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"Because we were born in the modern era, there are things we must never forget."

Yuta Kurosawa, 2nd year master's student, Department of Architecture, Graduate Graduate School of Creative Science and Engineering

At Nishi-Waseda Campus Building No.63

Studied architecture at graduate school, and won the Excellence Award at the 14th Hafele Student Design Competition 2022 in November 2022, and the Grand Prize at the 10th POLUS Student Architectural Design Competition in July 2023. Yuta Kurosawa is attracting attention as a person responsible for architecture. It is said that the works he has created so far incorporate various thoughts, such as the discomfort he feels in the world and the realizations he has gained in everyday life. This time, we asked them about their thoughts on architecture and future prospects, focusing on the content of their award-winning works.

--Congratulations on winning the grand prize at the 10th POLUS Student Architectural Design Competition. Please give me your honest opinion.

The "POLUS Student Architectural Design Competition" is one of the largest of the many student/architectural design competitions, with 362 entries submitted this time. In addition, there are many famous architects on the jury, including Ryue Nishizawa, the chairperson of the jury, who has worked on architectural designs such as the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture, and is also a member of the Japanese architect unit "SANAA", which is known worldwide. A famous person. I have applied to this competition several times in the past, but I am most happy that I was able to achieve results like this in my last year as a student.

--The Grand Prize winner is a work called ``A house with a woodworking yard where a carpenter lives.'' Where did you get the idea for this work?

This idea was inspired by a sense of discomfort with society's excessive pursuit of efficiency and convenience. Buildings and products that are rigid and immovable and that require no maintenance are very convenient, but I believe that by putting in the effort, a kind of trusting relationship is created between people and things. Simply put, it's like attachment. In traditional Japanese houses, the residents themselves interacted with the house and coexisted with it, such as by replacing the tatami and shoji screens. This kind of "relationship between the homeowner and the home'' is something that has existed since modernization, and I think it's something that we shouldn't forget because we were born into a commonplace world. At the root of this work is the idea that we can somehow incorporate this into our design ideas.

"A house with a woodworking yard where you live with a carpenter" won the grand prize at the "10th POLUS Student Architectural Design Competition". The novel idea of a carpenter and residents living together and working together to create their own lives was highly praised.

--What was the most difficult thing about this competition?

From the first round of judging to the second round of judging, this competition will be narrowed down to 5 works from a total of 362 entries. First of all, it was important to figure out how to break through, and it took a lot of time to come up with a strategy. In the first round, there is no need to create a model, and all entries must be conveyed on a single A2 art board. Therefore, by being conscious of the priority of showing the big picture and showing the details, and the method of expression, we came up with a visualization that would catch the eye. Additionally, advanced presentation skills are required, so I continued to brush up on my skills while keeping in mind the type of discussion I wanted to develop and receiving objective opinions from friends in the lab.

Once you pass the first round of judging, you will move on to making a model in the second round, but that work also requires a lot of physical strength. I have fond memories of working on it until the last minute, with the help of friends, as I had to work on other projects (lol).

Photo taken at the "10th POLUS Student Architectural Design Competition" (Mr. Kurosawa in the bottom right)

――What made you decide to study architecture in the first place?

I have always loved arts and crafts and drawing, and I have always been interested in "creating" itself. I think that from an early age I felt the comfort of creating things, where you can lose track of time and immerse yourself. I chose architecture because, unlike art or music, it exists as an essential infrastructure.

After I started studying architecture at university, I had many opportunities to come into contact with sociology and philosophy in the context of architecture, and my resolution of manufacturing gradually increased. Recently, I have become interested in the idea of "rrealism.''

--What kind of idea is "Surrealism" specifically?

Also known as surrealism, it is an idea that became famous as an art movement that occurred in France in the 20th century, and is represented in paintings by Salvador Dali and Rene Magritte. For example, the method of combining two things that would never come together by making full use of the technique called collage, which combines various materials, is derived from this idea. This method also served as a hint for the "Häfele Student Design Competition,'' which won the 2022 Excellence Award.

This design is a trial study that depicts how to give form to discontinuous fragments that do not have the form of memory, and how to achieve architectural wholeness. Specifically, by asking a friend to deliberately misread the scenery or emotional descriptions that appear in a text, they will replace it with a space, and through communication, the memory will gradually become higher-dimensional as a text, sketch, and space. I think there is something in common with "surrealism" in that design involves chance and otherness.

"14th Häfele Student Design Competition 2022" Excellence Award Winner "Contain the Sea". A work that combines various scenes created from people's memories into one space.

--Meanwhile, what kind of projects are you working on in your laboratory?

I belonged to the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Design and Engineering, Hosei University, and from that time I was in the laboratory of Professor Nobuaki Furuya (Faculty of Science and Engineering Professor) I was interested in. I applied to graduate school because I admired the many projects and the diverse atmosphere, but when I actually entered the university, I was surprised to find that there were so many projects. Each student participates in 3~4 projects that are constantly in progress, and there are various fields such as support for disaster-stricken areas, next-generation medical architecture, and joint research with other faculties. For example, in a project involving a company, it was a valuable experience to be able to make proposals that delved into practical issues such as user voices and economic efficiency, which we are not usually aware of. I feel that being able to learn about architectural space while practicing it also leads to my own growth.

In addition, the Furuya Laboratory attracts many international students from various places, making up about half of the laboratory members. Many of the values and backgrounds for foreign architecture are completely different from those in Japan, which is very stimulating. Furthermore, by experiencing the differences from other countries, I was able to reaffirm the charm that is unique to Japanese architecture.

Photo left: Joint project with Taisei Corporation and meeting with the Next Generation Medical Research Group
Photo right: Group photo taken during a joint project visit to Hokkaido

--Please tell us about Kurosawa's future prospects.

I am planning to start working at a company in April. I was very worried about who I wanted to create the architecture for and with what resolution, but I chose to become a general contractor because I wanted to work on a large-scale project that would be used by many people. Currently, I am interested in the state of commercial buildings, including Miyashita Park in Shibuya. Now that online shopping has become widespread and normal purchasing behavior is changing, we are now in an era where the meaning of the physical space where products are sold is being reconsidered. I would like to take on the challenge of providing new value that goes beyond simply buying and selling. In addition, I am skeptical of recent plans that disregard the local climate and traditions, as well as excessive development practices that threaten to destroy the communities that originally existed there. I would like to take on the challenge.

863rd

Interview/text/photography: Waseda Weekly Reporter (SJC student staff)
Sotaro Tsutsumi 3rd year student School of Social Sciences