Disir
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- Sep 30, 2011
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In a forest clearing in West Sussex, a tall wooden chimney stands propped up on timber scaffolding, a fierce jet of fire roaring from its top. All of a sudden, the flaming flue crashes to the ground with a loud thud, splitting open in a cloud of smoke to reveal a scaly blackened surface of charred planks within. “No trained architect would use this material,” says the 70-year-old Terunobu Fujimori, as he scuttles away to douse some more newspaper in a bucket of petrol. “Which is exactly why I like to use it,” he adds with a broad grin.
The mischievous architectural historian turned builder has made a name for himself in Japan by crafting beguiling little buildings that refuse to follow any of the usual rules. His hand-made structures look like the nests or cocoons of curious creatures, woven, whittled and thatched with organic, earthy materials that could have been scavenged from the forest floor. He has built a tiny teahouse for himself in Nagano, vertiginously perched at the top of two tree trunks (“because one leg is dangerous and three legs are too stable and boring”), and another – named the Flying Mud Boat – that hangs from wires like some floating seed pod. His buildings are sculpted with the fairytale allure of a child’s drawing, topped with oversized roofs and wonky chimneys, dotted with little hatches and porthole windows, as if transported from a manga animation.
Home is where the art is: the visionary architects who shaped Japan
I just can't wrap my brain around sinking money into something that is only going to last for 15 years. And according to one in the above article is all tied to an inheritance tax. There is a link in the article that leads to another article.
And the nitwit here claims the answer is:
The solution, argues Townsend, is for the government to stop promoting the dream of home ownership for everyone. Several years ago, Japan's parliament passed the so-called 200-year-home law, which reduces homeowners' taxes if their homes are built according to strict standards. The law might not be enough to change the disposable-home culture, but other small changes are under way: more condominiums, which can by definition not be demolished based on the desire of a single homeowner, are being built.
Japan's disposable home culture is an environmental and financial headache
The mischievous architectural historian turned builder has made a name for himself in Japan by crafting beguiling little buildings that refuse to follow any of the usual rules. His hand-made structures look like the nests or cocoons of curious creatures, woven, whittled and thatched with organic, earthy materials that could have been scavenged from the forest floor. He has built a tiny teahouse for himself in Nagano, vertiginously perched at the top of two tree trunks (“because one leg is dangerous and three legs are too stable and boring”), and another – named the Flying Mud Boat – that hangs from wires like some floating seed pod. His buildings are sculpted with the fairytale allure of a child’s drawing, topped with oversized roofs and wonky chimneys, dotted with little hatches and porthole windows, as if transported from a manga animation.
Home is where the art is: the visionary architects who shaped Japan
I just can't wrap my brain around sinking money into something that is only going to last for 15 years. And according to one in the above article is all tied to an inheritance tax. There is a link in the article that leads to another article.
And the nitwit here claims the answer is:
The solution, argues Townsend, is for the government to stop promoting the dream of home ownership for everyone. Several years ago, Japan's parliament passed the so-called 200-year-home law, which reduces homeowners' taxes if their homes are built according to strict standards. The law might not be enough to change the disposable-home culture, but other small changes are under way: more condominiums, which can by definition not be demolished based on the desire of a single homeowner, are being built.
Japan's disposable home culture is an environmental and financial headache
