Hasta La Ideas

Dezeen and MINI World Tour: in this movie Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto discusses his philosophy of designing structures that are “in between” opposing concepts such as nature and architecture, and says the approach could work just as well on a skyscraper as a small private house.

“Nature and architecture are fundamental themes [of my work],” says Fujimoto, speaking to Dezeen after giving his keynote speech at this year’s World Architecture Festival.

“I like to find something in between. Not only nature and architecture but also inside and outside. Every kind of definition has an in-between space. Especially if the definitions are two opposites, then the in-between space is more rich.”

Fujimoto gives his recently completed Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London as an example of his philosophy, in which he used a series of geometric lattices to create a cloud-like structure.

“In various meanings it is in between things,” he says of the project. “It’s made by a grid, but the shape is very soft and complex. The experience is half nature and half super-artificial.”

Fujimoto then goes on to discuss Final Wooden House in Japan, in which chunky timber beams form the walls, floors and roof of the house, as well as the furniture and stairs inside.

“It’s a beautiful integration of the architectural elements in various different levels,” says Fujimoto. “The wooden blocks could be the floor or the furniture or the walls, so in that house every definition is melding together.”

Finally, Fujimoto discusses House NA in Tokyo, which consists of several staggered platforms and hardly has any walls.

“It is not like a house but more like a soft territory, something beyond a house,” he says. “The client is a young couple and they are really enjoying their life in that house.”

Fujimoto believes his approach can be scaled up to larger projects

“The concept of creating something in-between is not only for the smaller scale,” he says. “I think it could be developed more, for example [up to] skyscraper scale.”

“The high-rise building and landscaping are opposite, but maybe it could be a nice challenge to find something between skyscrapers and landscaping. I like to expand my way of thinking to explore pioneering or hidden places in the architectural field.”

We drove around Singapore in our MINI Cooper S Paceman. The music in the movie is a track called Itsu by Man Oeuvre.

You can listen to more music by Man Oeuvre on Dezeen Music Project and watch more of our Dezeen and MINI World Tour movies here.

The post “Every kind of architectural definition
has an in-between space” – Sou Fujimoto appeared first on Dezeen.