Full View of The First National Bank by Kaiumbashi Bridge in Tokyo and the View of Its Neighborhood, Utagawa Yoshitora, 1876, Collection of the Tokyo Metropolitan Edo-Tokyo Museum (2nd term)
WESTERN-STYLE ARCHITECTURE IN JAPAN is the latest exhibition to be held at the recently renovated Edo-Tokyo Museum in Ryogoku, Tokyo. It outlines the history of Western influence in the early decades following the Meiji Restoration of 1868, during which Japan was rapidly modernizing. The exhibition will run through the summer until August 23.
Western architecture provided an immediate and prominent showcase of Meiji-era modernization. Settlements for foreign nationals were set aside, which included one in the Tsukiji district of Tokyo.
A building was quickly constructed that became known as the Tsukiji Hotel, a lodging and trading facility built for the resident foreigners. It rapidly became a Tokyo landmark.
1896, Collection of the Tokyo Metropolitan Edo-Tokyo Museum (1st term)
The Tsukiji Hotel project was a collaboration between American architectural engineer Richard Perkins Bridgens and Japanese master carpenter Kisuke Shimizu II. The building combined traditional Japanese architecture with Western design aesthetics. This gave rise to an architectural style known as giyofu-kenchiku, or pseudo-Western architecture.
Shimizu repeated this style in the design and construction of the First National Bank in 1872, and the Suragacho Mitsui-gumi Building in 1874. His work was highly influential on Japanese architects outside of Tokyo.
The buildings that followed became dominant symbols of the bunmei-kaika (civilization and enlightenment) Westernization movement sweeping through the nation. Regrettably, the Tsukiji Hotel survived only four years before it burnt down.
The Quest for Authenticity
The Japanese government, however, had hoped for authentic Western architecture, rather than the development of a hybrid style. Accordingly, it decided to hire some Western architects and bring them to Japan. They included Charles Alfred Chastel de Boinville of France, Giovanni Vincenzo Cappelletti from Italy, and Josiah Conder from the United Kingdom.
Conder arrived in Tokyo in 1877. In addition to designing over one hundred buildings, he served as an instructor in the Imperial College of Engineering's Department of Architecture.
His first graduating class of 1879 produced Japan's first fully qualified architects. They went on to design many significant buildings, including the Bank of Japan Head Office (1896), Tokyo Station (1914), and the Keio University Old Library (1912).
of the Railway Museum.
A Building for the People
In addition to government buildings, the Western architects created mansions for the royal family, members of the aristocracy, and captains of industry. For the average citizen, however, these structures were mere landmarks. They were far removed from the existence of the average Japanese citizen. Most could only hope to view them at a distance.
Public buildings such as Tokyo Station, therefore, have additional significance in having brought Western architecture to the public in general. It is no surprise that Tokyo Station survived a demolition proposal in the 1980s and is now hailed as a major tourist attraction and photo location. It is impossible to imagine Tokyo without it.
Analog Perfection
The exhibition also includes some stunning examples of draftsmanship and custom-made furniture from historic buildings, including the Akasaka State Guest House. Architecture has been deeply impacted by digitalization and mass production. Accordingly, these hand-drawn illustrations and handmade furniture are telling reminders of the analog era.
Palace Photograph Album), 1909, Ogawa Kazumasa, Collection of the Tokyo
Metropolitan Edo-Tokyo Museum.
The profession of architecture is very international. Successful architects are routinely commissioned to work abroad. As a nation with a strong aesthetic sense, Japanese architects such as Tadao Ando, Kengo Kuma and Sou Fujimoto are prominent and influential internationally, as well as within their homeland.
The narrative that WESTERN-STYLE ARCHITECTURE IN JAPAN tells, therefore, has gone full circle. In the nascent years of the Meiji era, Western architects were imported into Japan to kick-start the modernization of architecture. Today, Japanese architects leave a similarly influential mark around the world.
RELATED:
Edo Lives Again in a Museum Reborn
Author: Paul de Vries
