The Constructed Other: Japanese Architecture in the Western Mind Japanese Architecture in the Western Mind

The Constructed Other argues that the assumed otherness of Japanese architecture has made it both a testbed for Western architectural theories and a source of inspiration for Western designers. The book traces three recurring themes in Western accounts of Japanese architecture from the reopening of Japan in the mid-nineteenth century to the present day: a wish to see Western architectural theories reflected in Japanese buildings; efforts to integrate elements of Japanese architecture into Western buildings; and a desire to connect contemporary Japanese architecture with Japanese tradition. It is suggested that, together, these narratives have had the effect of creating what amounts to a mythical version of Japanese architecture, often at odds with historical fact, but which has exercised a powerful influence on the development of building design internationally.

Foreword by Kengo KumaPrefaceA built chimera 1. Three types of otherness 2. The self in the other 3. The other in the self 4. The other in the other 5. The lens of myth Image credits Bibliography Index

Kevin Nute teaches the history and theory of architecture at the University of Hawai’i, Mānoa, and is also an emeritus professor of architecture at the University of Oregon. He received his architectural training at the University of Nottingham before working in practice in London, Hong Kong and Singapore and earning his PhD at Cambridge. Professor Nute spent his early career in Japan, first as a visiting research scholar at the University of Tokyo and later as an associate professor of architecture at Muroran Institute of Technology. His other books include Frank Lloyd Wright and Japan (2000), Place, Time and Being in Japanese Architecture (2004), Naturally Animated Architecture (2018), and This Here Now: Japanese Building and the Architecture of the Individual (2020).