Masaharu Takasaki

"I have been exploring architecture as a social art since 1982. By creating a happy merging of people and things, I see my challenge in trying to combine materials and ideas through an inner dynamic force... I would like to integrate simplicity, nature, humanity, and divinity in shaping architecture and designing space... I also believe that architecture should restore our relationship with the spiritual and give it a new direction."

The main office of Takasaki architects is located in Tokyo, but it also has a branch on Kyushu in the city of Kagoshima, around which most of Takasaki's realizations are located. The office bears the name “monobito architecture” (mono = object, thing; bito = subject, person), and as suggested by the introductory quote, mixing these two elements is a fundamental starting point for his work.
Takasaki belongs to a generation of Japanese architects who began their architectural practice in the 1980s, during the so-called “bubble economy,” which allowed him to realize unique architectural structures. His work is not only unparalleled in such a broadly diverse field as Japanese architecture but also in contemporary world architecture.
Takasaki’s highly imaginative fantastical creations seem to originate not only beyond our earthly sphere but also beyond the confines of our space and time. At first glance, they do not show a connection to Japanese urban culture and architectural tradition. Their source seems to lie more in cosmic space. They capture the birth and evolution of the universe, referencing cosmic principles and dimensions. Fragmentary, chaotic, archetypal forms appear to be created during a shamanic ritual; they are a mixture of sacred geometry and the action of natural forces, characterized by words such as mysterious, mythical, extraterrestrial, or archaic. His buildings exude magical energy, as if they were gateways to other dimensions, their presence distorting time and bending space. The structures are like receivers tuned for communication with cosmic intelligence and serve to reveal the principles of the universe's functioning. For his architecture, Takasaki uses the term “Earthian Architecture” and describes it as an “environmental being” that connects humanity with the cosmos.