Ota Ward Cultural Arts Information Paper "ART bee HIVE" vol.6 + bee!

Issued April 2021, 4

vol.6 Spring issue

The Ota Ward Cultural Arts Information Paper "ART bee HIVE" is a quarterly information paper that contains information on local culture and arts, newly published by the Ota Ward Cultural Promotion Association from the fall of 2019.
"BEE HIVE" means a beehive.
Together with the ward reporter "Mitsubachi Corps" gathered by open recruitment, we will collect artistic information and deliver it to everyone!
In "+ bee!", We will post information that could not be introduced on paper.

Feature article: Denenchofu, the city that Eiichi Shibusawa dreamed of + bee!

Art person: Architect Kengo Kuma + bee!

Since it has not been developed, you can freely realize your dreams.
"Mr. Takahisa Tsukiji, Curator of Ota Ward Folk Museum"

Denenchofu is synonymous with high-class residential areas in Japan, but it used to be a rural area called Uenumabe and Shimonumabe.It was from the dream of a man that such an area was reborn.The man's name is Eiichi Shibusawa.This time, we asked Mr. Takahisa Tsukiji, a curator of the Ota Ward Folk Museum, about the birth of Denenchofu.

What kind of place was Denenchofu in the past?

"In the Edo period, villages became the basic unit of society. The range of villages Uenumabe Village and Shimonumabe Village is the so-called Denenchofu range. Denenchofu 1-chome, 2-chome, and current radiation Shimonumabe is located in 3-chome, a residential area. As of the beginning of the Meiji era, the population was 882. The number of households was 164. By the way, wheat and miscellaneous grains were produced, and rice was produced in low places, but it seems that the proportion of paddy fields was small in this area, mainly for upland farming. "

Denenchofu before development Provided by: Tokyu Corporation

What changed those villages ...

"I'm Eiichi Shibusawa *, the father of Japanese capitalism. At the beginning of the Taisho era, I envisioned Japan's first garden city with a well-equipped living infrastructure and full of nature.
Since the Meiji Restoration, Japan will promote rapid industrialization under the policy of wealthy soldiers.Due to the Russo-Japanese War and World War I, factories prospered in the former city of Tokyo (approximately inside the Yamanote Line and around the Sumida River).Then, the number of people working there will increase steadily.Factories and houses are concentrated.Naturally, the sanitary environment deteriorates.It may be good to work, but it is hard to live. "

Shibusawa is a major figure in the financial and industrial world, but why did you get involved in urban development?

"Shibusawa has traveled abroad since the end of the Tokugawa shogunate. You might have seen a foreign city and felt the difference from Japan.
Shibusawa retired from active duty in 1916 (Taisho 5).It was the year before that I started to be involved in the development of garden cities, and the times overlap.Retiring from active duty means that you no longer have to be tied to the shackles of the business world or industry.It is said that it is just right to create an ideal non-profit city that does not prioritize only economic effects, or that retirement from active duty is one of the triggers. "

Why was Denenchofu chosen as the development site?

"In 1915 (Taisho 4), Yaemon Hata, who was the secretary of Yukio Ozaki, who served as the mayor of Tokyo and the Minister of Justice, visited Shibusawa with local volunteers and petitioned for development. It was before. Because of the petition, the switch was turned on in Shibusawa, which had been aware of the problem for a long time. I am keenly aware of the sexuality. Rural City Co., Ltd. was established in 1918 (Taisho 7). "

Denenchofu Station at the beginning of development Provided by: Tokyu Corporation

What was the development concept?

"It's a development as a residential area. It's a rural residential area. It's a rural area with little development, so you can freely realize your dreams.
First, the land is high.Don't get messy.And electricity, gas, and water are running.Good transportation.These points are the points when selling a house at that time. "

Hideo Shibusawa, the son of Eiichi Shibusawa, will be the key man in the actual development.

"Eiichi Shibusawa started the company, and the company itself was run by his son Hideo.
Eiichi pulls in various friends from the business world to set up a company, but all of them are already presidents somewhere, so they are not involved in the business full-time.So, in order to concentrate on garden city development, I added my son Hideo. "

Hideo visited Western countries before the actual development.

"I met St. Francis Wood, a rural city on the outskirts of San Francisco." Denenchofu "was modeled after this city. At the entrance of the city, as a gate or monument. There is a station building in the area, and the roads are arranged radially around the station. This is also conscious of Paris in France, and it is said that the station building acts as a triumphal gate. The rotary with is also from the beginning of development.
Western-style architecture was also built with the foreign cityscape in mind.However, even if the exterior is Western-style, when you go inside, it seems that there were many Japanese-Western styles, such as tatami mats, where the family in the back eats rice during the Western-style drawing room.There weren't many completely Western styles.That's not the case for Japanese lifestyles yet. "

How about the road width?

"The width of the main road is 13 meters. I don't think it's surprising now, but it's quite wide at that time. The roadside trees are also epoch-making. It seems that the trees are colored and the whole 3-chome looks like a ginkgo leaf. Also, the ratio of roads, green areas and parks is 18% of the residential land. This is quite high. Even in the center of Tokyo at that time, it is about 10 Because it is about%. "

Regarding water and sewage, it was advanced at that time that I was particularly conscious of sewerage.

"I think that's right. It wasn't long before Ota Ward itself was able to properly maintain the sewerage system. In the past, domestic wastewater was drained into the old waterway of Rokugo Aqueduct. The so-called sewerage network was created. It's later. I think it's the 40's. "

It's amazing that there were parks and tennis courts as part of urban development.

"Horai Park and Denen Tennis Club (later Denen Coliseum). Horai Park left the scenery that was originally a rural area in the form of a park. Such a miscellaneous forest was in the entire Denenchofu area, but urban development Then, although it is called a rural city, the original remnants of Musashino disappear. That is why the Denen Coliseum also reopened the place that was a baseball field as the main stadium of the Denen Tennis Club. . "

Top view of Tamagawadai residential area Provided by: Ota Ward Folk Museum

It's a city where dreams have come true.

"In 1923 (Taisho 12), the Great Kanto Earthquake struck and the city center was destroyed.The houses were crowded and the fire spread and caused great damage.Houses that are crowded with garbage are dangerous, so the ground is stable at high places, and the momentum to live in a spacious suburb has increased.That will be a tailwind, and Denenchofu will increase the number of residents at once.In the same year, "Chofu" station opened, and in 1926 (Taisho 15) it was renamed "Denenchofu" station, and Denenchofu was born in both name and reality. "

Profile

Ⓒ KAZNIKI

Curator of the Ota Ward Folk Museum.
At the museum, he is in charge of research, research, and exhibition projects related to historical materials in general, and is struggling every day to convey the history of the region to the local community. Appeared on NHK's popular program "Bura Tamori".

Reference document

Excerpt from "Aobuchi Memoir" by Eiichi Shibusawa

"Urban life lacks elements of nature. Moreover, the more the city expands, the more elements of nature are lacking in human life. As a result, not only morally adversely, but also physically. It also has an adverse effect on health, impairs activity, mental atrophy, and increases the number of patients with memory weakness.
Humans cannot live without nature. (Omitted) Therefore, "Garden City" has been developing in Britain and the United States for about 20 years.To put it simply, this garden city is a city that incorporates nature, and is a city with a rich rural taste that seems to be a compromise between rural areas and the city.
Even as I see Tokyo expanding at a tremendous pace, I would like to create something like a garden city in our country to make up for some of the flaws in urban life. ".

"Garden City Information Pamphlet" at the time of sale

• In our garden city, we will focus on the intellectual-class residential area that commute to a large factory called Tokyo City.As a result, we are aiming to build a stylish new residential area in the suburbs with a high degree of liveliness.
• Garden cities in Japan are limited to the construction of houses only, and as long as the countryside is covered, the area where the house is built must meet the following requirements.
  (XNUMX) Make the land dry and innocent the atmosphere.
  (XNUMX) The geology should be good and there should be many trees.
  ③ The area should be at least 10 tsubo (about 33 square meters).
  ④ Have transportation that should allow you to reach the city center within an hour.
  ⑤ Complete the telegraph, telephone, lamp, gas, water, etc.
  ⑥ There are facilities such as hospitals, schools, and clubs.
  ⑦ Have social facilities such as a consumer union.

Hideo Shibusawa's basic plan

• Symbolic station building
• Concentric circle radiation plan
• Road width (trunk road 13m, minimum 4m)
• Roadside tree
• 18% of roads, green spaces, and parks
• Installation of water and sewage

"Garden City Information Pamphlet" at the time of sale

• ① Do not build buildings that may bother others.
• (XNUMX) If a barrier is to be provided, it should be elegant and elegant.
• ③ The building shall be on the XNUMXrd floor or lower.
• ④ The building site shall be within XNUMX% of the residential land.
• ⑤ The distance between the building line and the road shall be 1/2 of the road width.
• ⑥ The public expense of the house shall be 120 yen or more per tsubo.
• ⑦ Stores will be concentrated near the station separately from the residential area.
• ⑧ Establishment of parks, amusement parks and clubs.

* Eiichi Shibusawa:

Provided by Eiichi Shibusawa: Reprinted from the National Diet Library website

Born in 1840 (Tenpo 11) to the current farmhouse in Chiaraijima, Fukaya City, Saitama Prefecture.After that, he became a vassal of the Hitotsubashi family and went to Europe as a member of the mission to the Paris Expo.After returning to Japan, he was asked to serve the Meiji government. In 1873 (Meiji 6), he resigned from the government and turned to the business world.Participated in the establishment and management of more than 500 companies and economic organizations such as Daiichi National Bank, Tokyo Stock Exchange, and Tokyo Gas, and is involved in more than 600 social projects. Advocate "moral economic unification theory".The main work "Theory and Arithmetic".

Architecture pays homage to nature
"Architect Kengo Kuma"

Kengo Kuma, an architect who is involved in the design of numerous architectures at home and abroad, such as the National Stadium, JR Takanawa Gateway Station, Dallas Rolex Tower in the United States, Victoria & Albert Museum Dundee Annex in Scotland, and Odung Pazar Museum of Modern Art in Turkey.The newly designed architecture by Mr. Kuma is "Denenchofu Seseragikan" which opened in Denenchofu Seseragi Park.

A panoramic view of Denenchofu Seseragikan, which is entirely covered with glass and has a feeling of openness ⓒKAZNIKI

I think the act of walking itself has a rich meaning.

I heard that Mr. Kuma attended a kindergarten / elementary school in Denenchofu.Do you have any memories of this place?

"I went to Denenchofu for a total of nine years at kindergarten and elementary school. At that time, I was not only in the school building, but also running around various towns, parks, riversides, etc. Actually, the excursion is best around the Tama River. There were many. My childhood memories are concentrated in this area. Not only the Tamagawaen amusement park that was on the site of the current Seseragi Park, but also the Tamagawadai Park and the Catholic Denenchofu Church that still exist. I feel like I was growing up with the Tama River, rather than going around this area. "

How was the project at the place of memories?

"I thought this project itself was very interesting. I think of the park and architecture as one. It's not just architecture that is a library / meeting facility ... The idea that it is a park that has the functions of a library / meeting facility. Until now. In public architecture, the architecture itself has a function, but Mr. Ota Ward's idea was that the park had a function. The idea of ​​becoming a model of public architecture in the future and the way the city should be. That's right. Mr. Ota-ku has a very advanced idea, so I definitely wanted to participate. "

The creation of a new building, the Seseragikan, will change the meaning and function of the place and area.

"The Seseragikan is integrated with the cliff along the river called the brush (cliff line) in front of this. There is a passage under the brush, and there is a space where you can walk around. This time, the" Seseragikan "is I think that the flow of people in the park and this area will change as a result of this, and the act of walking itself will have a richer meaning than before. "

With the establishment of the Seseragikan, it would be great if more people would just want to enter.

"I think it will definitely increase. I feel that the act of walking and the act of enjoying the facility will be activated as one. In that way, the conventional public building and the way the area should be are a little different. I feel that a new model like that, in which public buildings themselves change the flow of people in the area, is likely to be born here. "

Feeling healed like sitting on the sofa in the living room

Denenchofu Seseragikan (Interior) ⓒKAZNIKI

Please tell us about the theme and concept you proposed for this architecture.
First of all, please tell us about the "veranda of the forest".

"The porch is just halfway between the forest and the architecture. I think the Japanese once knew that the intermediate area was the richest and most enjoyable. In the 20th century, the porch space disappeared steadily. The house has become a closed box. The relationship between the house and the garden has disappeared. That makes me very lonely and I think it is a huge loss to Japanese culture. "

Is it the fun of taking advantage of the inside and outside?

"That's right. Fortunately, I grew up in a house with a porch, so reading a book on the porch, playing games on the porch, building blocks on the porch, etc. I think that if we could regain the porch once again, the image of Japanese cities would change a lot. This time, I tried to present my own awareness of the problem with the history of architecture. "

The porch is a place that is connected to nature, so it would be great if we could hold seasonal events.

"I hope that something like that will come out. I hope that the people who use it will come up with more and more plans than the designers and the government think."

Kengo Kuma at "Seseragi Bunko" on the 1st floor rest space ⓒ KAZNIKI

Please tell us about "a collection of strip roofs that blend into the forest".

"This building is by no means a small building, and it has a lot of volume. If you express it as it is, it will be too big and the balance with the forest will be bad. Therefore, the roof is divided into several pieces and strips are lined up. I thought about a shape like this. I think it feels like it melts into the surrounding landscape.
In the murmuring hallEaves(eaves）The eaves are bowing towards the forest.Architecture pays homage to nature (laughs). "

The strip roof creates a kind of height in the interior space.

"In the interior space, the ceiling is high or low, or at the entrance, it seems that the interior space is being eroded to the outside. Such a variety of places are created. That is one elongated space as a whole. Inside, you can actually experience various types of space. I think it's quite different from the conventional simple box-shaped architecture. "

Please tell us about "living room in a city full of warmth of wood".You say that you are particular about wood.

"This time, I'm using vintage wood among the wood. I want all the users to use it like their own living room. I don't think there are so many splendid living rooms with such rich greenery ( (Laughs). However, I wanted to keep the relaxing feeling of the living room. It's like a living room where you can feel the slope of the roof as it is, not in the so-called box-shaped public building. I hope I can read a book slowly in a nice place, talk with my friends, come here when I'm a little tired, and feel healed like sitting on the sofa in the living room.
For that purpose, a little old and calm old material is good.Decades ago, when I was a kid, a new house was built in Denenchofu.I went to visit various friends' houses, but after all the houses that were older than the new ones and the ones that had passed the time were very attractive. "

I hope you can feel Denenchofu as a village.

I think your teacher's architecture has a theme of coexistence with nature, but is there a difference between architecture in rural nature and nature in urban areas such as Denenchofu?

"Actually, I'm starting to think that cities and the countryside aren't that different. In the past, it was thought that big cities were the opposite of the countryside. Denenchofu is a famous residential area in Japan. However, in a sense, I think it's a great countryside. The fun of Tokyo is that it's like a collection of villages with various personalities. The original origin of the city of Edo is a very complicated terrain. It has a complex fold terrain that you rarely see in the world's largest cities, and there is a completely different culture at the ridges and valleys of that fold. If you move one road or ridge, a different culture is right next to you. I think that such diversity is the charm of Tokyo. There are various atmospheres in this rural area, such as a city or a village. At the Seseragikan, you can enjoy the rural area as a village. I hope you can feel it. "

Profile

Ⓒ KAZNIKI

Born in 1954.Completed the Department of Architecture, University of Tokyo. 1990 Established Kengo Kuma & Associates Architects and Urban Design Office.After working as a professor at the University of Tokyo, he is currently a special professor and emeritus professor at the University of Tokyo.
After being shocked by Kenzo Tange's Yoyogi Indoor Stadium, which he saw at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, he aimed to become an architect from an early age.At university, he studied under Hiroshi Hara and Yoshichika Uchida, and when he was a graduate student, he crossed the Sahara Desert in Africa, surveyed villages, and aimed at the beauty and power of villages.After working as a visiting researcher at Columbia University, he established Kengo Kuma & Associates in 1990.He has designed architecture in more than 20 countries (Architectural Institute of Japan Award, International Wood Architecture Award from Finland, International Stone Architecture Award from Italy, etc.) and has received various awards at home and abroad.Aiming for architecture that blends in with the local environment and culture, we are proposing a human-scale, gentle and soft design.In addition, through the search for new materials to replace concrete and iron, we are pursuing the ideal form of architecture after an industrialized society.

Contact

Public Relations and Public Hearing Section, Culture and Arts Promotion Division, Ota Ward Cultural Promotion Association