ABSTRACT
A subconscious reminiscence of the forest that once covered Japan seems to still be a defining part of the collective memory of the nation. Takei-Nabeshima Architects (TNA) have contributed to this perceptible shift, for example, with their design of a tower-like residence they have called the Ring House, on the exclusive enceinte of Owner's Hill 185 miles north-west of Tokyo. Young architects Hiroshi Nakamura and Takaharu and Yui Tezuka have each taken a different approach, seeking to integrate with, rather than blend into the terrain by building around it. In addition to the inter-relationship between architecture with the city, Sou Fujimoto also started investigating its connection with furniture very early in his career. Instead of saving trees in his design for the Kanagawa Institute of Technology or KAIT, Junya Ishigami has designed a forest of 305 steel surrogates of his own.
