Architect Hiroshi Naito believes the devastation wrought by the Great East Japan Earthquake poses a fundamental question for his profession.
Architect Hiroshi Naito believes the devastation wrought by the Great East Japan Earthquake poses a fundamental question for his profession.
"We are now being asked which side we are on, the government or the residents," he said.
A profession often seen as only interested in the priorities of central planners must, he said, "build confidence among residents in order to act in disaster-stricken areas."
Immediately after the March 11 earthquake, Naito approached four other well-known architects -- Kengo Kuma, 57, Toyo Ito, 70, Kazuyo Sejima, 54, and Riken Yamamoto, 66 -- to form a group to help northeastern Japan.
The group took its name, KISYN no Kai, from the first letters of the family names of the members. When written down in kanji characters, it means "returning to the heart."
Six months into the cleanup and reconstruction, many of the group's members are answering Naito's question by focusing on quickly providing shelter for displaced people, rather than grand dreams for new cities.
"If we advocate a grand project now, people would say architects are unconcerned," Ito said. "We need to re-examine our architectural thought from zero."
Construction of a 33-square-meter "Home for Everyone" designed by Ito began at a temporary housing site in Sendai on Sept. 13, using wood provided by Kumamoto Prefecture. It represents a new departure for the architect. Responding to the opinions of residents in provisional housing, he has ditched the bold transparent designs for which he is known and adopted cozy wooden structures.
A wood-burning stove will be installed on the earth floor of the house.
"It will take many years to reconstruct the disaster areas, but my idea was to build a 'Home for Everyone,' which can be built easily and where disaster survivors can feel relaxed," Ito, who is also serving as an adviser for Kamaishi in Iwate Prefecture, said.
He said he believed the starting point of architecture was making a place for people to gather.
Fellow KYSYN no Kai members Yamamoto and Sejima are planning their own "Homes for Everyone," and are also engaging in the details of survivors' experience rather than grand planning. For instance, Yamamoto, who is advising the reconstruction effort in Iwate Prefecture, succeeded in getting the entrances of temporary houses built facing each other to encourage community development.
Sejima is helping plans in Higashi-Matsushima, Miyagi Prefecture.
Kuma's plans are perhaps the most idiosyncratic. He is planning to build a small structure called the "Rubble Museum" by encasing debris in plastic.
Kuma wants the museum, where works made of debris will be displayed, to provide a forum for exchange among visitors. He is also considering starting a traveling exhibition in the disaster areas.
Other noted architects who are active in the disaster areas include Shigeru Ban, 54, whose design for three-story provisional housing using cargo containers is under construction in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture.