Japan? 
Comments
Makuhari and Tokyo Midtown. Dr. Mauricio Hernández Bonilla Arq.
all know that Japan is a country with economic dynamics of the most important the world and its urban development will match its economic and social development, and it is certainly overwhelming. Thus, Tokyo is the scene of major urban developments that show the ability of a society to create large-scale developments and modify and transform the built environment, creating new identities, images, morphologies and architectures. The urban experience in this country is extremely interesting. In general, this full of modern landscapes, great contemporary buildings and infrastructures of the highest technology and expertise.
Tokyo metropolitan area appears to be an urban space that surprises, with the largest urban agglomeration world's population - more than 42 million integrating the population of the surrounding prefectures, resulting in a huge city with a population density and land very high. Here the functions merge and overlap each other in the most complex known and the edges of the urban region of Greater Tokyo, are impossible to define because, as every major metropolitan area today, its administrative limits are exceeded for go into other provinces, the neighboring prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba-(García Vázquez, 2004). In itself, Tokyo is comprised of a large set of urban components in the way they interrelate, systems are entangled, confused and chaotic, which therefore, are interesting to analyze.
In December 2009, students and teachers of the Faculty of Architecture, Xalapa Universidad Veracruzana (UV), we had the opportunity to visit this country in the Far East, following the UV-exchange activities of Chiba University. So we visited several cities, and also visit traditional places like temples and palaces, we also explore contemporary urban Japan. The latter turned out to be quite an educational experience from an urban perspective to appreciate and understand forms, traits, characteristics, attitudes and behaviors of the social and environmental Nipponese cities.
Japanese urban space is a relatively new, this is undoubtedly due to the transformation and reconstruction following major disasters and wars that have occurred at various times in history. Well, in some cases, some cities or most of them (the case of Hiroshima, Nagoya and Tokyo the same) have been completely re-built. All this leads to observe the increased presence of mainly urban landscape modern, postmodern and contemporary.
In this paper we discuss two sites of great interest, the new city of Makuhari, located in Chiba and prefecturia mega Tokyo Midtown, located in the Roppongi district in Tokyo. Both developments, show similarities in their approaches to urban architecture, they represent large-scale urban developments, with a mix of different uses and functions, and both belong to a postindustrial period. This makes sharing spatial characteristics that show in its urban landscape and architectural evolution to a high degree of economic dynamics and development competitiveness. Are mega-city that transform the territory, changing the city and its landscape, so that the cities best positioned at a level of much greater importance in the context of globalization. This involves acquiring a "international" and to reshape as Saskia Sassen argues, homogenized urban landscapes that function as infrastructure for their economies, and therefore share the same characteristics. Landscapes
visually similar dynamics are similar economic indicators, and there is a process of economic convergence results in the homogenization of the landscape (Sassen 2008:7)
Makuhari City Approaching through the most modern and advanced urban transport in the world, a Japanese train, we reached the town of Makuhari. A city designed primarily for business, exchange commercial, leisure and entertainment. Makuhari is a development that includes office buildings, hotels, entertainment, sports and culture, a stadium, a large convention and exhibition center, and as a residential zone, with services and facilities for its population.
development is a diverse urban-architectural approach, where several architectural trends are mixed with modern and postmodern influences, which combines an international architecture and urban morphology shaped by their different approaches to public and private space. Its planning and construction began in the late seventies and has since been formed in what is now a district created for international trade and specialized services. Thus, over more than three decade has been consolidated as a space of global flows, and where the visitor, as the tourist, business man or woman plays an important role in the city.
we can say that in turn places and spaces that are not places, reminding Marc Augé, as are places for those people who live and / or visitors who live in space or gathered there to see friends , and no places for those who only visited the space so fast and fleeting and note that they are urban landscapes created by neoliberal economic dynamics common in the developed world, and that therefore projected cityscapes common.
The business area is a space formed by large isolated buildings surrounded by large open spaces. Here are hotels, offices and convention and exhibition centers in an international style.
On the other hand, urban space is dominated mainly by vehicular traffic and with little pedestrian activity. We could say that this is an urban space designed with the influences of modernism, as found to be large-scale open spaces for vehicular traffic high speed which is far beyond human scale, pedestrian-friendly.
architecturally interesting
It is located in the first stage of development, convention and exhibition center where he carried out major international events for trade and business. It was designed by Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki (Priztker winner in 1993) and is characterized by a sober and neutral architecture, they combine concrete and glass. This framed by its large entrance plaza, topped by an access with a steel frame in red and with a very dynamic design.
housing in the area are different approaches on the one hand, we have built the typical housing blocks, which they show a tendency to saturation and densification of space, distinctive Japanese cities, and other proposals are developed in recent years, with lower densities and show greater freedom in design. So that, with better approximations to the creation of pleasant and comfortable to the user. So by design, the new residential area in Makuhari, has been winning awards from various organizations and associations of architecture and urbanism in Japan.
Unlike the business area in residential areas have been created smaller streets, mixed-use residential buildings with shops, restaurants and services on the ground floor, also has created space for recreation for families inside the buildings, courtyards way. These areas show a more pleasant urban sense of place, in a more private and public space designs that try to make a difference. Apparently, they try to assign features "neighborhood" to the new area. If you have not fully achieved if urban space has been a much more human and less impersonal than that created for commercial and business area. This shows, that throughout the planning, design and construction of Makuhari has shifted from a large-scale city, dispersed and diffused to a city on a smaller scale and more concerned with their inhabitants. So
include one of the most recent housing developments, the one designed by Steven Hall, featuring contemporary design, more playful, outgoing volumes configured inclined, applying color and defined by the same access massive volumes of buildings. It also has space for relaxation with innovative designs that give a different touch to the predominantly urban image. Architectural forms that give rise Community spaces based interior courtyards with water features and green areas, space that seem to discover and grasp.
Tokyo Midtown As mentioned at the beginning, Tokyo is a metropolis with a dynamic growth and development progress by leaps and bounds, always in constant transformation, construction and reconstruction. These are the magnitudes and scales it is impossible to grasp the entire city. The priority given in its role as a global city causes the Japanese capital to keep growing in height and in all directions between 1991 and 2000 were built 1.75 million new housing were built macrocomplex as Yebisu Garden Place, Ark Hills and proposed erecting 60 skyscrapers of between 40 and 50 plants in Marunochi (Garcia Vazquez, 2004:157)
Following this trend, the area of \u200b\u200bRoppongi is also the setting for the emergence of large complexes that are converted icons of space consumption, the global entertainment and Tokyo in the XXI century. In 2003 he opened Roppongi Hills behemoth, which is a development that includes office space, residential apartments, cafes, restaurants, movie theaters, a museum, a hotel, a television studio, an outdoor amphitheater and several parks. Recently, in 2007 inaugurated the National Art Center, designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa important and very complex Tokyo Midtown opens in the same year.
Tokyo Midtown is a new district which integrates regenerated commercial buildings, offices, hotels and entertainment in a new urban space like those above, seeks to project the greatness of a city, its economic power and its cosmopolitan way of living.
was established in a large area of \u200b\u200b10 hectares concentrated in 6 major buildings, which together create a new node of urban activities to Japan's capital.
work activities, leisure, entertainment and consumption result in a district with life 24 hours a day. Here the pedestrian, transit, entertain and / or ride in a space that transports you to a world of luxurious and chic, with a global international image as if you were in New York or London. Apparently this has been the tendency to recreate contemporary urban spaces in the city of Tokyo. As in the case of Midtown, was the signing New Yorker SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill) who runs the master plan and design of the main buildings. Of new architecture and urban spaces are made with the highest technology known and designed by leading figures from the world of international architecture. So we met with 21 Design Sight designed by Tadao Ando, \u200b\u200bthe Suntory Museum by Kengo Kuma.
On 21 Design Sight interesting comment in its volume simple, innovative, according to a trapezoidal geometry coffee houses and exhibition halls in two volumes, which are distinguished by their shapes generated by a folding architecture of triangular planes giving rise to a pure and simple architecture. The building becomes more important due to its location independent of the rest of the set in a green and wooded. Another area of \u200b\u200bgreat interest is the area of \u200b\u200baccess to office buildings, hotel and apartments, as access is made by a square covered by an imposing structure, a large and thick columns that branch like tree branches to the sky to hold the large glass roof. Again a waste of technology in architecture and engineering that project a large contemporary space.
A most interesting turn out to be public spaces surrounding the buildings in the north. These areas made up of green spaces, parks and plazas, waterfalls, wooded areas, street furniture of contemporary luxury, are proof of landscape architecture quality. The public space in Midtown makes a big contribution to the city of Tokyo, if we consider that it is a city of intensive construction, colorful buildings and functions, which leave little room for public open space. So Tokyo Midtown commits around 40% of its land for public spaces that are open to the surrounding neighborhoods as an oasis for strolling, relaxation and enjoyment. The green areas, parks and various outdoor spaces give rise to new forms of daily activity at different times of day, here are developed events, shows and other activities that attempt to create a 24-hour living city.
Something that can boast of urban spaces in the Japanese context is its excellent lighting, this usually turns out to be very innovative, transmitting sensations and environments that produce a large amount of visual stimuli to the observer. Screens and neon signs are a great constant in the urban environment, but in Tokyo Midtown producing a lighting design with an approach to the light, colors, objects and spaces with high technological dynamism is even more surprising. Here we see lights that run, move, travel at high speed, producing the atmosphere of the digital age and information on which we stand. Concluding Remarks
Makuhari and Tokyo Midtown are both urban developments that reflect the great power of social and economic system of the Japan Society. Here the user is transported through of spacious, luxurious and cosmopolitan, that make you feel that you belong to a global environment. Both sites represent
global urban spaces, where an international character types are similar to those developed in other urban settings (New York, London, Berlin). If not for the language you hear on the streets, the local population characteristics and / or symbols of the language in the ads, poodríamos say we are in Manhattan, or at Potsdamer Platz (Berlin) or the Docklands (London) ; urban developments of great similarity. This shows that the standardization of architectural forms and urban spaces is the tendency of urban XXI century. Where you create and recreate urban landscapes with identical types, for leisure and consumption, with architects of international brand and that they may be located at any latitude, no matter what particular local.
In the words of Munoz (2008) gives rise to the emergence of a new category of landscapes that are defined by their territoriality: that is, landscapes are not the direct translation of the physical, social and cultural needs of a particular territory ; landscapes therefore can be produced and cloned wherever. Bibliography
Sassen, Saskia 2008. Underlying spatial and dynamic formats. In urBANALization, Common landscapes, global locations, Francesc Muñoz (author). Gustavo Gilli. Barcelona
Garcia Vazquez, 2004. Pastry city, urban visions s. XXI. Gustavo Gilli. Barcelona.
Muñoz, Francesc, 2008. Urbanalisation, Common landscapes, global locations. Gustavo Gilli. Barcelona
Image: Dr. Mauricio Hernández Bonilla Arq
