Architectural Ethnography

The Japan Foundation announces the exhibition Architectural Ethnography at the Japan Pavilion curated by Momoyo Kaijima, with Laurent Stalder and Yu Iseki.

20th century modernization deeply transformed Japanese society. The country experienced an enormous rise in industrial productivity, bringing previously unknown levels of economic wealth and social wellbeing. At the same time, this transformation introduced increasing specialization and divisions in society, which found their most visible expression in architecture, urbanism, and territorial planning. In recent years, this evolution has been increasingly questioned by architects.

In this reappraisal, architectural drawings—the traditional tool to conceptualize, organize, and build space—have played a particular role. Besides being simply instructions for a coming building, they are also an ideal instrument to document, discuss, and evaluate architecture in a critical feedback-loop. As in ethnography, they allow usages, needs and aspirations to be investigated through the lens of the various actors—both human and non-human. Moreover, they form the basis on which a common approach in the design of individualized yet shared environments in today’s globalized society can be formulated.

The goal of the exhibition is therefore to propose “Architectural Ethnography” as a new methodology for engaging with our society. It does so by showcasing a collection of forty-two works from all over the world from the last 20 years, ranging from design specifications and spatial-activity charts, to maps of urban hybrids and large studies of rural farming and fishing villages following natural disasters, originating from university design studios, architectural offices, or artistic practices. They all reflect the search for a new approach in drawing—of, for, among, around—society, which we term “Architectural Ethnography.” On the first floor, various devices allow an in-depth engagement with the drawings on display and assist in deciphering them one by one, whereas the open space on the ground floor is organized with carts (yatai) and urban furniture as a place to draw, debate, rest, study, eat, or simply meet.

Catalog
Momoyo Kaijima, Laurent Stalder, and Yu Iseki, eds., Architectural Ethnography (Tokyo, Japan: TOTO Publishing, 2018), English, ISBN 978-4-88706-371-6.

Credits
Architectural Ethnography is a collaboration between the Chair of Architectural Behaviorology of Momoyo Kaijima and the Chair for the Theory of Architecture of Laurent Stalder at the Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich. Commissioner: The Japan Foundation. Curators: Momoyo Kaijima, with Laurent Stalder and Yu Iseki. Assistant curators: Simona Ferrari, Tamotsu Ito, Andreas Kalpakci. Landscape adviser: Christophe Girot. Graphic designer: neucitora. Exhibitors: Oswald Adande; Akihito Aoi, NPO Fukushima Housing and Community Design Network, Team Fukushima Atlas; ArchiAid Oshika Peninsula Supporting Seminar; ASSEMBLE with Marie Jacotey; Piotr Bujas, Łukasz Stanek, Alicja Gzowska, Aleksandra Kędziorek; BUREAU A, Burø; Emanuel Christ and Christoph Gantenbein / ETH Zurich; Marie Combette, Thomas Batzenschlager, Clémence Pybaro; Constructlab; Crimson Architectural Historians with Hugo Corbett; Drawing Architecture Studio; Niklas Fanelsa, Marius Helten, Björn Martenson, Leonard Wertgen; Adam Frampton, Jonathan D. Solomon, Clara Wong; Fernando García-Huidobro, Diego Torres, Nicolás Tugas; Gede Kresna; Florian Goldmann; GSA Unit 14 / University of Johannesburg; Hajime Ishikawa Laboratory / Keio University SFC; Ismael Sheikh Hassan / KU Leuven; Dirk E. Hebel, Melakeselam Moges, Zara Gray, with Something Fantastic; Interboro Partners; Andrew L. Jenner with John Braben; Éva Le Roi; MAP Office; Titus Matiyane; Yukio Miyashita; Joseph Myerscough with Sarah Mills / Leeds Beckett University; Rekiseikai (Team Asphalt), NAKATANI Seminar; Jan Rothuizen, Martijn van Tol, Dirk-Jan Visser, Aart Jan van der Linden; Rural Urban Framework and Sony Devabhaktuni / The University of Hong Kong; Junko Sanada; Dubravka Sekulić; Studio Tom Emerson / ETH Zurich; Do Ho Suh; Yukiko Suto; Juan Carlos Tello; tomito architecture; David Trottin, Jean-Christophe Masson, Franck Tallon; Urban Risk Lab / MIT, Hiraoka Lab / Miyagi University, MISTI Japan / MIT, Reischauer Institute / Harvard University; Lys Villalba; Who Builds Your Architecture?; YAMAGUCHI Akira. With the special support of: Ishibashi Foundation. With the support of: YKK AP Inc. Window Research Institute, Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich, Faculty of Art and Design at the University of Tsukuba, The Obayashi Foundation. In cooperation with: DAIKO ELECTRIC CO., LTD.