Alternative Guide to Japan

The exhibition "Built Environment: An Alternative Guide to Japan" offers a unique perspective on Japan through innovative buildings, civil engineering projects, and landscaping.

Organized by the Japan Foundation and presented in collaboration with the Consulate General of Japan in Montreal, this travelling exhibition explores the resilience of Japanese infrastructure and architecture in the face of natural disasters and climate change.

The curators of the exhibition are Shunsuke Kurakata (associate professor at Osaka City University), Satoshi Hachima (professor at Chiba Institute of Technology) and Kenjiro Hosaka (curator at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo).

A selection of 80 projects from all 47 prefectures of Japan, including works by renowned architects.

Japan is a geographically diverse country: a long archipelago stretching from north to south, most of whose regions experience four distinct seasons. In return for these advantages, the country is frequently struck by natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and typhoons. Throughout Japan, remarkable buildings and structures bear witness to a great capacity to adapt to a sometimes extreme natural environment. 

Featuring photographs, texts, and videos, the exhibition presents 80 projects from all 47 prefectures of Japan. Chronologically, the exhibition spans from the late 19th century to the present day. Its aim is to examine how the Japanese built environment interacts with the natural environment while preserving a local identity. 

By adopting the perspective of the "built environment," which highlights the interaction between architecture, civil engineering, and landscape, the exhibition offers a new way of interpreting the Japanese landscape. The curators thus provide an alternative guide to the country, offering the public a deeper understanding of Japanese history, environment, and culture.

Some of the projects presented in the exhibition are the work of internationally renowned architects and designers such as Shigeru Ban (winner of the 2014 Pritzker Prize), Kengo Kuma (known for his approach combining Japanese tradition and natural materials), Yoshio Taniguchi (who worked on the MoMA project in New York), Isamu Noguchi (designer and sculptor renowned for his works blending art and design), Arata Isozaki (winner of the 2019 Pritzker Prize). 

Exhibition design: An archipelago seen from a bird's-eye view 

The 80 projects are presented in origami-like forms: folded, angular, sometimes almost cubic, these plywood structures are delicately placed on the floor of the main exhibition hall. Their arrangement evokes a stylized map of the Japanese archipelago and its four main islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. A series of video projections further enhances this immersive experience.