Showing posts with label yamaguchi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yamaguchi. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 10, 2023

Arata Isozaki 1933 - 2022

Arata Isozaki 1933 - 2022

The famous Japanese architect Arata Isozaki passed away on December 28th, 2022.

Born in Oita, Kyushu, in 1933, he studied at Tokyo University.

Born in Oita, Kyushu, in 1933, he studied at Tokyo University and then worked under Kenzo Tange for a few years before opening his own office.

He won the RIBA Gold Medal in 1986 and the Pritzker Prize in 2019.

His earliest works seem heavily influenced by Brutalism and Metabolist styles, though his later works utilized many different styles. His works have been built all over Asia, Europe, and the USA.

He won the RIBA Gold Medal in 1986 and the Pritzker Prize in 2019.

He won the RIBA Gold Medal in 1986 and the Pritzker Prize in 2019.

Arata Isozaki 1933 - 2022.

I quite like his work and have seen many of his buildings here in Western Japan.

Born in Oita, Kyushu, in 1933, he studied at Tokyo University.

The top photo is the Kitakyushu City Museum of Art 1972-74. I have visited it several times and will do a post on it soon. The second photo is from his hometown of Oita and was the Oita Prefectural Library which opened in 1966. After closing down it was converted into an arts centre called Art Plaza. I have 2 posts on it, one of the exterior, and a second of the interiors. The Art Plaza contains a gallery of Isozakis architectural drawings and models, so is worth a visit.

Architecture.

The third photo is part of the Kitakyushu International Conference Centre in Kokura, Adjacent to it is an earlier work, the West Japan General Exhibition Centre, a massive building and the photo above shows the structure that holds the roof up. The fourth photo is from the Nagi Museum of Contemporary Art in rural Okayama. Very unusual in that each of the three main buildings were designed in collaboration with artists who created the works within, including Isozaki's own wife. The three buildings I posted earlier are called Sun, Earth, and Moon. The fifth photo is part of the curved roof of the Yamaguchi Centre for Arts & Media. 

Building.

The sixth photo is also from Yamaguchi and is part of the very rural Akiyoshidai International Arts Village. I will do a full post on it soon, and I will also do a full post on the Kitakyushu City Central Library, pictured above. The final photo is the JR station at the onsen resort of Yufuin, one of Isozaki's smaller projects.

Arata Isozaki 1933 - 2022.

Monday, August 9, 2021

Kubota Residence Gardens


Hagi in Yamaguchi is a former castle town that is home to a lot of historical and traditional architecture including several Preservation Districts.


In the merchant district, one of the houses open to the public is the former residence of  the  Kubota Family who were drapers and later sake brewers.


Their house, built in the mid Edo Period has two small gardens, a front one walled off grom the main street, and a courtyard one viewable from three sides.


Not as grand as the gardens of the Kikuya Residence which is directly on the other side of the street, but they are pleasant enough and you will usually have the place to yourself.


four posts on the Kikuya Residence and gardens....

Saturday, June 19, 2021

Chofuteien Garden

Chofuteien Garden

Chofu, a former castle town not far from Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi, was a base of the Mori Clan and though not so well known or visited is actually a delightful place for a visit.


Chofuteien is a large stroll-type garden that opened to the public in 1993. These photos are from a visit I made on November 27th, 2014, on my 24th day walking the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage. I had been here before in the late spring when everything was green, but the autumn colors were really spectacular.


It is on the site of the former manor of Nishi Yukinaga, the most senior of the Mori vassals.


In the middle of the 31,000 sq meter garden is a large pond, with koi, and a couple of bridges over it as well as stepping stones.


There is a small teahouse looking over the pond and a large summer house as well as a couple of white-walled storehoues, one of which hosts exhibitions.


The path heads up into the woods to a waterfall and heads back down to the storehouses through a bamboo grove and areas planted in a variety of seasonal flowers.


There are two more gardens in the old town, one a temple garden in a large Zen temple, and the other in the Mori Mansion. If readers requested it I could post on them soon.


Buy dokudami tea from Japan

Tuesday, October 6, 2020

A Walk Across Akiyoshidai


Akiyoshidai, a karst of about 100 square kilometers in central Yamaguchi Prefecture is the largest limestone plateau in Japan.


About 300 million years ago it was a coral reef under the ocean. With limestone being soluble in water karsts tend to have lots of underground water and therefore lots of caves and caverns. Underneath Akiyoshidai is Akiyoshido, the largest cavern in all of Japan.

The surface of the plateau has lots of sinkholes which makes for a very uneven landscape. There are also loads of rock pinnacle sticking up.

In the late autumn when I walked across it there was a lot of Japanese pampas grass growing. It is a very unusual landscape for Japan. It is semi artificial in that every year the dried grass covering the plateau is burned which tends to inhibit the growth of trees and stops the landscape reverting to forest.


Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Pagoda at Rurikoji


Classed as one of the Three Great Pagodas of Japan, and also a National Treasure, the Pagoda at Rurikoji Temple in Yamaguchi was built long before the temple.


Built in 1442, the 5-storey pagoda is 31.2 meters high and with rooves made of cypress bark. It was built by Ouchi Moriharu to memorialize his brother who died in the Kansai region while fighting against the Muromachi Bafuku.


The Ouchi were a major clan and held a lot of territory in western Chugoku until defeated by the Mori during the Warring States Period. Yanaguch was an oasis of "civilization" during the time of the Onin War that lay waste to kyoto.


Friday, January 3, 2020

Raked Gravel and Rock

Raked Gravel and Rock

Raked Gravel and Rock.

Considered quintessentially Japanese, gardens with raked gravel and rock are ubiquitous in Japan. Generally called "karesansui" they are often known in English as "Dry Gardens". Heavily associated with Zen, they are found not just in Zen temples but almost anywhere, secular or sacred.

Great gravel.

The first photo is from Kanyoji Temple in the mountains of Yamaguchi Prefecture. I believe it was designed by Mirei Shigemori, one of the great garden designers of the 20th Century. The second photo is from the Yuushien Gardens on Daikon Island in the Nakaumi Lagoon between Shimane and Tottori. An excellent garden well worth a visit.

Rock on.

This third one is within the entrance area to a hot spring resort in the Okuizumo area of Shimane.

There is no shortage of karesansui gardens in Kyoto, but this 4th photo shows one of the lesser known ones. It is in front of the main hall of Shogo-in, a monzeki temple, which means it was home to a member of the imperial family.

Dry Garden.

This last one is also not such a well known garden, bgut also one that is well worth a visit. It is in the grounds of the ruins of Tokushima Castle and was part of the palace there.

Rock garden.

Saturday, December 28, 2019

Empty-Handed Fudo MyoO


While on my recent trip to Yamaguchi searching out the autumn colors I came across another unusual Fudo Myo. This statue is at the base of the steps leading up to Ryuzoji, and as you can see he has absolutely nothing in either hand. His hands appear to be in a mudra, which are the hand positions that Buddhas and other Buddhist deities use, often to indicate the nature of the particular figure. Mudras are also used as a meditation technique.

As is often the case with things Japanese, there is no one set of meanings to anything. Some sources say Fudo has nine mudras associated with him, some say ten, and one says fourteen. As far as I can tell this mudra goes by the name of rin in Japanese, though an older pronunciation is ten. I believe it is known as a "power" mudra.


The other thing that was slightly unusual with this statue is that both his fangs are pointing downwards. Normally one is up and the other down, though I have seen quite a few as in this photo..

Friday, December 6, 2019

2019 Fall Colors Part 4 Ryosokuji Temple & Washibara Hachimangu


Next day we visited Ryosokuiji Temple, a small rural temple in an out of the way valley. However, it has grounds extensively planted with maple trees, and so is popular during the fall colors season.


Though it was overcast it did not disappoint, although in terms of architecture and statuary there was not much to see.


The small garden behind the temple and priests house looked intriguing but was hidden by a big fence.


heading back home we stopped in briefly at Tsuwano. Being the highest point on our trip the colors here were just about at peak. We went to Washibara hachimangu Shrine, famous for having the only genuine Yabusame grounds in Japan. Here ther was the classic mix of golden Gingko and red Maple...


Sunday, December 1, 2019

2019 Fall Colors Part 3 Chomonkyo Gorge & Ryuzoji Temple


For the second part of my search for the Fall colors this year we headed to Yamaguchi. First stop was Chomonkyo, a pretty gorge in the mountains, and a section of the Chugoku nature Trail.


It was a glorious day with not a cloud in the sky. At the entrance to the gorge some maples had been planted, but most of the mountainsides were mottled with browns and yellows.


Next we headed to Ryuzoji, a temple at the head of a small valley outside of Yamaguchi City. Here there was a mix of maple and Gingko, though it was not at peak season yet.


The temple is known for a particularly old and large Gingko tree. There is also a waterfall and many statues of Fudo Myo.


Sunday, December 23, 2018

Kaneko Misuzu


A mural of Kaneko Misuzu in her hometown of Senzaki, Nagato on the Japan Sea  coast of Yamaguchi. Born in 1903, she started writing poetry and nursery rhymes at age twenty. She was in an abusive marriage and her husband passed on an STD to her as well as forbidding her from writing. She committed suicide aged 26. Her work was rediscovered in 1972 and has since been traslated into numerous languages.

The mural is interesting as each tile is inscribed with a message from either a local resident or a visitor to Senzaki. Several other similar murals can be seen around the town and the idea has grown so that now a building has been opened as a modern art installation featuring such tiles along with lighting and projection.

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Tour Boats for Marine Alps


Tour boats in the harbor at Nagato on the north coast of Yamaguchi. The coastline of nearby Omi Island is full of cliffs, spires of rock, sea caves etc and is known as the Marine Alps. I first glimpsed the Marine Alps from a small yacht on a misty morning as we sailed by, but they re much more impressive close up. Wishing you all a great Solstice and holiday season and best wishes for the new year.