Architecture: Architectural Drawings - The Japanese Way | Archistas

Drawing: Building K - Ryuji Fujimura Architects
When I get asked who my personal architectural heroes are, I always answer: Japanese architects. Their mix of strong spatial planning together with compelling structural design is a thing I greatly admire. Plus the way that even with the tiniest budgets, they still have a place for intuition and poetry in their architecture. For me that stands for one thing: pieces of art. It's no secret that I long to travel to Japan one day, not only to visit that amazing country with a rich heritage but also (if it's able as most projects are private houses) to see the architecture with my own eyes. If one day I'd get the chance to even work in an architectural firm there, I wouldn't think twice.

Truth is though, that I discovered my hero's a little late, of course I got to know the big names like Sejima, Atelier Bow-Wow, Kengo Kuma & Sou Fujimoto in my 2nd year of university. But it wasn't until my last project that I picked up the book 'How To Make A Japanese House' by Cathelijne Nuijsink which completely blew me away and connected 'all the dots' that were already present in my own work. I take it as a big compliment when other architects see the link between those who I admire and what I've been doing in my 5 university years. But hey I'm getting a little carried away from the main subject here. Which is introducing you guys to their amazing drawings. To me they revealed a whole new level of making plans and sections: the ones that tell you a story just by looking at them, those that breathe life and are more about the people than just about the space. The main goal of an architectural drawing is having a project built properly, thus they're mainly practical, making them often quite boring to look at. Enter subtle poetry like these Japanese do and you get a piece of art.