The word “architecture” is also used in computer and social science, and it means a design idea or framework as well. Similarly, the word “architecture” has the duality of being both an entity and an idea.

The history of architecture in the West is, on the one hand, a history of evolution as an object and development as a technology, but on the other hand, it is also a history of changes in the expression of ideas in each era. The latter type of historical expression is called “style.” Styles such as Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassical, and Modernist were movements that inherited the ideas of earlier periods while attempting to surpass them.

For example, the Roman style overrides the Greek aesthetic idea of an order comprising pillars and beams with the invention of the structural arch, and consequently, while it retains the aesthetic sense of the Greek style, it also advances spatial expression. Gothic, however, made a qualitatively significant change in spatial expression as it sought a vertical and bright space that differed from the Roman and Romanesque styles. The beginnings of Gothic can be traced to the origin of the concept of letting in light, which can be traced to the religious ideas of the Abbot Suger (1081–1151), who built Saint-Denis Cathedral.

The huge masonry structures of Western churches may have taken hundreds of years to build, and they sometimes comprise a mixture of different styles. St. Peter’s Basilica, a representative of Christian architecture, was conceived and built by many architects, starting with Bramante (1444–1514) during the Renaissance, followed by Michelangelo (1475–1564) in the Mannerist style, and Bernini (1598–1680) during the Baroque period. In addition, in the early modern period, many buildings were designed and built by several architects.

The early modern period saw an ideological movement that aimed to revive Roman classicism, and in the 19th century, neoclassical architecture graced the city. The Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile, which is now a symbol of Paris, is a “new” building that was completed in 1836.

In the 19th century, these styles were criticized by Adolf Loos (1870–1933) who declared that “ornamentation is a sin,” and in the 20th century, Le Corbusier (1887–1965), a pioneer of modern architecture, declared that “in our time, the Greek pantheon will be realized by machines.” Mies van der Rohe (1886–1969) also advocated minimalism with the phrase “less is more,” and argued for architecture to depart from traditional styles. They pursued beauty in function itself and in a new rationality, rather than beauty in a style that contained the ideas of the times. This was the origin of the modern concept of architecture, also known as the International Style. 。

However, after the mid 20th century, Robert Venturi (1925–2018) criticized modernism with the statement “less is bore,” and Charles Jencks (1939–2019) became the godfather of the “postmodern” era. For them, modernism, which was supposed to have denied and transcended style, became part of a style to be transcended. The history of architectural styles in the West can be seen as a kind of perpetual movement that continues to rise dialectically while criticizing the previous era.

The history of architectural styles in Japan, however, shows a somewhat different picture. The situation differs between religious architecture (that is, temples and shrines) and secular architecture. In the case of temples and shrines, the Asuka style of architecture, with its remnants of Chinese style, was the starting point for the development of technical styles, with the pursuit of deeper eaves and looser roof slopes. Such styles are exemplified by The Japanese style of the Heian period (794–1185), with its slender pillars, and the Daibutsu and Zen styles of the Kamakura period (1185–1333), which were formed by re-importing Chinese styles. These styles were not an expression of the contemporary ideology but were rather formed by technical demands, immediate and material choices, and taste. Here, style was not something to be overcome but rather something to be selected and improved. In the early modern period, the Shoin-zukuri and Sukiya-zukuri styles were established for secular architecture such as dwellings, but these styles were unique to Japan in that they adhered to established typified room forms, and they took a completely different path from the West. Notably, while Western architecture tends to originate from the creativity of an individual and is created using blueprints that show the overall concept, Japanese architecture is characterized by the accumulation of anonymous partial concepts, or “Shoumei (匠明)” in the early Edo era, which documents the relationship between the dimensions of parts and materials and has been handed down as a secret tradition to carpenters in subsequent generations.

The Japanese word for “architecture” did not exist until the mid-Meiji period. This is because Japan lacked the soil to accept the abstract way of thinking and the artistic perspective implied in the concept of architecture. In 1897, the term “Ken-Chiku” was adopted by the academic community as an official translation of “architecture” by Chuta Ito (1867–1954). The conceptual implications of “architecture” were finally imported through the synonymous repetition of the words “Ken” (建：build) and “Chiku” (築：construct).” Notably, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) still does not have a “architecture bureau,” but rather a “housing bureau” that is in charge of architectural administration.

Nevertheless, it cannot be said that the history of architecture in Japan was completely devoid of ideological considerations. In his 1960 book Katsura: Tradition and Creation in Japanese Architecture, Kenzo Tange (1913–2005) interpreted Japanese architecture by dividing it into two categories, “Ise” (伊勢) and “Katsura” (桂), and respectively characterizing them as “Jomon” (縄文) and “Yayoi” (弥生), which were ancient periods in Japan in which there was no literature. The Jomon represents the dynamic, passionate, and Dionysian style that celebrates life, while the Yayoi is the delicate, static, and Apollonian style that controls reason; representative examples of their opposing characteristics are the Ise Jingu Shrine and Katsura Rikyu. According to Tange, architecture has developed uniquely in Japan between the two lineages. However, it is unclear whether this perception really existed among the inhabitants of the ancient periods. The Katsura Rikyu was also “discovered” by a foreign modernist, Bruno Taut (1880–1938), after it had previously been unknown. This “discovery” represented the sudden introduction of traditional Japanese architecture into the context of modern architecture.

Japanese architecture quickly adapted to the context of modern architecture. This is because, given its wooden post-and-beam structure, its genes already contained four of Le Corbusier’s five elements of modern architecture: free plan, free façade, pilotis, horizontal windows, and roof gardens, with the exception of the roof garden. For traditional Japanese architecture, the transition to modern architecture was more a matter of technology than ideology. This affinity is probably one reason that modern and contemporary Japanese architects have been so active in the world.

Architecture is on the one hand an ideology and aesthetic sense, and on the other hand a technology. While there is a difference between styles originating from the ideas of individuals (architects) as seen in the West and from anonymous, collective intellectual styles as seen in Japan, style continues to be a spiritual reflection of the times in the sense that it is a form of beauty that is widely and universally accepted in its time.

（UKAI Tetsuya）

Related Classes

Environmental Design Course 環境デザインコース 建築空間設計論

References

• ワルター・グロピウス、丹下健三（1960）『桂 日本の建築における伝統と創造』造形社