Structures in Kansai New Collection

Major Projects and Colossal Structures

These several years is seeing the completion of a number of large-scale projects in the Kansai region, including Kansai International Airport, the Kyoto Station Building, Osaka Dome, and the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge. The development of industrial and organizational technologies demanded by the 20th century led to architectural feats such as super high-rise and domed architecture. Because a number of technological restraints on the kinds of structures architects could build remained, freedom of expression was somewhat constrained. Nevertheless, the aerial garden and other projects at the Umeda Sky Building were able to overcome the constraints affecting super-high-rise buildings to become works that exhibit true freedom of expression. Osaka Dome is an example of a structure that is not merely an expression of function, and although opinions of it vary, the shape of the dome is pure Osaka in its attitude.
In Osaka itself, architecture can be found representing both the north and the south of the city and reflecting the different cultures of each. While north Osaka faces one of the Kansai's political centers and is suitably sophisticated, south Osaka perhaps demanded to be painted in bolder colors and wilder strokes. Structures like Osaka Dome and Wakayama's Big Whale stadium overcome the constraints that limit a large organization such as Nikken Sekkei and can be seen as expressing something more suitable to Kansai.
Also worthy of mention are the Kansai International Airport and Akashi Kaikyo Bridge projects. These two projects far surpass traditional perceptions of Kansai in terms of both scale and technological sophistication. The Kansai International Airport, which was designed by international competition winner Renzo PIANO, is an exquisite work symbolizing an international gateway that announces to the world that Japan's airports have passed through the age of simple function and into one of design. At the same time, when one considers the large-scale public works project that made land reclamation for the island possible, it is frustrating but obvious that this is the very reason that the island itself is somewhat weak from an urban design perspective.
The Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, the world's largest, is another leading 20th century project. The sheer scale of this bridge renders meaningless any nitpicking remarks on design. Supported by the most leading-edge technology, the structure speaks for itself. There is simply no reason to dwell upon design issues: they are superfluous. The fact that the bridge has significantly altered the regional structure of the Kansai, as well as the definition of the Seto Inland Sea and Shikoku, is reason enough to hold it in the highest regard.
Not that these colossal structures are significant merely because of their great size. The joining of Shikoku and Awaji Island to Honshu means that Shikoku has been transformed into a peninsula bordering Osaka Bay, much like the Kii Peninsula with Kansai International Airport located in the center. This type of change can have tremendous effects on an area. Conversely, the other side of such development includes the acceleration of the exodus from rural to urban areas, further diluting local culture. The local atmosphere of such places as Awaji Island and Tokushima is disappearing, and the vernacular culture of these areas is without a doubt undergoing change. The bridge will, undoubtedly, be eclipsed someday in terms of both scale and technological level, but it remains to be seen whether the changes brought to the region by it and the Kansai International Airport will be meaningful in the 21st century. That will be determined by the efforts of those who come after us.
Because the Kansai region's large-scale development projects and giant structures have tended to be concentrated in Osaka and around the bay, the center of the smaller, urban Kinki region is moving toward the south. North of the center of Kinki, however, Kyoto remains vibrant, and the Kyoto Station Building has become a new symbol of that city. The imagination behind the overarching roof and upward-reaching stairs that seem ready to swallow the city is splendid; unfortunately, this rugged structure has been somewhat difficult for sophisticated Kyoto residents to accept. This is a strange response, however, as the building is held in high regard by everyone who visits Kyoto from other parts of Japan or abroad. Kyoto Station is a structure that was built by Kyoto, a city that for better or worse is famous for its ability to recycle history.
Looking to the north of Kansai, large projects have also been undertaken in Fukui Prefecture, backed by the financial clout of nuclear power plant construction. Among these, the Wakasa Bay Energy Research Center exhibits the results of its research into new forms of energy. This facility will have achieved true meaning if in the upcoming century it helps resolve the energy issues affecting the nation today.