Japan Architecture In A Nutt ShellDone By : Saad Dahleh / Saif Jbbori

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean.

Geography: The climate of Japan is predominantly temperate, but

varies greatly from north to south. Japan's geographical features divide it into six principal climatic zones:

Hokkaido / Sea of Japan / Central Highland / Seto Inland Sea / Pacific Ocean / Ryūkyū Islands.

Economy: Growth was slow but steady, most of japan early

imports were rice and spices. That was until the technological spread it started building vehicles as its main resource then japans economy hit rock bottom after the tragic Hiroshima and Nagzaki incident but it didn’t stop it at that it. As of 2012, Japan is the third largest national economy in the world.

Demography: Japan's population is estimated at around 127.1

million. Japanese society is linguistically and culturally homogeneous, composed of 98.5% ethnic Japanese, with small populations of foreign workers.

Religion: Japan enjoys full religious freedom based on Article 20

of its Constitution. Upper estimates suggest that 84–96 % of the Japanese population follow Buddhism or Shinto.

Culture: Japanese culture has evolved greatly from its origins.

Contemporary culture combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. But the Japanese people still cling to their origins.

Japan

Japan Traditional

ArchitectureMuch in the traditional architecture of Japan is not native, but was imported from China and other Asian cultures over the centuries. Japanese traditional architecture and its history are as a consequence dominated by Chinese and Asian techniques, on one side, and by Japanese original variations on those themes on the other.

Nijō Castle in Kyoto

Japans Historic Time line

Prehistoric periodThe prehistoric period includes the Jōmon, Yayoi and Kofun periods.

1. The Jōmon: the population was primarily hunter-gatherer with some primitive agriculture skills and their behavior was predominantly determined by changes in climatic conditions and other natural stimulants. Early dwellings were pit houses consisting of shallow pits with tamped earth floors and grass roofs designed to collect rainwater with the aid of storage jars.

2. the Yayoi: the Japanese people began to interact with the Chinese Han Dynasty, whose knowledge and technical skills began to influence them. The Japanese began to build raised-floor storehouses as granaries which were constructed

3. The Kofun: marked the appearance of many-chambered burial mounds or tumuli

Asuka and Nara PeriodThe most significant contributor to architectural changes during the Asuka period was the introduction of Buddhism and the Shinto wooden shrines.

The following is a diagram illustrating the most important elements of a Shinto shrine.1. Torii - Shinto gate2. Stone stairs3. Sandō - the approach to the shrine4. Chōzuya or temizuya - fountain to cleanse one's

hands and face5. Tōrō - decorative stone lanterns6. Kagura-den - building dedicated to Noh or the

sacred kagura dance7. Shamusho - the shrine's administrative office8. Ema - wooden plaques bearing prayers or wishes9. Sessha/massha - small auxiliary shrines10. Komainu - the so-called "lion dogs", guardians of

the shrine11. Haiden - oratory12. Tamagaki - fence surrounding the honden13. Honden - main hall, enshrining the kami.

The roof is the most visually impressive component, often constituting half the size of the whole composition.

The slightly curved eaves extend far beyond the walls, covering verandas, and their weight must therefore be supported by complex bracket systems called tokyō, in the case of temples and shrines. Simpler solutions are adopted in domestic structures.

Inner space divisions are fluid, and room size can be modified through the use of screens or movable paper walls.

The use of construction modules keeps proportions between different parts of the edifice constant, where every available space is heavily decorated

Hōryū-ji

Being shared by both sacred and profane architecture, these features made it easy converting a lay building into a temple or vice versa. This happened for example at Hōryū-ji, where a noblewoman's mansion was transformed into a religious building.

Heian periodAlthough the layout of the city was similar to Nara's and inspired by Chinese precedents, the palaces, temples and dwellings began to show examples of local Japanese taste.

Phoenix Hall at Kyoto Heavy materials like stone, mortar and

clay were abandoned as building elements, with simple wooden walls, floors and partitions becoming prevalent.

Brick roofing tiles and a type of cypress called hinoki were used for roofs.

The increasing size of buildings in the capital led to an architecture reliant on columns regularly spaced in accordance with the ken, a traditional measure of both size and proportion.

It was sometime during this period that the hidden roof, a uniquely Japanese solution to roof drainage problems, was adopted.

it is composed of a true roof above and a second roof beneath permitting to have eaves of shallow pitch. only from under the eaves and is therefore called a "hidden roof"

Phoenix Hall at Kyoto It consists of a main rectangular structure

flanked by two L-shaped wing corridors and a tail corridor, set at the edge of a large artificial pond.

The style was characterized by symmetrical buildings placed as arms that defined an inner garden. This garden then used borrowed scenery to seemingly blend with the wider landscape.

This garden then used borrowed scenery to seemingly blend with the wider landscape through Three principle:

intending to create in the likeness of nature planning in accordance with the site

topography capturing and presenting the ambiance

Kamakura and Muromachi periodsThe period began with the transfer of power in Japan, Although less elaborate than during the Heian period, architecture in the Kamakura period was informed by a simplicity due to its association with the military order.

Ryoanji Temple

In response to native requirements such as earthquake resistance and shelter against heavy rainfall, the master carpenters of this time responded with a unique type of architecture, creating the Daibutsuyō and Zenshūyō styles. Both monolithic structure to withstand the natural environment.

Although woven grass and straw tatami mats first began to appear in the Kamakura period, they were often thrown all over the floor. In the Muromachi period they began to have a regular size and be closely fitted together.

In the garden, Zen principles replaced water with sand or gravel to produce the dry garden (karesansui) like the one at Ryōan-ji.

Kinkaku-ji

The proximity of the shogunate to the imperial court led to a rivalry in the upper levels of society which caused tendencies toward luxurious goods and lifestyles.

In an attempt to rein in the excess of the upper classes, the Zen masters introduced the tea ceremony. In architecture this promoted the design of chashitsu (tea houses) to a modest size with simple detailing and materials. The style informed residential architecture with lighter, more intimate buildings relying on slender rafters and pillars with sliding

Azuchi-Momoyama periodJapan underwent a process of unification after a long period of civil war. It was marked by the rule of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, men who built castles as symbols of their power

Himeji Castle

led to rise of castle architecture in Japan. By the time of the Azuchi-Momoyama period each domain was allowed to have one castle of its own.

Typically it consisted of a central tower surrounded by gardens and fortified buildings. All of this was set within massive stone walls and surrounded by deep moats. The dark interiors of castles were often decorated by artists, the spaces were separated up using sliding screens.

Himeji Castle

Edo periodThe Tokugawa Shogunate took the city of Edo as their capital. They built an imposing fortress around which buildings of the state administration and residences were constructed.

Machiya The city grew around these buildings

connected by a network of roads and canals. Although machiya (townhouses) had been

around since the Heian period they began to be refined during the Edo period.

Machiya typically occupied deep, narrow plots abutting the street (the width of the plot was usually indicative of the wealth of the owner), often with a workshop or shop on the ground floor. Tiles rather than thatch were used on the roof and exposed timbers were often plastered in an effort to protect the building against fire.

Machiya and storehouses from the later part of the period are characterized by having a black coloration to the external plaster walls.

Kamiyashik Ostentatious buildings that demonstrated the

wealth and power of the feudal lords were constructed, such as the Kamiyashiki of Matsudaira Tadamasa

Edo suffered badly from devastating fires and the 1657 Great Fire of Meireki was a turning point in urban design. Initially, as a method of reducing fire spread, the government built stone embankments in at least two locations along rivers in the city.

Over time these were torn down and replaced with dōzō storehouses that were used both as fire breaks and to store goods unloaded from the canals.

The clean lines of the civil architecture in Edo influenced the sukiya style of residential architecture.

Meiji, Taisho, and early Showa periodsTowards the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate, Western influence in architecture began to show in buildings associated with the military and trade, especially naval and industrial facilities.

Kamiyashik Japan began a rapid process of

Westernization which led to the need for new building types such as schools, banks and hotels.

Early Meiji Architecture was initially influenced by colonial architecture

Thomas Waters who designed the Osaka Mint in 1868, a long, low building in brick and stone.

In Tokyo, after the Tsukiji area burnt to the ground in 1872, the government designated the Ginza area as model of modernization.

One of the prime examples of early western architecture was the Rokumeikan, a large two-story building in Tokyo,

Mint Rokumeikan

Former kaichi School Ginza

Late Showa periodAfter the war and under the influence of the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, General Douglas MacArthur, Japanese political and religious life was reformed to produce a demilitarized and democratic country.

Post War

Also in 1946, the War Damage Rehabilitation Board put forward ideas for the reconstruction of thirteen Japanese cities. Architect Kenzō Tange submitted proposals for Hiroshima and Maebashi.

Le Corbusier was asked by the Japanese government to design the National Museum of Western Art in Tōkyō. He was assisted by his three former students: Maekawa, Sakakura and Takamasa Yoshizaka.

Yoyogi Gym The 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo saw a

large boost to new design. Venues were constructed and the Yoyogi National Gymnasium, built between 1961 and 1964 by Kenzo Tange, became a landmark structure famous for its suspension roof design, recalling traditional elements of Shinto shrines.

The Olympic Games symbolized the re-emergence of Japan after the destruction of World War II, reflecting the new confidence in its architecture.

In the late seventies and early eighties Tadao Ando's architecture and theoretical writings explored the idea of Critical regionalism – the idea of promoting local or national culture within architecture.

Early Heisei periodThe Heisei period began with the collapse of the so-called "bubble economy" that had previously boosted Japan's economy.

Yoyogi Gym

Commissions for commercial works of architecture virtually dried up and architects relied upon government and prefectural organizations to provide projects.

Two former employees of Toyō Itō, Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa formed a collaborative partnership in 1995 called SANAA. They are known for creating lightweight, transparent spaces that expose the fluidity and movement of their occupants. Which became and apparent architecture movement trough this period.

Conclusion

The Prehistoric period: Was primitive structure with functional purpose only. Wood and stone were used and sloped roofs. Burial mounds were imported form Chinese culture.

Asuka and Nara Period: Religion Began to spread and so was its influence on the architecture The Shinto Shrine was taken as an architecture reference Evas first appearance that extend beyond the walls to cover the

terraces. Heian period:

The Japanese modified the current foreign references and techniques to their own style and standards.

City grow larger so rowed columns were defined by the Zen concept that matches the building size and proportion.

First approach with Borrowed landscape that blend into the natural context.

Hidden roofs appeared and Evas extended more to solve rain issues. Kamakura and Muromachi periods:

The period started with a power transfer in the nation which led more simple functional structures related to military uses.

Monolithic gates and shrines were built to withstand nature forces. Some iconic building and rituals were apparent to represent the wealth

and power of the new leader Such as the Dry Garden and the tea house.

Conclusion

Azuchi-Momoyama period: The process of unification led to standardizing buildings . Castles were a great factor in this period so in relevance their architecture

flourished greatly. Edo period:

The city was in a good state after the civil war ended so residential projects took a major leap such as the town house.

Wood structure were replaced with stone walls after a fire that burnt the city. Decoration and details became less visible and facades became more simple.

Meiji, Taisho, and early Showa periods: Western influence in architecture began to show in buildings associated with

the military and trade. The adoption of many foreign principles differed hugely form tradition.

Late Showa period: After the world war ended japan went through huge major development

projects that were culturally relevant, that was when the concept regionalism appeared.

They got huge appraisal by the people as an approach to unit the nation. Early Heisei period:

With the collapse of the so-called "bubble economy“ privet sector became less demanding.

Architecture settled down to government and prefectural organizations. Transparent and light architecture highlighted to reflect the nations ideals.