Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2025

Shaping an Ideal Dwelling for Modern Japan: Individual Taste in the Establishment of the Tea House as a Model during the Taishō Period

Résumé

During the Taishō period (1912-1926), housing became a significant topic in architecture with the profound changes due to the rise of modern lifestyles, techniques, materials and values. These developments fuelled reflections on an “ideal dwelling”. Two distinct trends can be observed: between 1913 and 1918, some architects presented an improved Japanese house as this ideal, while between 1919 and 1922, theoreticians defined an ideal dwelling based on the Western architecture. In both cases, the question of taste played a central role. While advocates of Western architecture emphasised the expression of individual taste, proponents of Japanese architecture saw themselves as inheritors of pre-modern taste, which they defined through arts originating in the medieval period. Among them, the way of tea and its architecture - the tea house - became a model for modern Japanese houses. Nevertheless, their reflections continued to address the role of individual and personal preferences. This study examines the significance of individual taste in the discourse of architects who established a Japanese ideal dwelling based on the tea house. The analysis focuses on writings published during the Taishō period and early Shōwa years (1926-1939), particularly by Yasuoka Katsuya (1877-1942), Fujii Kōji (1888-1938) and Horiguchi Sutemi (1895-1984). While the first two architects conceptualised an ideal dwelling based on the tea house, Horiguchi undertook an in-depth examination on the concept of taste and the tea architecture while contributing to housing debates. During this period, the tea house evolved from a concrete model defined by specific architectural features into an abstract model freed from precise architectural forms. In their reflections on an ideal dwelling, architects encouraged the development of individual taste while defining its expression. Then, from the 1920's, the tea house reference became increasingly abstract and theoretical, establishing principles that can be applied in various types of dwellings, thus creating an expression framework for the individual preferences. This study underscores how the expression of the individual's taste is allowed in the use of the tea architecture and its taste as a model for a Japanese ideal dwelling, thanks to the conceptualisation of the principles of the tea house.

Fichier non déposé

Dates et versions

hal-05273403 , version 1 (23-09-2025)

Identifiants

  • HAL Id : hal-05273403 , version 1

Citer

Thomas Swierzinski. Shaping an Ideal Dwelling for Modern Japan: Individual Taste in the Establishment of the Tea House as a Model during the Taishō Period. 4th EAJS Japan Conference, European Association of Japanese Studies, Sep 2025, Sendai, Japan. ⟨hal-05273403⟩
90 Consultations
0 Téléchargements

Partager

  • More