| | Japanese Architecture as a Collaborative Process: Opportunities in a flexible construction culture by Dana Buntrock.
Dana Buntrock, assistant professor
at the University of California, Berkeley, sets her book
apart from others by approaching the subject of Japanese
architecture from an American perspective that focuses on
the process rather than the product. She gives a brief historical
overview of Japanese building and construction, illustrating
the changes and consistency since the country's evolving
westernization since the late 19th century, while also comparing
and contrasting education in Japan and the United States.
The majority of the book looks at architectural practice
today, the most fascinating parts devoted to case studies
on buildings like Toyo Ito's Mediatheque in Sendai,
where we see more immediately the effects of the process
- the resolution of a crisis without blame or finger-pointing
is a good example of the differences in collaboration between
here and there. Ultimately the author sees the increasing
westernization of Japanese construction as a crisis in its
own right, but in a way where the high level of craft can
be retained if countries like the United States learn from
Japan and its methods. As more Japanese architects build
overseas and foreign architects attempt to penetrate Japan's
shell, mutations will form that will hopefully use the best
that all parties have to offer.
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