This sample essay on Frank Lloyd Wright Japanese Influence reveals arguments and important aspects of this topic. Read this essay’s introduction, body paragraphs and the conclusion below.
Architecture reflects mankind’s artlstlc and engineering achievements. A bulldlng may merely be used to house people or property, but It represents the designs and structural marvels of that specific period. As we move from one architectural period to another, we find Individuals who have contributed greatly to their respective architectural periods and left their mark on the growing world of art and architecture.
Frank Lloyd Wright is one such individual who has changed the way we look at homes and buildings today. He is considered by many as the greatest architect in American history.
He as built pieces of architecture that is marvelled by artists and aspiring architects today. America’s premier architect, Frank Lloyd Wright was born in the Richland Center, Wisconsin on June 8, 1867. Anna Lloyd Jones Wright, his mother was the driving force that helped him become the architect that people remember today.
She believed it was in his destiny to become an architect and her responsibility in helping him fulfil it. He attended college at the university of Wisconsin in 1884. He was determined to be an architect. Even though the university didn’t offer architecture, he stayed there and attended engineering classes.
What Is Japanese Architecture Called
This is where he got some architectural experience from doing construction on the college. Later in 1887 he worked for the firm of Adler and Sullivan.
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Wright’s first constructions were homes. Frank mastered the art of making the house blend with its surroundings, as it were grown from the ground. He achieved this by adding objects on to the house, which made it fit its natural environment. Frank Lloyd Wright was greatly influenced by Japanese architecture. It was the Colombian Fair in 1873 where he was first introduced and became fascinated with Japanese culture.
A Japanese Pavilion, Ho-o-den which was exhibited at the fair proved to be Instrumental In Wright’s fascination of Japanese architecture, as It was the first time; he was able to explore Asia and Asian culture without physically having to travel there. Wright was a big collector of Japanese prints and textiles and the Influence of Japanese design and architecture made him visit Japan In February 1905. Austere methods of onstruction, lightweight materials and porous boundaries between Inside and outside are all hallmarks of traditional Japanese architecture.
The western architects bullt houses and buildings that could withstand harsh forces of nature. They used strong and heavy materials which overpower nature and help them make the tall and monumental building we so admire today. The Japanese on the other hand, bullt with nature. They used wood as a building material which went in harmony with the surroundings and embraced nature. To this day we can still see some of Japan’s oldest buildings and temples standing in wood. In Western architecture we often see spires and other vertical features which signify God’s omnipotent power over all things.
Japanese temples and shrines comprised the horizontal and were petit which were built to be part of nature rather than stand out like their western counterparts. ‘Minimalist’ design was encouraged by architects of Japan. Contrary to the Western architects who have traditionally tried to make to make their buildings interesting to look at by adding unnecessary decorations and arranging modules of differing heights, Japanese architects focused on making their structures sublime and mysterious on a horizontal level.
When it comes to Japanese architecture you start with one room and put a great amount of effort to get that right before moving on to the next room. Japan’s less popular and smaller buildings and temples caught Wright’s attention. The horizontal layouts of Japanese buildings fascinated Wright, as it showed him the principles of simplicity, monumentality, and horizontality. These would become the building blocks of his architectural style. The foundations and framework of the Japanese buildings influenced Frank Lloyd Wright.
The Japanese idea of buildings not being frozen in a specific time or place inspired Wright and was eflected in many of his works. This was different from the Western mentality towards preservation and reformation. The Westerners built a building that is defined by the specific historical moment from which it was produced. Wright saw the Japanese as not having the same sense of attachment, as they regarded a building being in a continuous state of change. Japanese believed that a building could be renovated and reconstructed a number of times and remain the same, only its phase changed.
The greenery of Japan, as well as Japanese tea gardens influenced Wright during his trip to Japan. Wright He implemented this concept in his architectural designs where he aimed at creating a sense of continuity between the interior and exterior elements of a house and garden. He had an idea that nature like architecture could be simplified to its basic geometric elements of line and shape. (Riccardo Cardilli, 2010) Between the eighth and twelfth century, Japan was under the Heian Reign. During this time ‘shinden-zukuri’ was a popular type of architecture.
Its is a Japanese style of architecture independent of and Chinese inspirations. The layout comprised a central sleeping room known as ‘shinden’, three pavilions known as tai no ya’ with djoining verandas known as Wataridono’, and two long corridors called ‘Ro’. This traditional Japanese style was depicted in many of Wright’s architectural marvels. Frank Lloyd Wright was responsible for the start of Usonia Homes. These include a planned community in the Town of Mount Pleasant which is adjacent to the village of Pleasantville, New York.
The entire layout and design of the homes were under Wright’s responsibility. Three homes out of the forty seven that were part of the project were designed by Wright, while the rest were done by architects: Paul Schweikher, Theodore Dixon Bower, Ulrich Franzen, KaneJi Domoto, Aaron Resnick nd David Henken – who was Wright’s apprentice. Wright planned the layout of the neighbourhood in such a way that it would follow a circular pattern, which helped conserve majority of trees in the vicinity and “encouraging the flow of the land”. The homes were themed with Wright’s organic philosophy of style.
Usonia was the name given to the community in homage to Wright and his goal of the togetherness of Americans. The community characterised of narrow roads which gracefully twisted and ‘chicaned’, birds sitting on windowsills, antlers roaming and maple trees in abundance. Nature dominated the community as sixty percent was forest and eadow. The houses embraced nature and nestled into its surroundings, as naturally as the tresses and grass around it. Wright’s more popular and grand homes appeared to have a variety of Japanese qualities. However, the Usonian home was where the true Japanese architectural philosophies could be found.
The homes Oapanese and Usonian homes) which initially appear very different, in reality are very similar when it comes to conceptualization and implementation. These similarities are characterised by four features that make them ‘relatives’. First, the entryw ay stands out to enhance the experiential quality of the home. Secondly, the houses use nature as an ingredient to building, connecting the inside of the home to its surroundings. Thirdly, the basic structure of the two types of houses includes a fondness for open and contempt towards the common box shape of the house.
Finally, aesthetic simplicity is a feature that can be seen in both houses. Within each category as well, the implementations of these concepts produce equivalent structural qualities in both the Usonian and Japanese house. (Alexandra Black, 2000) Frank Lloyd Wright house Zimmerman House Manchester URL: http://www. e-architect. co. uk/boston/new_england_buildings. htm Japanese ouses are popular for having a foyer at the entrance. This is where the visitors removed their shoes before entering the actual house. This helped in the transition from the outside to the inside of the house.
We see in the Wright homes a foyer is also included. The foyer is mainly used to welcome the visitor and also serve as protection from the outside dust and other elements. It also helped in providing an enlarged effect that Wright was so famous for. As the visitor enters, the ceilings are raised which makes the actual space look open and grand. Both Wright and the Japanese believed that a house should embrace its surrounding. It should not be a division between the inhabitants and the surroundings but on the other hand entice them to feel the nature around them. experience it more deeply.
The Usonian and Japanese homes achieved this by using nature as a decoration of the house and making it a vital contributor to the house’s beauty. Gardens were popular among the houses and played an important role to bring harmony between the interior and exterior. The walls, windows, lighting, and materials also were used to reveal the beauty of nature. Living Area of an Usonian House and Japanese House and nature URL: http:// www. galenfrysinger. com/iowa_cedar_rock. tm URL: http://www. onelife]apan. com/tours/thatch_roof_volunteer. html Japanese houses had natural lighting and were commonly illuminated by candles.
Wright could not stick to this concept in America for the Usonian homes. He managed to use lighting as subtly as possible. Large panels of open glass and windows were uses whenever possible. The fireplace also provided light and heat during evenings. After sunset, Wright used smaller, soft lighting sources that were placed within the house’s structural lines. These light sources were hidden and intended to reflect off of the ceilings and walls to provide a subtle sunlight effect. Some might question Wrights direct connection with Japanese architectural elements.
However, it is certain that he adopted Japanese theories to aid his architectural brilliance, which is seen clearly in the comparisons between the Usonian Houses and Japanese homes. The Usonian house symbolises a reincarnation of the Japanese home which is for a modern everyday human being. Whether the Japanese influence was intentional or not, Wright has shown through his works that traditional Japanese theories of architecture pertain to today demand and livelihood to provide a house that is organic and affordable. Pfeiffer, 1918) The world is growing and diverse cultures are being exposed to wider reaches of the globe.
Traditional Japanese homes would be a myth in North America. However, the ideas that are instilled in Japanese homes and the Usonian houses of the 1900’s have inspired simple, elegant, organic, inexpensive architecture today. An architect must not dwell on past building designs and, but to implement the principles that has been carried on from the past and provide the world with appropriate architectural products for the present. The Japanese were pioneers at this and so was Frank Lloyd Wright who inspires aspiring and xperienced architect of today to do the same.
Frank Lloyd Wright Japanese Influence. (2019, Dec 07). Retrieved from https://paperap.com/paper-on-comparative-study-frank-lloyd-wright-japanese-architecture/
