As part of the Glassstress 2011 exhibition, part of the Venice Biennale, designer Tokujin Yoshioka will be presenting the architecture plan in the form of a 1/10 scale model for a transparent Japanese house called KOU-AN.
This project was first presented in 2002 and has developed into a transparent teahouse, which is an image that is part of Japanese culture. The full-scale teahouse is expected to be completed in 2013; however, the final location of this teahouse has not been announced.
Mr. Yoshioka’s official release describes this project as follows:
The Japanese conception of nature is characterized by its distinctive spacial perception. It involves the sensory realization of the surrounding atmosphere through what may be described as signs of presence, energies, or perhaps the aura. Such way of sensual appreciation of nature’s intrinsics and beauties can be recognized in Japanese tea ceremony practice.
The appreciation of nature is made possible by the very avoidance of the direct dialogue with nature, and by venturing the construction of a non-natural space, thereby creating a microcosm.
The transparent glass teahouse “KOU-AN” will embody such microcosmic space, where experience of sensing nature in its essences are recognized, felt, and understood.
Photos courtesy of Tokujin Yoshioka Inc.