Future Talks 07 : Tomohiro Hata

ZZ: Thank you for showing us around your studio and even taking the time to complete our interview online. To start, could you briefly introduce your studio and describe the main principles and values of your work?

TH: There is a culture in Japan that has created tea rooms and I was curious as to why they were created. When you visit a lot of tearooms, you will feel that it is a very dark and small space. But after about 20 minutes, your whole body becomes like a sensory organ, and you can feel the clouds passing across the sun, or the faint shades of light from the breeze. At that time, I realized that architecture is not about creating physical size and contours, but that even the smallest architecture can connect to the universe. In other words, there is a very profound relationship in Japanese history to connect with the invisible: it is important to connect with "essence"- Tashikarashii, which is not something that changes in 50 or 100 years or something that is visible to the eye. Let me tell you a story by psychologist Hayao Kawai. An old man in a village woke up every morning and always saw a large tree from his window in a certain direction. One night, however, the tree fell down due to lightning. After that, when he woke up every morning and the tree was gone, his head began to go blank. What we can learn from this story is that human beings are not absolute beings, but relative beings who live in connection with the environment that surrounds us. Architecture has an important role to play in separating and relating the outer and inner worlds. I am trying to think of an architecture that is like an interface to connect to essence with more magnificence and depth of time. It is not just one that can be changed quickly.

HK: 'Tashikarashii' seems to be a Japanese notion a bit. Could you please explain more about this for people from abroad to understand?

TH: Very simply, it is more topography like landscapes that haven't changed in a thousand years rather than just terrain. For example, if we are in this office right now and feel like we are in the part of that box, we are not well connected to the essence as human beings. Our richness and comfort are not to be found in an air-conditioned space, we should live in an environment connected to essence in long term relation which is stable and unchanging for a thousand years. I perceive architecture as something that can connect us to the essence and universe, even in small spaces. I guess that the sense of human connection to the universe even in a Yojo-han (4.5 tatami mats = 7.29 square meters) room is uniquely Japanese.
Before we proceed with this interview, I will share my base view of nature. There are some questions about SDGs, ecology and so on, but I am skeptical about those concepts because they represent the ideal global environment for modernists. It is based on the premise of a society that keeps on building and growing. The Japanese view is a little different and has always placed importance on how one is connected to the essence of the universe and the earth. We should not create an independent society just for humans. An environment that is continuous and connected to other ecosystems is more essential. In the Earth's timeline, which has been created over a tremendously long period of time, it is extremely unnatural to break the balance, continuity, and relationships by a momentary human activity. For example, people often say that we should not emit greenhouse gases, but that argument is unnatural in the first place. I believe that a human way of life more connected to essence will solve the environmental issues in the end.

ZZ: I see, the "essence"- Tashikarashii is a core to your thinking about architecture. How do you perceive the role of an architect in current and future society?

TH: For me, the role of an architect is to connect people to the world, to create the relation between humans and universal nature. For example, in Japan, there are many water basins that reflect the moon on the same day every year, or buildings built to look at the moon. They had the function of connecting people to the unchanging truth that the moon appears in the same direction at the same time on the same day every year. It was a way of establishing a stable and reliable relationship through architecture.

ZZ: If you think about architecture this way, you think about the context of the past, but do you also think in the context of what will happen in a hundred years or more?

TH: Exactly. The role of architecture in the future is how to connect to this believable, certain, essential relationship with the historical context of the past. It is the way to connect the future into this meaningful continuum coming from our past.

ZZ: I understand how this can work, as human nature is very much the same and human basic needs and activities do not change much as well, but on the other hand our environment keeps changing so fast through human activities and technologies. Do you find this consistency or continuity even in urban environments or cityscapes?

TH: Not only the urban environment is changing, there have been many changes throughout history. The most important thing is to identify what should change and what should not, to be able to maintain balance between changeable and unchangeable tashikarashi elements. The role of an architect is to create an interface between humans and the universe.

ZZ: I am asking this because in Japanese scrap-and-build culture it seems not so common to think about aging of architecture in general production. When designing, do you think about when your buildings are going to be destroyed, rebuilt, repaired, or what is going to happen to them?

TH: As a Japanese person, I have to take that question very seriously; I'm shocked that you see our culture this way. In the past, Japanese architecture was built to last a long time by replacing damaged components. In the opposite way to Europe, where buildings have been built with stone for a long and strong life, Japanese buildings have been built with wood and paper as replacing these softer materials was easier in case of disaster. From now on, one of the solutions to the scrap-and-build problem could be to make good use of the strength of materials such as concrete and steel as in Europe, while at the same time combining them with traditional soft materials such as wood and paper that are interchangeable according to Japanese culture, we can think about that kind of hybrid approach. When I design architecture, I consider whether and how we can create architecture with a long lifespan, and how we can promote this to society. Architects must take the lead in changing that culture.

ZZ: How do you perceive the importance of an architect's influence on the lives of ordinary citizens? And where does it lead you in your work?

TH: Architecture is the mediator between society and people. Therefore, architecture can be said to mirror each time period. It positively influences not only those in the architectural profession, but also ordinary people, and this could be one of the roles of architecture.

ZZ: Which social aspects do you find most important for architects to think about?

TH: Environmental issues have picked up a lot of attention in the field of architecture, and architects have a lot of responsibility for this. But as I said earlier, architecture is in charge of the relationship between people and society, and recently this balance has been lost in many ways. One of these is the environmental issue. Similarly, the collapse of the balance in the social structure may also generate social issues such as the declining birth rate. I do not think that architecture can solve all social issues. However, I believe that architects can find one of the solutions to social problems by designing architecture as a mediator of social structure construction.

ZZ: How does climate change influence your work?

TH: I worry that only humans live in enclosed spaces, like in a hospital. In my office we are trying to build new relationships between humans and non-human ecosystems. We are trying not to fulfil only human demand in architecture, as it depends so much on technology and energy, controlling various aspects and qualities of our environment, like air quality, lighting, temperature, or humidity, independently from the outside world, which we think is not a natural situation and can lead to environmental imbalance. So, I try to make a new relation with nature, but not through a return to the past, but through new inventions.

ZZ: Which elements of this relationship with nature do you find most important from your perspective?

TH: For example, a Japanese garden has the meaning that half is natural and the other is made by a human hand. It is not only about planting a nice tree, but also about all other non-human entities which are present in the garden and follow their life cycles. For me this cycle is related to a sustainable image. I would like to create such a natural cycle in architecture, as independent interior space is not so interesting to me. How to have a relationship with the natural cycle is important to me and I would like to connect architecture to a natural cycle.

ZZ: I understand our lives in the city are very much detached from these natural cycles and actually even destroying natural lifecycles of other living beings.
How do you perceive the influence of the SDGs (Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, UN 2015) on Japanese architecture and how do you reflect them in your work?

TH: SDGs are very trendy in Japan now, but from my point of view, SDGs are focused only on humans' well-being based on a human extractivist attitude toward nature. The SDGs have created an unnatural situation in the world. Instead of a small vision of solving environmental aspects in consumption terms, it should be a bigger vision of humans building a natural relationship with other ecosystems. I believe that not creating unnatural situations and environments will ultimately bring us closer to the goal of the SDGs. I feel that the current SDGs are only about the continued economic growth of human beings.

ZZ: What is the influence of SDGs on architecture in Japan? Because we do not see so many SDG campaigns in Europe, as we do here...

TH: We spoke about the scrap-and-build culture in the Japanese building industry, so it is a bit difficult for me to answer that. But in Japan we have a beautiful philosophy that human beings are part of nature, not independent. We can see God in nature such as in a huge rock, tree, cloud, or everything. The view of nature - shizenkan, is really important for Japanese people, so we should think about how to make a natural relationship with other non-human entities through architecture. We as Japanese architects could inspire the rest of the world with practical implementation of the philosophy that humans are a part of nature.

ZZ: In the eyes of Europeans, Japanese architecture has a very close relationship with nature. Where, in your opinion, do these roots lie?

TH: I would guess that these roots come from faith. Japan has been subjected to earthquakes, typhoons, tsunamis, and various other disasters as its civilization developed in the midst of harsh natural conditions. The Japanese believed that these events are part of the cycles of nature and they saw God within them. So, in our view, nature was not something to be consumed, but nature was considered an object to be feared and treated with respect. The history of nature as an object of faith probably has its roots in this.

ZZ: Do you see the Japanese public debate on the sustainability and adaptability of cities as sufficient and fruitful? Could you already see any outcome of these debates?

TH: I see a lot of debates. They are fruitful, but I would say it is still developing and it will need more time. These debates used to be held mostly among architects, but recently I can see that even the public is getting to be more informed. I am seeing the change in my practice. A few years ago, if I proposed a sustainable idea to a client, they would immediately reject it because of the cost. But nowadays, I am happy to be able to discuss it with my clients. I am also trying to figure out how to communicate this to the world with its Japanese roots.

ZZ: What are the possibilities and limits of Japanese architects in creating ecological/sustainable architecture?

TH: For example, I sometimes discuss fundamental solutions for changing energy systems with my clients. However, I feel that within the capitalist economic system that still surrounds us, it is possible to solve superficial problems, but it is difficult to solve fundamental, essential problems. There are still many issues that need to be resolved...

ZZ: How do you perceive the problems of urban heat island (UHI) in Japanese cities? How do you see the use of nature-based solutions (NBS) in this context and how do you use them in your work?

TH: Roof greening, wall greening, and incorporating gardens and water into designs are some of the ways to solve the UHI problem. However, as I mentioned earlier, the fundamental solution is for humans to build more natural relationships with other ecosystems. If we can solve that, we can solve environmental and urban problems such as UHI at the same time. I believe that architects could be leaders showing by examples how to solve UHI, starting with small initiative projects in villages at the beginning and if it proves to be efficient, then such solutions could be applied in big cities.

ZZ: How do you perceive the role of public space in contemporary Japanese cities? How do you include it into your design process?

TH: There seems to be a lot of public space in Japanese cities, but not as much space which could be used freely for human encounters as one might think. People living in cities are individualistic, and although public spaces are supposed to create community, there are few opportunities for people to meet because of the strict rules of the public places. For public space, it is important that these human encounters could be as natural as possible, rather than rule-based.
When I was working on public space design, I placed importance on creating an environment where people could naturally meet each other. I discussed with my staff at the office that we should design public spaces to be more like open fields or outdoor theatres rather than facilities. The ideal space would be one where everyone could be in the same space but still be allowed to do different things.

ZZ: Do you use methods of participation/communication with the public or the local community in your work and how do you perceive this method in the context of Japanese society?

TH: If we work on a public project, usually by participating in a competition, first we hold workshops and listen to the opinions of the local community. We don't incorporate them directly, but rather we use them as some kind of advice for our competition proposals and we proceed with them in a professional manner.
Communication with the public is difficult in Japanese society, but interesting. But actually, not so difficult, because the architects do not have to aggregate all the different opinions. At the beginning there are so many different opinions and the debates are usually quite messy, but it is fruitful, as the participants can gradually become more open to other opinions and find compromises.

ZZ: What would you recommend to the upcoming generation of architects - students of architecture? What topics should they focus their attention on?

TH: It is important to show a unique and own original point of view. It doesn't matter if you are brilliant or not, what I often tell students is that they should consider their own original ideas, not to follow and copy the trends.

ZZ: Thank you very much for sharing your unique viewpoint.