central staircase from top to bottom. Each of the units is unique despite the overall uniformity of the modular structure. Vitra Seminar House, Weil-am-Rhein, Germany (1989-1993) (Slide 17) A guest house designed for executives of a German company, this structure is built partly underground to minimize its impact on the surroundings. The design consists of a rectangle, a square sunken court, another rectangle set at a 60 degree angle to the first, and a cylindrical volume that forms a spatial void.

Bibliography

Azuma House Commentary, Great Buildings Online. http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Azuma_House.html. Bollinger, Elizabeth. Andos New Modern. Architecture Week (2003). http://www.architectureweek.com. Davis, Carolyn Armenta. Tadao Ando: A Master of Mystical Places. ISDesigNet Magazine (1995). http://www.isdesignet.com/Magazine/Sep95/PritzkerPrize.html. Pare, Richard. Tadao Ando: The Colours of Light. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 1996. Pritzker Architecture Prize. Citations, remarks, and biographical material associated with the naming of Tadao Ando as the 1995 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate. http://www.pritzkerprize.com. Tadao Ando, interview by Betty J. Blum. Chicago Architects Oral History Project, Art Institute of Chicago (May 25, 2001), available at http://www.artic.edu/aic/libraries/caohp/ando.html. Tadao Ando, interview by the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts (March 2003), available at http://www.pulitzerarts.org. Tadao Ando UIA Gold Medal. Architecture Week (2005). http://www.architectureweek.com. Additional websites: http://www.andotadao.org http://www.arcspace.com http://www.designboom.com http://www.archinform.net, http:/architect.architecture.sk/tadao-ando-architect/tadaoando-architect.php http://library.thinkquest.org/27458/swf/architecture/ando.html http://www.galinsky.com/buildings/churchoflight