Kengo Kuma

Kengo Kuma (1954-) is one of the most renowned contemporary Japanese architects. He is considered the great master of the current called "contextual architecture": his projects are always conceived in such a way as to blend harmoniously with the surrounding natural environment. Deeply linked to the Japanese artisan tradition, he has developed a design that contrasts with the omnipresence of concrete typical of contemporary Western projects: Kuma loves to use a great variety of materials for his projects, often suggested directly by the landscape context in which his buildings will be immersed. First of all, the wood, as in the GC Prostho Museum Research Center in Kasugai (2010), in the Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center in Tokyo (2012) or in the V&A Museum in Dundee (2018). On an even more monumental scale is the Japanese National Stadium, built in Tokyo for the Olympics scheduled for 2020. Alongside the activity in his studio Kengo Kuma Associates, founded in 1990, he also carries out an important educational activity through Chair of Architecture at the University of Tokyo. The occasions on which he tried his hand as a product designer are much rarer: in addition to a fruitful collaborations with Time&Style and Salvatori, his products are also available in the catalogues of brands such as Walter Knoll, Time&Style, Gan and Rotaliana.