View source for Japanese architecture

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[[File:Kinkaku3402CBcropped.jpg|thumb|240px|[[Kinkaku-ji]], [[Kyoto]], originally built in 1397 ([[Muromachi period]])]]

{{nihongo|'''Japanese architecture'''|日本建築|Nihon kenchiku}} has been typified by wooden structures, elevated slightly off the ground, with tiled or thatched roofs. Sliding doors (''[[fusuma]]'') and [[List of partitions of traditional Japanese architecture|other traditional partitions]] were used in place of walls, allowing the internal configuration of a space to be customized for different occasions. People usually sat on cushions or otherwise on the floor, traditionally; chairs and high tables were not widely used until the 20th century. Since the 19th century, however, Japan has incorporated much of Western, [[modern architecture|modern]], and [[post-modern architecture|post-modern]] architecture into construction and design, and is today a leader in [[State of the art|cutting-edge]] architectural design and technology.

The earliest Japanese architecture was seen in prehistoric times in simple [[pit-house]]s and stores adapted to the needs of a [[hunter-gatherer]] population. Influence from [[Han dynasty]] China via [[Korea]] saw the introduction of more complex grain stores and ceremonial burial chambers.

The introduction of [[Buddhism in Japan]] during the sixth century was a catalyst for large-scale [[Buddhist temples in Japan|temple]] building using complicated techniques in wood. Influence from the Chinese [[Sui dynasty|Sui]] and [[Tang dynasty|Tang]] dynasties led to the foundation of the first permanent capital in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]]. Its checkerboard street layout used the Chinese capital of [[Chang'an]] as a template for its design.

In 894 during the [[Heian period]] (794–1185), Japan abolished [[Japanese missions to Tang China|''kentōshi'' (Japanese missions to Tang China)]] and began to distance itself from Chinese culture, and a culture called ''Kokufu bunka'' (lit., Japanese culture) which was suited to the Japanese climate and aesthetic sense flourished. The ''[[shinden-zukuri]]'' style, which was the architectural style of the residences of nobles in this period, showed the distinct uniqueness of Japanese architecture and permanently determined the characteristics of later Japanese architecture. Its features are an open structure with few walls that can be opened and closed with doors, ''[[shitomi]]'' and ''[[sudare]]'', a structure in which shoes are taken off to enter the house on stilts, and sitting or sleeping directly on ''[[tatami]]'' mats without using chairs and beds.<ref name ="kokufu"/><ref name ="shinden"/><ref name ="ota1987"/>

As the [[samurai]] class gained power in the [[Kamakura period]] (1185–1333), the ''shinden-zukuri'' style changed, and in the [[Muromachi period]] (1333–1573), the ''[[shoin-zukuri]]'' style appeared. This style had a lasting influence on later Japanese architectural styles and became the basis of modern Japanese houses. Its characteristics were that sliding doors called ''[[fusuma]]'' and paper windows called ''[[shōji]]'' were fully adopted, and ''[[tatami]]'' mats were laid all over the room.<ref name="shoin"/><ref name="tatami"/>

The introduction of the [[Japanese tea ceremony|tea ceremony]] emphasised simplicity and modest design as a counterpoint to the excesses of the aristocracy. In the [[Azuchi–Momoyama period]] (1568–1600), [[sukiya-zukuri]] style villas appeared under the influence of a tea house called ''[[chashitsu]]''. At first it was an architectural style for the villas of ''[[daimyo]]'' (Japanese feudal lords) and court nobles, but in the [[Edo period]] (1683–1807) it was applied to ''[[ryōtei]]'' (Japanese-style restaurants) and ''chashitsu'', and later it was also applied to residences.<ref name ="sukiya">[https://web.archive.org/web/20220212182752/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%95%B0%E5%AF%84%E5%B1%8B%E9%80%A0%E3%82%8A-301970 sukiya-zukuri.] Kotobank.</ref>

During the [[Meiji Restoration]] of 1869 the history of Japanese architecture was radically changed by two important events. The first was the [[Shinbutsu bunri|Kami and Buddhas Separation Act]] of 1868, which formally separated [[Buddhism]] from [[Shinto]] and [[Buddhist temples in Japan|Buddhist temples]] from [[Shinto shrine]]s, breaking an association between the two which had lasted well over a thousand years.<ref>{{cite journal|author1-link=Jacqueline Stone|last=Stone|first=Jacqueline|title=Review of ''Of Heretics and Martyrs in Meiji Japan: Muslim and Its Persecution'' by James Edward Ketelaar|journal=Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies|volume=53|issue=2|pages=582–598|date=December 1993|doi=10.2307/2719461|jstor=2719461|url=http://www.thezensite.com/ZenBookReviews/Of-Heretics_and_Martyrs.html#note1|access-date=June 13, 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111023154354/http://www.thezensite.com/ZenBookReviews/Of-Heretics_and_Martyrs.html#note1|archive-date=October 23, 2011|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Secondly, it was then that Japan underwent a period of intense [[Westernization]] in order to compete with other developed countries. Initially, architects and styles from abroad were imported to Japan, but gradually the country taught its own architects and began to express its own style. Architects returning from study with Western architects introduced the [[International style (architecture)|International Style]] of modernism into Japan. However, it was not until after the [[World War II|Second World War]] that Japanese architects made an impression on the international scene, firstly with the work of architects like [[Kenzo Tange]] and then with theoretical movements, like [[Metabolism (architecture)|Metabolism]].

== General features of Japanese traditional architecture ==
In traditional Japanese architecture, there are various styles, features and techniques unique to Japan in each period and use, such as residence, [[Japanese castle|castle]], [[Buddhist temple]] and [[Shinto shrine]]. On the other hand, especially in ancient times, it was strongly influenced by Chinese culture like other Asian countries, so it has characteristics common to architecture in Asian countries.<ref name="hozintro">(Hozumi (1996:9-11)</ref>

Partly due, also, to the variety of climates in Japan, and the millennium encompassed between the first cultural import and the last, the result is extremely heterogeneous, but several practically universal features can nonetheless be found. First of all is the choice of materials, always wood in various forms (planks, straw, tree bark, paper, etc.) for almost all structures. Unlike both Western and some [[Chinese architecture]], the use of stone is avoided except for certain specific uses, for example temple [[Podium|podia]] and [[tō|pagoda]] foundations.

The general structure is almost always the same: [[Post and lintel|posts and lintels]] support a large and gently curved roof, while the walls are paper-thin, often movable and never [[load-bearing wall|load-bearing]]. Arches and barrel roofs are completely absent. [[Gable]] and eave curves are gentler than in China and columnar [[entasis]] (convexity at the center) limited.<ref name="hozintro"/>

[[File:L'entrée du palais Ninomaru (Château de Nijo, Kyoto) (41286152260).jpg|thumb|left|The roof is the dominant feature of traditional Japanese architecture.]]
The roof is the most visually impressive component, often constituting half the size of the whole edifice.<ref name="hozintro"/> The slightly curved [[eaves]] extend far beyond the walls, covering [[veranda]]s, and their weight must therefore be supported by complex bracket systems called ''[[tokyō]]'', in the case of temples and shrines. Simpler solutions are adopted in domestic structures. The oversize eaves give the interior a characteristic dimness, which contributes to the building's atmosphere. The interior of the building normally consists of a single room at the center called [[Moya (architecture)|''moya'']], from which depart any other less important spaces.

Inner space divisions are fluid, and room size can be modified through the use of screens or movable paper walls. The large, single space offered by the [[Main Hall (Japanese Buddhism)|main hall]] can therefore be divided according to the need.<ref name="hozintro"/> For example, some walls can be removed and different rooms joined temporarily to make space for some more guests. The separation between inside and outside is itself in some measure not absolute as entire walls can be removed, opening a residence or temple to visitors. Verandas appear to be part of the building to an outsider, but part of the external world to those in the building. Structures are therefore made to a certain extent part of their environment. Care is taken to blend the edifice into the surrounding natural environment.<ref name="hozintro"/>

The use of construction modules keeps proportions between different parts of the edifice constant, preserving its overall harmony.<ref name="hozintro"/> (On the subject of building proportions, see also the article [[Ken (architecture)|''ken'']]).

Even in cases as that of [[Nikkō Tōshō-gū]], where every available space is heavily decorated, ornamentation tends to follow, and therefore emphasize, rather than hide, basic structures.<ref name="hozintro"/>

Being shared by both sacred and profane architecture, these features made it easy converting a lay building into a temple or vice versa. This happened for example at [[Hōryū-ji]], where a noblewoman's mansion was transformed into a religious building.

==Prehistoric period==

The prehistoric period includes the [[Jōmon period|Jōmon]], [[Yayoi period|Yayoi]] and [[Kofun period|Kofun]] periods stretching from approximately 5000 BCE to the beginning of the eighth century CE.

During the three phases of the Jōmon period the population was primarily [[hunter-gatherer]] with some primitive agriculture skills and their behaviour was predominantly determined by changes in climatic conditions and other natural stimulants. Early dwellings were [[pit house]]s consisting of shallow pits with tamped earth floors and grass roofs designed to collect rainwater with the aid of storage jars. Later in the period, a colder climate with greater rainfall led to a decline in population, which contributed to an interest in ritual. Concentric stone circles first appeared during this time.<ref name="Britannica">{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/719164/Japanese-architecture |title=Japanese architecture |publisher=Britannica.com |access-date=May 17, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110203032604/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/719164/Japanese-architecture |archive-date=February 3, 2011  }}</ref>

During the Yayoi period, the Japanese people began to interact with the Chinese [[Han dynasty]], whose knowledge and technical skills began to influence them.<ref name="Britannica"/> The Japanese began to build raised-floor storehouses as granaries, which were constructed using metal tools like saws and chisels that began to appear at this time. A reconstruction in [[Toro, Shizuoka]] is a wooden box made of thick boards joined in the corners in a [[Kura (storehouse)|log cabin]] style and supported on eight pillars. The roof is thatched but, unlike the typically [[hip roof|hipped roof]] of the pit dwellings, it is a simple V-shaped [[gable]].<ref>Itoh (1973), p.&nbsp;10</ref> Some authors credit the raised structure designs of this period to contact with the [[Rice#Domestication|rice-cultivating]] [[Austronesian peoples]] from coastal eastern China or Taiwan, rather than the Han.<ref name="Arbi2013">{{cite journal |last1=Arbi |first1=Ezrin |last2=Rao |first2=Sreenivasaiah Purushothama |last3=Omar |first3=Saari |title=Austronesian Architectural Heritage and the Grand Shrines at Ise, Japan |journal=Journal of Asian and African Studies |date=November 21, 2013 |volume=50 |issue=1 |pages=7–24 |doi=10.1177/0021909613510245|s2cid=145591097 }}</ref><ref name="Robbeets2017">{{cite journal |last1=Robbeets |first1=Martine |title=Austronesian influence and Transeurasian ancestry in Japanese |journal=Language Dynamics and Change |date=January 1, 2017 |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=210–251 |doi=10.1163/22105832-00702005|doi-access=free |hdl=11858/00-001M-0000-002E-8635-7 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

The Kofun period marked the appearance of many-chambered burial mounds or [[tumuli]] (''kofun'' literally means "old mounds"). Similar mounds in [[Korean Peninsula]] are thought to have been influenced by Japan.<ref>Keyhole-shaped tombs in Korean Peninsula Hideo Yoshii (Kyoto University) {{cite web |url=http://www.international.ucla.edu/korea/pdfs/YoshiiPaperFinal.pdf |title=UCLA Center for Korean Studies |access-date=2013-07-28 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006195934/http://www.international.ucla.edu/korea/pdfs/YoshiiPaperFinal.pdf |archive-date=October 6, 2013  }}</ref> Early in the period, the tombs, known as "keyhole ''kofun''" or {{nihongo|''[[Zenpokoenfun|zenpō-kōen-fun]]''|前方後円墳}}, often made use of the existing topography, shaping it and adding man-made moats to form a distinctive keyhole shape, i.e. that of a circle interconnected with a triangle. Access was via a vertical shaft that was sealed off once the burial was completed. There was room inside the chamber for a coffin and grave goods. The mounds were often decorated with [[terracotta]] figures called ''[[haniwa]]''. Later in the period mounds began to be located on flat ground and their scale greatly increased. Among many examples in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]] and [[Osaka]], the most notable is the ''Daisen-kofun'', designated as the tomb of [[Emperor Nintoku]]. The tomb covers {{convert|32|ha|acre|abbr=off}} and it is thought to have been decorated with 20,000 ''haniwa'' figures.<ref name="Britannica"/>

Towards the end of the Kofun period, tomb burials faded out as [[Buddhism in Japan|Buddhist]] cremation ceremonies gained popularity.<ref name="Britannica"/>

<gallery class="center">
File:Yoshinogari1.jpg|Reconstructed raised-floor building in [[Yoshinogari site|Yoshinogari]], [[Saga Prefecture]], 2nd or 3rd century
File:YoshinogariDwellings.jpg|Reconstructed pit dwelling houses in [[Yoshinogari site|Yoshinogari]]
File:Toro1.jpg|Reconstructed grain storehouse in Toro, Shizuoka
File:YoshinogariIseki.jpg|Reconstructed raised-floor building in [[Yoshinogari site|Yoshinogari]]
File:NintokuTomb Aerial photograph 2007.jpg|Daisenryō [[Kofun]], [[Osaka Prefecture|Osaka]], 5th century 
</gallery>

== Asuka and Nara architecture ==

The most significant contributor to architectural changes during the [[Asuka period]] was the introduction of [[Japanese Buddhist architecture|Buddhism]]. New temples became centers of worship with tomb burial practices quickly becoming outlawed.<ref name="Britannica"/> Also, Buddhism brought with it the idea of permanent shrines and gave to [[Shinto architecture]] much of its present vocabulary.

Some of the earliest structures still extant in Japan are Buddhist temples established at this time. The oldest surviving wooden buildings in the world are found at [[Hōryū-ji]], northeast of [[Nara Prefecture|Nara]]. First built in the early 7th century as the private temple of Crown [[Prince Shōtoku]], it consists of 41 independent buildings; the most important ones, the main worship hall, or [[Main Hall (Japanese Buddhism)|''Kon-dō'']] (金堂, Golden Hall), and the five-story [[Tō|pagoda]]), stand in the centre of an open area surrounded by a roofed cloister (''[[kairō]]''). The Kon-dō, in the style of [[Buddhism in China|Chinese worship]] halls, is a two-story structure of post-and-beam construction, capped by an ''[[irimoya]]'', or hipped-gabled, roof of ceramic tiles.<ref>Bussagli (1989), pp.&nbsp;163–165</ref><ref>{{Jaanus2|i/irimoyazukuri|Irimoyazukuri|April 16, 2011}}</ref>

[[Heijō-kyō]], modern day Nara, was founded in 708 as the first permanent capital of the state of Japan. The layout of its checkerboard streets and buildings were modeled after the Chinese capital of [[Chang'an]]. The city soon became an important centre of Buddhist worship in Japan.<ref>Bussagli (1989), p.&nbsp;165</ref> The most grandiose of these temples was [[Tōdai-ji]], built to rival temples of the Chinese [[Tang dynasty|Tang]] and [[Sui dynasty|Sui]] dynasties.<ref>Sickman & Soper (1956), pp.&nbsp;237–238</ref> Appropriately, the 16.2-m (53-ft) Buddha or [[Daibutsu]] (completed in 752) enshrined in the main hall is a Rushana Buddha, the figure that represents the essence of [[Buddhahood]], just as Tōdai-ji represented the centre for imperially sponsored Buddhism and its dissemination throughout Japan. Only a few fragments of the original statue survive, and the present hall and central Buddha are reconstructions from the [[Edo period]]. Clustered around the [[Main Hall (Japanese Buddhism)|main hall]] (the Daibutsuden) on a gently sloping hillside are a number of secondary halls: the Hokke-dō (Lotus Sutra Hall),<ref name="Britannica"/> and the [[Kura (storehouse)|storehouse]], called the [[Shōsō-in]], and the adjoining [[Kōfuku-ji]]. This last structure is of great importance as an art-historical cache, because in it are stored the utensils that were used in the temple's dedication ceremony in 752, as well as government documents and many secular objects owned by the imperial family.<ref>Itoh (1973), p.&nbsp;21</ref>

<gallery class="center">
File:Horyu-ji11s3200.jpg|Kon-dō and pagoda at [[Hōryū-ji]], [[Ikaruga, Nara]]<br />Built in 7th century
File:Hokiji03ds1536.jpg|Pagoda at [[Hokki-ji]], [[Ikaruga, Nara]]<br /> Built in 706
File:Yakushiji Toto.jpg|Pagoda at [[Yakushi-ji]], [[Nara, Nara]]<br /> Originally built in 730
File:Todaiji10s3200.jpg|Hokkedō at [[Tōdai-ji]], [[Nara, Nara]]<br />Founded in 743
File:Shoso-in.jpg|[[Shōsōin|Shōsō-in]] at Tōdai-ji, [[Nara, Nara]]<br />Built in 8th century
File:Toshodaiji Nara Nara pref01s5s4290.jpg|Golden Temple at [[Tōshōdai-ji]], [[Nara, Nara]]<br />Built in 8th century
</gallery>

== Heian period ==
the network of Buddhist temples across the country acted as a catalyst for an exploration of architecture and culture, this also led to the clergy gaining increased power and influence. [[Emperor Kanmu]] decided to escape this influence by moving his capital first to [[Nagaoka-kyō]] and then to [[Heian-kyō]], known today as [[Kyoto|Kyōto]]. Although the layout of the city was similar to Nara's and inspired by Chinese precedents, the palaces, temples and dwellings began to show examples of local Japanese taste.<ref name="Bussagli 166"/>

Heavy materials like [[stone]], [[Mortar (masonry)|mortar]] and [[clay]] were abandoned as building elements, with simple wooden walls, floors and partitions becoming prevalent. Native species like [[Cryptomeria|cedar]] (''sugi'') were popular as an interior finish because of its prominent grain, while [[pine]] (''matsu'') and [[larch]] (''aka matsu'') were common for structural uses. Brick roofing tiles and a type of cypress called ''[[Chamaecyparis obtusa|hinoki]]'' were used for roofs.<ref>Zwerger (2000), pp.&nbsp;34 & 35</ref> It was sometime during this period that the [[hidden roof]], a uniquely Japanese solution to roof drainage problems, was adopted.<ref>{{Jaanus2|n/noyane|Noyane|June 13, 2011}}</ref>

The increasing size of buildings in the capital led to an architecture reliant on columns regularly spaced in accordance with the ''[[Ken (architecture)|ken]]'', a traditional measure of both size and proportion. The imperial palace ''[[Heian Palace|Shishinden]]'' demonstrated a style that was a precursor to the later aristocratic-style of building known as ''[[shinden-zukuri]]''. The style was characterised by symmetrical buildings placed as arms that defined an inner garden. This garden then used [[borrowed scenery]] to seemingly blend with the wider landscape. A gradual increase in the size of buildings led to standard units of measurement as well as refinements in layout and garden design.<ref name="Bussagli 166">Bussagli (1989), p.&nbsp;166</ref>

[[File:Saikū Historical Museum - Display item04 - The palace of Saiô - Miniature model.jpg|thumb|A model of the inner structure that represents the characteristics of ''[[shinden-zukuri]]''. an open structure with few walls and openable doors and ''[[shitomi]]'' and ''[[sudare]]''. The residents take off their shoes and go inside the house on stilts, where they sit or sleep directly on tatami mats spread over only part of the room without using chairs or beds.]]
In 894, Japan abolished [[Japanese missions to Tang China|''kentōshi'' (Japanese missions to Tang China)]] and began to distance itself from Chinese culture, and a culture called ''Kokufu bunka'' (lit., Japanese culture) which was suited to the Japanese climate and aesthetic sense flourished. The ''[[shinden-zukuri]]'' style, which was the architectural style of the residences of nobles in this period, showed the distinct uniqueness of Japanese architecture and permanently determined the characteristics of later Japanese architecture. Its features are an open structure with few walls that can be opened and closed with doors and ''[[shitomi]]'' and ''[[sudare]]'', a structure in which shoes are taken off to enter the house on stilts, sitting or sleeping directly on ''[[tatami]]'' mats without using chairs and beds, a roof made of laminated [[Chamaecyparis obtusa|''hinoki'' (Japanese cypress)]] bark instead of ceramic tiles, and a natural texture that is not painted on pillars.<ref name ="kokufu">[https://web.archive.org/web/20220212181329/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%9B%BD%E9%A2%A8%E6%96%87%E5%8C%96-64185 Kokufu bunka.] Kotobank.</ref><ref name ="shinden">[https://web.archive.org/web/20210124034705/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%AF%9D%E6%AE%BF%E9%80%A0-82294 Shinden-zukuri.] Kotobank.</ref><ref name ="ota1987">Seiroku Ota (1987) ''Study of Shinden-zukuri'' {{ISBN|978-4642020992}} p.22. Yoshikawa Kōbunkan.</ref> A Buddhist architectural style called ''[[Wayō]]'', which developed in accordance with the Japanese climate and aesthetic sense, was established.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160403153650/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%92%8C%E6%A7%98%E5%BB%BA%E7%AF%89-154310 Wayo kenchiku.] Kotobank.</ref>

The priest [[Kūkai]] (best known by the posthumous title Kōbō Daishi, 774–835) journeyed to China to study [[Shingon Buddhism|Shingon]], a form of [[Vajrayana]] Buddhism, which he introduced into Japan in 806. At the core of Shingon worship are the various [[mandala]]s, diagrams of the spiritual universe that influenced temple design.<ref name="Britannica"/> The temples erected for this new sect were built in the mountains, far away from the court and the laity in the capital. The irregular topography of these sites forced their designers to rethink the problems of temple construction, and in so doing to choose more indigenous elements of design.<ref name="Bussagli 168">Bussagli (1989), p.&nbsp;168</ref>

At this time the architectural style of Buddhist temples began to influence that of the [[Shinto architecture|Shintō shrines]]. For example, like their Buddhist counterparts the Shintō shrines began to paint the normally unfinished timbers with the characteristic red [[cinnabar]] colour.<ref name="Bussagli 168" />

During the later part of the Heian period there were the first documented appearances of vernacular houses in the ''[[minka]]'' style/form. These were characterized by the use local materials and labor, being primarily constructed of wood, having packed earth floors and thatched roofs.<ref>{{Jaanus2|m/minka|Minka|April 17, 2011}}</ref>

<gallery class="center">
File:Byodo-in Uji01pbs2640.jpg|Phoenix Hall at [[Byodoin|Byōdō-in]], [[Uji, Kyoto]]<br />Built in 1053
File:Ujigami jinja01 2816.jpg|[[Ujigami Shrine]], [[Uji, Kyoto]]<br />Built in 1060
File:Itsukushima Honden Haiden.jpg|[[Itsukushima Shrine]] [[Honden]], [[Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima]]<br />Built in 1168
File:Ichijoji Kasai13bs4272.jpg|Pagoda of [[Ichijō-ji]], [[Kasai, Hyōgo|Kasai]], [[Hyōgo Prefecture|Hyōgo]]<br />Built in 1171
File:Japan Tottori MitokuSan Nageiredo DSC01248.jpg|Nageire-dō of Sanbutsu-ji, [[Misasa, Tottori]]
File:Gassho-zukuri farmhouse-01.jpg|Typical [[minka]]-style ''[[gasshō-zukuri]]'' farmhouse
</gallery>

== Kamakura and Muromachi periods ==
During the [[Kamakura period]] (1185–1333) and the following [[Muromachi period]] (1336–1573), Japanese Buddhist architecture made technological advances that made it diverge from its Chinese counterpart. In response to native requirements such as earthquake resistance and shelter against heavy rainfall and the summer heat and sun, the master carpenters of this time responded with a unique type of architecture,<ref name="bowring-kornicki">{{cite book |last1=Bowring |first1=Richard |last2=Peter |first2=Kornicki |title=The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Japan |year=1993 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |location=Cambridge, England |isbn=0-521-40352-9 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgeencyclo00an19/page/201 201–208] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgeencyclo00an19/page/201 }}</ref> creating the ''[[Daibutsuyō]]'' and ''[[Zenshūyō]]'' styles.<ref name="daibutsuyo">{{Jaanus2|d/daibutsuyou|Daibutsuyou|July 12, 2009}}</ref><ref name="zenshuyo">{{Jaanus2|z/zenshuuyou|Zenshuuyou|July 12, 2009}}</ref><ref name="coaldrake">{{cite book |last1=Coaldrake |first1=William H. |title=Architecture and Authority in Japan |url=https://archive.org/details/architectureauth00coal_484 |url-access=limited |series=Nissan Institute/Routledge Japanese Studies Series |date=September 20, 1996 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |location=Oxford, England |isbn=978-0-415-10601-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/architectureauth00coal_484/page/n119 97]–103 }}</ref> The ''[[Wayō]]'' style was combined with ''Daibutsuyō'' and the ''Zenshūyō'' to create the ''Shin-Wayō'' and the ''[[Setchūyō]]'' styles, and the number of temples in the pure ''Wayō'' style decreased after the 14th century.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211225074141/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%8A%98%E8%A1%B7%E6%A7%98%E5%BB%BA%E7%AF%89-1554567 Setchūyō.] Kotobank.</ref>

The Kamakura period began with the transfer of power in Japan from the imperial court to the [[Kamakura shogunate]]. During the [[Genpei War]] (1180–1185), many traditional buildings in Nara and Kyoto were damaged. For example, [[Kōfuku-ji]] and [[Tōdai-ji]] were burned down by [[Taira no Shigehira]] of the [[Taira clan]] in 1180. Many of these temples and shrines were later rebuilt by the Kamakura shogunate to consolidate the ''[[shōgun]]''{{'}}s authority.<ref name="Britannica"/>

Although less elaborate than during the Heian period, architecture in the Kamakura period was informed by a simplicity due to its association with the military order. New residences used a [[Shinden-zukuri|''buke-zukuri'']] style that was associated with buildings surrounded by narrow moats or stockades. Defense became a priority, with buildings grouped under a single roof rather than around a garden. The gardens of the Heian period houses often became training grounds.<ref name="Bussagli 1989 p172">Bussagli (1989), p.&nbsp;172</ref>

After the fall of the Kamakura shogunate in 1333, the [[Ashikaga shogunate]] was formed, having later its seat in the Kyoto district of Muromachi. The proximity of the shogunate to the imperial court led to a rivalry in the upper levels of society which caused tendencies toward luxurious goods and lifestyles. Aristocratic houses were adapted from the simple ''buke-zukuri'' style to resemble the earlier ''shinden-zukuri'' style. A good example of this ostentatious architecture is the [[Kinkaku-ji]] in Kyōto, which is decorated with [[lacquer]] and [[gold leaf]], in contrast to its otherwise simple structure and plain bark roofs.<ref name="Bussagli 1989 p172"/>

[[File:Takagike Kashihara JPN 001.jpg|thumb|The interior of a typical ''[[shoin-zukuri]]'' style room. There are ''[[tatami]]'' mats all over the floor, ''[[fusuma]]'' on the left, ''chigaidana'' and ''[[tokonoma]]'' in the center, and ''[[shoji]]'' on the right.]]
During the Muromachi period, ''shinden-zukuri'' style, which was the mainstream of the residences of Japanese nobles, declined, and ''[[shoin-zukuri]]'', which developed from ''buke-zukuri'' of samurai class residences, became the mainstream. ''Shoin-zukuri'' had a lasting impact on later Japanese housing and is the basis of modern Japanese housing. In the old architectural style, ''[[tatami]]'' mats were laid only in a part of the room, but in the ''shoin-zukuri'' style, ''tatami'' mats were laid all over the room. In this style, sliding doors called ''[[fusuma]]'' were used to separate rooms, and an inner window called ''[[shoji]]'', which was made by pasting paper permeable to sunlight on a wooden frame, was installed inside the wooden shutters. In the room, ''[[tokonoma]]'' (alcove for the display of art objects) and ''[[chigaidana]]'' (shelves built into the wall) were set up to decorate various things.<ref name="shoin">[https://web.archive.org/web/20211024032713/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%9B%B8%E9%99%A2%E9%80%A0-78777 Shoin-zukuri.] Kotobank.</ref><ref name ="tatami">[https://web.archive.org/web/20210624195255/https://kotobank.jp/word/%E7%95%B3-93406 tatami.] Kotobank.</ref>

In an attempt to rein in the excess of the upper classes, the Zen masters introduced the [[Japanese tea ceremony|tea ceremony]]. In architecture this promoted the design of ''[[chashitsu]]'' (tea houses) to a modest size with simple detailing and materials.<ref name="Bussagli 1989 p172"/> A typically sized ''Chashitsu'' is 4 1/2 ''tatami'' mats in size.<ref>{{Jaanus2|t/tatami|tatami|May 17, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Jaanus2|c/chashitsu|Chashitsu|May 17, 2011}}</ref>

In the garden, Zen principles replaced water with sand or gravel to produce the dry garden (''[[karesansui]]'') like the one at [[Ryōan-ji]].<ref name="Bussagli 177">Bussagli (1989), p.&nbsp;177</ref>

<gallery class="center">
File:Jōdo-ji, Jōdo Hall 002.jpg|''Jōdodō'' of [[Jōdo-ji (Ono)|Jōdo-ji]], [[Ono, Hyōgo|Ono]], [[Hyōgo Prefecture|Hyōgo]]<br />Built in 1194
File:Koyasan Danjogaran Fudodo.JPG|Danjogaran Fudo-dō in [[Mt. Kōya]], [[Wakayama Prefecture|Wakayama]]<br />Built in 1197
File:Sanjusangendo temple02s2040.jpg|[[Sanjūsangen-dō]], Kyoto<br />Built in 1266
File:Kozanji Temple (Shimonoseki).JPG|''Butsuden'' of [[Kōzan-ji (Shimonoseki)|Kōzan-ji]], [[Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi]]<br />Built in 1320
File:Shofukuji Jizo Hall Left Front.JPG|[[Shōfuku-ji (Higashimurayama)|Shōfuku-ji, Tokyo]], Completed in 1407
File:GinkakujiTemple.jpg|[[Ginkakuji|Ginkaku-ji]], Kyoto<br />Built in the 15th century
File:Negoroji03s3200.jpg|Pagoda of [[Negoro-ji]] in [[Iwade, Wakayama|Iwade]], [[Wakayama Prefecture|Wakayama]]<br />Built in 1547.
File:RyoanJi-Dry garden.jpg|[[Ryōan-ji]] dry garden in Kyoto
File:Tenryuji Kyoto41n4592.jpg|Garden of [[Tenryū-ji]] in Kyoto
</gallery>

== Azuchi-Momoyama period ==
{{Main|Azuchi–Momoyama period}}
During the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1568–1600) Japan underwent a process of unification after a long period of civil war. It was marked by the rule of [[Oda Nobunaga]] and [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]], men who built [[Japanese castle|castles]] as symbols of their power; Nobunaga in [[Azuchi Castle|Azuchi]], the seat of his government, and Hideyoshi in [[Momoyama Castle|Momoyama]]. The [[Ōnin War]] during the Muromachi period had led to rise of [[Japanese castle|castle architecture]] in Japan. By the time of the Azuchi-Momoyama period each domain was allowed to have one castle of its own. Typically it consisted of a central tower or {{nihongo|''tenshu''|天守|extra=lit. heaven defense}} surrounded by gardens and fortified buildings. All of this was set within massive stone walls and surrounded by deep moats. The dark interiors of castles were often decorated by artists, the spaces were separated up using sliding ''fusuma'' panels and ''[[byōbu]]'' folding screens.<ref name="Britannica"/>

The ''[[Shoin-zukuri]]'' style in the Muromachi period continued to be refined. Verandas linked the interiors of residential buildings with highly cultivated exterior gardens. ''Fusuma'' and ''byōbu'' became highly decorated with paintings and often an interior room with shelving and alcove (''tokonoma'') were used to display art work (typically a hanging scroll).<ref name="Britannica"/>

During this period, [[sukiya-zukuri]] style villas appeared under the influence of a tea house called ''[[chashitsu]]'' (tea house).<ref name ="sukiya"/>

[[Matsumoto Castle|Matsumoto]], [[Kumamoto Castle|Kumamoto]] and [[Himeji Castle|Himeji]] (popularly known as the White Heron castle) are excellent examples of the castles of the period, while [[Nijō Castle]] in Kyōto is an example of castle architecture blended with that of an imperial palace, to produce a style that is more in keeping with the Chinese influence of previous centuries.<ref name="Bussagli 177" />

<gallery class="center">
File:Himeji Castle 01s2048.jpg|[[Himeji Castle]] in [[Himeji]], [[Hyōgo Prefecture|Hyōgo]], <br />Completed in 1618
File:Matsumoto Castle05s5s4592.jpg|[[Matsumoto Castle]] in [[Matsumoto, Nagano]], <br />Completed in 1600
File:Kumamoto Castle 02n3200.jpg|Dry stone walls of [[Kumamoto Castle]], <br />Completed in 1600.
File:Nijo Castle.jpg|Ninomaru Palace within [[Nijō Castle]], Kyoto
File:Byobu.jpg|A six-panel [[byōbu]] from the 17th century
</gallery>

== Edo period ==
[[File:Fabric shop in Nara.jpg|thumb|Typical ''[[machiya]]'' in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]]]]
[[File:Edo l235-1239.jpg|thumb|Upper residence of Matsudaira Tadamasa as depicted in the ''Edo-zu byōbu'' screens (17th century)]]
The [[Tokugawa shogunate]] took the city of [[Edo]] (later to become part of modern-day Tōkyō) as their capital. They built an imposing fortress around which buildings of the state administration and residences for the provincial ''[[daimyō]]s'' were constructed. The city grew around these buildings connected by a network of roads and canals. By 1700 the population had swollen to one million inhabitants. The scarcity of space for residential architecture resulted in houses being built over two stories, often constructed on raised stone plinths.<ref name="Bussagli 177" />

Although ''[[machiya]]'' (townhouses) had been around since the Heian period they began to be refined during the [[Edo period]]. ''Machiya'' typically occupied deep, narrow plots abutting the street (the width of the plot was usually indicative of the wealth of the owner), often with a workshop or shop on the ground floor. Tiles rather than thatch were used on the roof and exposed timbers were often plastered in an effort to protect the building against fire.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aisf.or.jp/%7Ejaanus/deta/m/machiya.htm |title=JAANUS / Machiya 町家 |access-date=2011-05-18 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516063458/http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/m/machiya.htm |archive-date=May 16, 2011  }}. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Retrieved on May 18, 2011.</ref> Ostentatious buildings that demonstrated the wealth and power of the feudal lords were constructed, such as the [[Kamiyashiki of Matsudaira Tadamasa]] or the [[Ōzone Shimoyashiki]].

Edo suffered badly from devastating fires and the 1657 [[Great Fire of Meireki]] was a turning point in urban design. Initially, as a method of reducing fire spread, the government built stone embankments in at least two locations along rivers in the city. Over time these were torn down and replaced with ''dōzō'' storehouses that were used both as fire breaks and to store goods unloaded from the canals. The ''dōzō'' were built with a structural frame made of timber coated with a number of layers of earthen plaster on the walls, door and roof. Above the earthen roofs was a timber framework supporting a tiled roof.<ref>Itoh (1973), pp.&nbsp;71, 72, 75 & 76</ref> Although Japanese who had studied with the Dutch at their settlement in [[Dejima]] advocated building with stone and brick this was not undertaken because of their vulnerability to earthquakes.<ref>Itoh (1973), p.&nbsp;82</ref> ''Machiya'' and storehouses from the later part of the period are characterised by having a black coloration to the external plaster walls. This colour was made by adding [[India ink]] to [[Calcium oxide|burnt lime]] and crushed oyster shell.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aisf.or.jp/%7Ejaanus/deta/e/edoguro.htm |title=JAANUS / Edoguro 江戸黒 |access-date=2011-05-18 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111213194614/http://www.aisf.or.jp/%7Ejaanus/deta/e/edoguro.htm |archive-date=December 13, 2011  }}. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Retrieved on May 18, 2011.</ref>

The clean lines of the civil architecture in Edo influenced the ''[[Sukiya-zukuri|sukiya]]'' style of residential architecture. [[Katsura Imperial Villa|Katsura Detached Palace]] and [[Shugakuin Imperial Villa|Shugaku-in Imperial Villa]] on the outskirts of Kyōto are good examples of this style. Their architecture has simple lines and decor and uses wood in its natural state.<ref>Bussagli (1989), p.&nbsp;178</ref> The ''sukiya'' style was applied not only to villas but also to ''[[ryōtei]]'' (Japanese-style restaurants) and ''chashitsu'', and later it was also applied to residences.<ref name ="sukiya"/>

In the very late part of the period ''[[sankin-kōtai]]'', the law requiring the ''daimyōs'' to maintain dwellings in the capital was repealed which resulted in a decrease in population in Edo and a commensurate reduction in income for the shogunate.<ref>Stewart (2002), p.&nbsp;13</ref>

<gallery class="center">
File:Matsue castle01bs4592.jpg|Tenshu of [[Matsue Castle]] in [[Matsue, Shimane|Matsue]], [[Shimane Prefecture]]<br />Built in 1607
File:Hirosakijo.jpg|Tenshu of [[Hirosaki Castle]] in [[Hirosaki]], [[Aomori Prefecture|Aomori]]<br />Completed in 1611
File:Genkyuen03s3000.jpg|[[Hikone Castle]] in [[Hikone, Shiga|Hikone]], [[Shiga Prefecture|Shiga]]<br />Completed in 1622
File:Kiyomizu-dera (18199680391).jpg|Hondo of [[Kiyomizu-dera]], [[Kyoto]], Built in 1633
File:Enryakuji Konponchudo04n4272.jpg|Konponchudo of [[Enryaku-ji]] in [[Ōtsu, Shiga|Ōtsu]], [[Shiga Prefecture|Shiga]]<br />Built in 1641
File:NikkoYomeimon5005.jpg|Yomeimon of [[Tōshō-gū]], [[Nikkō, Tochigi]]
File:Shokin-tei.jpg|Inside the Shokintei at [[Katsura Imperial Villa]], Kyoto<br />Built in 17th century
File:Kochi Castle04s3872.jpg|Tenshu of [[Kōchi Castle]] in [[Kōchi, Kōchi|Kōchi]], [[Kōchi Prefecture]]<br />Built in 1748
File:Engyoji05s4592.jpg|Three halls of [[Engyō-ji]] in [[Himeji]], [[Hyōgo Prefecture|Hyōgo]], Completed in 18th century
File:Edogura.jpg|Townhouse with black (edoguro) colouring to upper floor
</gallery>

== Meiji, Taishō, and early Shōwa periods ==
{{main|Japanese-Western Eclectic Architecture|Imperial Crown Style}} 
Towards the end of the Tokugawa shogunate, Western influence in architecture began to show in buildings associated with the military and trade, especially naval and industrial facilities. After the [[Emperor Meiji]] was restored to power (known as the [[Meiji Restoration]]) Japan began a rapid process of [[Westernization]] which led to the need for new building types such as schools, banks and hotels.<ref>Bognar (1995), pp.&nbsp;12 & 13</ref>
Early Meiji Architecture was initially influenced by colonial architecture in Chinese treaty ports such as Hong Kong. In [[Nagasaki]], the British trader [[Thomas Blake Glover|Thomas Glover]] built his own [[Glover Garden|house]] in just such a style using the skill of local carpenters. His influence helped the career of architect {{Interlanguage link multi|Thomas Waters|2=ja|3=トーマス・ウォートルス |preserve=1}} who designed the [[Japan Mint|Osaka Mint]] in 1868, a long, low building in brick and stone with a central [[pediment]]ed [[portico]].<ref>Stewart (2002), p.&nbsp;19</ref> In Tōkyō, Waters designed the Commercial Museum, thought to have been the city's first brick building.<ref>Stewart (2002), p.&nbsp;20</ref>

In Tokyo, after the [[Tsukiji]] area burnt to the ground in 1872, the government designated the [[Ginza]] area as model of modernization. The government planned the construction of fireproof brick buildings, and larger, better streets connecting the [[Shimbashi Station]] and the foreign [[Concession (territory)|concession]] in Tsukiji, as well as to important government buildings. Designs for the area were provided by the British architect [[Thomas James Waters]]; the Bureau of Construction of the Ministry of Finance was in charge of construction. In the following year, a Western-style Ginza was completed. "Bricktown" buildings were initially offered for sale, later they were leased, but the high rent meant that many remained unoccupied. Nevertheless, the area flourished as a symbol of "civilization and enlightenment", thanks to the presence of newspapers and magazine companies, who led the trends of the day. The area was also known for its window displays, an example of modern marketing techniques. The "Bricktown" of Ginza served as a model for many other modernization schemes in Japanese cities.

[[File:Tokyo-Rokumeikan-zenmen-no-kei-1883-1900.png|thumb|''Rokumeikan'' in 1883–1900]]

One of the prime examples of early western architecture was the ''[[Rokumeikan]]'', a large two-story building in Tokyo, completed in 1883, which was to become a controversial symbol of Westernisation in the [[Meiji period]]. Commissioned for the housing of foreign guests by the Foreign Minister [[Inoue Kaoru]], it was designed by {{Interlanguage link multi|Josiah Conder (architect)  {{!}}Josiah Conder|2=ja|3=ジョサイア・コンドル|preserve=1}}, a prominent [[foreign government advisors in Meiji Japan]] (''o-yatoi gaikokujin''). The ''[[Ryōunkaku]]'' was Japan's first western-style skyscraper, constructed in 1890 in [[Asakusa]]. However traditional architecture was still employed for new buildings, such as the ''Kyūden'' of [[Tokyo Imperial Palace]], albeit with token western elements such as a spouting water fountain in the gardens.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tokyo_Imperial_Palace_pic_08.jpg|title=English: Bird's-eye view of the Meiji palace which was completed in October 1888.|first=Ukiyo-e|last=artist|year=1888 |via=Wikimedia Commons|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120619084056/http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tokyo_Imperial_Palace_pic_08.jpg|archive-date=June 19, 2012}}</ref>

[[File:250424 Former Kaichi School Matsumoto Nagano pref Japan12s5.jpg|thumb|left|Kaichi Primary School, [[Matsumoto, Nagano|Matsumoto]], built in 1876]]

In contrast to Waters's neoclassical style building, Japanese carpenters developed a pseudo-Japanese style known as [[Giyōfū architecture|''giyōfū'']]<ref>Stewart (2002), p.&nbsp;22</ref> chiefly using wood. A good example of which is [[Kaichi School Museum|Kaichi Primary School]] in Nagano Prefecture built in 1876. The master carpenter Tateishi Kiyoshige travelled to Tōkyō to see which Western building styles were popular and incorporated these in the school with traditional building methods. Constructed with a similar method to traditional ({{nihongo|''[[kura (storehouse)|kura]]''|倉|}}) storehouses, the wooden building plastered inside and out incorporates an octagonal Chinese tower and has stone-like [[Quoin (architecture)|quoins]] to the corners.<ref>Bognar (1995), p.&nbsp;164</ref> Traditional [[Namako wall|namako]] plasterwork was used at the base of the walls to give the impression that the building sits on a stone base.<ref>Stewart (2002), p.&nbsp;27</ref> Another example was the [[First National Bank Building (Tokyo)|First National Bank building in Tokyo]], built in 1872.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dai-ichi_Kokuritsu_Ginko.JPG|title=English: Dai-ichi Kokuritsu Ginko (First National Bank in Japan)|last=Unknown|via=Wikimedia Commons|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120619080519/http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dai-ichi_Kokuritsu_Ginko.JPG|archive-date=June 19, 2012}}</ref>
[[File:140927 Nara National Museum Nara Japan01bs5.jpg|thumb|[[Nara National Museum]] in [[Nara, Nara|Nara]], {{Interlanguage link multi|Tōkuma Katayama|2=ja|3=片山東熊 |preserve=1}}, built in 1894]]
The Japanese government also invited foreign architects to both work in Japan and teach new Japanese architects. One of these, the British architect {{Interlanguage link multi|Josiah Conder (architect) {{!}}Josiah Conder|2=ja|3=ジョサイア・コンドル|preserve=1}} went on to train many of the most prominent of the Japanese Meiji era architects, including [[Tatsuno Kingo|Kingo Tatsuno]], [[Sone Tatsuzō|Tatsuzō Sone]] and [[Katayama Tokuma|Tokuma Katayama]]. Tatsuno's early works had a Venetian style influenced by [[John Ruskin]], but his later works such as the [[Bank of Japan]] (1896) and [[Tōkyō Station]] (1914) have a more [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]] feel.<ref>Stewart (2002), pp.&nbsp;48–54</ref> On the other hand, Katayama was more influenced by the French [[Second Empire (architecture)|Second Empire]] style which can be seen in the [[Nara National Museum]] (1894) and the [[Kyoto National Museum|Kyōto National Museum]] (1895).<ref>Stewart (2002), pp.&nbsp;55–58</ref>

In 1920, a group of young architects formed the first organization of modernist architects. They were known as the ''Bunriha'', literally "Secessionist group", inspired in part by the [[Viennese Secession|Vienna Secessionists]]. These architects were worried about the reliance on historical styles and decoration and instead encouraged artistic expression. They drew their influence from European movements like [[Expressionism]] and the [[Bauhaus]]<ref>Reynolds (2001), pp.&nbsp;21–24</ref> and helped pave the way towards the introduction of the [[International Style (architecture)|International Style]] of Modernism.<ref name="Bognar 1995, p 14">Bognar (1995), p.&nbsp;14</ref>

[[File:Yamamura house06s3200.jpg|thumb|right|Yamamura House, Ashiya, Frank Lloyd Wright, built in 1924]]

In the [[Taishō period|Taishō]] and early [[Shōwa period|Shōwa]] periods two influential American architects worked in Japan. The first was [[Frank Lloyd Wright]] who designed the [[Imperial Hotel, Tokyo]] (1913–1923) and the [[Yodokō Guest House]] (1924), both of which used locally quarried [[Ōya Stone|Ōya stone]].<ref>Tanigawa (2008), p.&nbsp;53</ref> Wright had a number of Japanese apprentices under his tutelage, such as [[Arata Endo]], who constructed the [[Kōshien Hotel]] in 1930.

The second was [[Antonin Raymond]] who worked for Wright on the Imperial Hotel before leaving to set up his own practice in Tōkyō. Although his early works like Tōkyō Women's Christian College show Wright's influence,<ref>Stewart (2002), p.&nbsp;101–106</ref> he soon began to experiment with the use of in-situ reinforced concrete, detailing it in way that recalled traditional Japanese construction methods.<ref>Frampton (1990), p.&nbsp;258</ref> Between 1933 and 1937 [[Bruno Taut]] stayed in Japan. His writings, especially those on [[Katsura Imperial Villa]] reevaluated traditional Japanese architecture whilst bringing it to a wider audience.<ref name="Bognar 1995, p 15">Bognar (1995), p.&nbsp;15</ref>

As in the Meiji era experience from abroad was gained by Japanese architects working in Europe. Among these were [[Kunio Maekawa]] and [[Junzo Sakakura]] who worked at [[Le Corbusier]]'s atelier in Paris and [[Bunzō Yamaguchi]] and Chikatada Kurata who worked with [[Walter Gropius]].<ref name="Bognar 1995, p 15"/>

Some architects built their reputation upon works of public architecture. [[Togo Murano]], a contemporary of Raymond, was influenced by [[Rationalism (architecture)|Rationalism]] and designed the Morigo Shoten office building, Tōkyō (1931) and Ube Public Hall, Yamaguchi Prefecture (1937). Similarly, Tetsuro Yoshida's rationalist modern architecture included the {{ill|Tōkyō Central Post Office|ja|東京中央郵便局}} (1931) and Ōsaka Central Post Office (1939).<ref name="Bognar 1995, p 14"/>

[[File:Tokyo National Museum, Honkan 2010.jpg|thumb|Main building of [[Tokyo National Museum]], built in 1937]]

Running contrary to modernism in Japan was the so-called [[Imperial Crown style]] (''teikan yōshiki''). Buildings in this style were characterised by having a Japanese-style roof such as the [[Tokyo National Museum|Tōkyō Imperial Museum]] (1937) by Hitoshi Watanabe and [[Nagoya City Hall]] and the [[Aichi Prefectural Government Office]]. The increasingly militaristic government insisted that major buildings be designed in a "Japanese Style" limiting opportunities for modernist design to works of infrastructure<ref>Bognar (1995), p.&nbsp;97</ref> such as Bunzō Yamaguchi's Number 2 Power Plant for the [[Kurobe Dam]], (1938).<ref>Japan Architect (2005), p.&nbsp;56</ref>

A large number of buildings from the Meiji, Taishō and Shōwa eras were lost during and after World War II, such as the Rokumeikan. Taniguchi Yoshirō (谷口 吉郎, 1904–79), an architect, and Moto Tsuchikawa established [[Meiji Mura]] in 1965, close to Nagoya, where a large number of rescued buildings are re-assembled. A similar museum is the [[Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum]].

=== Colonial architecture ===
[[File:Manchukuo Hsinking avenue.jpg|thumb|Datong Avenue in Shinkyō (Xinjing), Manchukuo (1939)]]

The colonial authorities constructed a large number of public buildings, many of which have survived. Examples include the large-scale concept of what is today [[Ketagalan Boulevard]] in central [[Zhongzheng District]] of [[Taipei]] that showcases the [[Presidential Office Building, Taipei|Office of the Governor-General]], [[National Taiwan Museum|Taiwan Governor Museum]], [[National Taiwan University Hospital]], [[Taipei Guest House]], [[Judicial Yuan]], the [[Nippon Kangyo Bank]] and [[Mitsui Bussan]] Company buildings, as well as many examples of [[Qidong Street Japanese Houses|smaller houses found on Qidong Street]].

In [[Korean architecture#Colonial period architecture|Korea under Japanese administration]], public buildings such as train stations and city halls were also constructed in various styles. Although the largest Japanese colonial building, the immense [[Japanese General Government Building, Seoul|Government-General Building]], was demolished in 1995, many colonial buildings have been preserved. These include the former Keijo City Hall, today [[Seoul Metropolitan Library]]; the former Keijo station, today [[Seoul Station#Old Seoul Station|Old Seoul Station]]; the former Bank of Chosen, designed by [[Tatsuno Kingo]], today the headquarters of the [[Bank of Korea]]; and the former branch of [[Mitsukoshi]] department store, today the flagship of [[Shinsegae]] department store.

After winning [[Dalian]] as the result of the [[Russo-Japanese War]] of 1904–05, Japan continued to build the Russian-built city with the [[Modern Buildings on Zhongshan Square in Dalian|modern buildings on "Large Square"]]. With the conquest and establishment of the puppet state [[Manchukuo]], massive funds and efforts were invested into the master plan for the construction of the capital city of Shinkyō ([[Changchun|Xinjing]]). Many official buildings erected during the colonial period still stand today, including those of the [[Eight Grand Ministries]] of Manchukuo, the [[Museum of the Imperial Palace of the Manchu State|Imperial Palace]], the headquarters of the [[Kwantung Army]] and Datong Avenue.

<gallery class="center">
File:Taipei Taiwan Presidential-Office-Building-01.jpg|[[Presidential Office Building (Republic of China)|Presidential Office Building]] in Taipei, built in 1919
File:臺灣總督府臺北醫院.jpg|[[National Taiwan University Hospital]] in Taipei, built in 1921
File:Taipei_Guest_House_Front_Near_View.jpg|[[Taipei Guest House]] in Taipei, built in 1901
File:08.01 總統出席「國家人權委員會揭牌典禮」 (50174832218).jpg|[[Control Yuan]] Building in Taipei, built in 1915
File:國立臺灣博物館正門.jpg|[[National Taiwan Museum]] Building in Taipei, built in 1915
File:Judicial Yuan Building central 20230503.jpg|[[Judicial Yuan]] Building in Taipei, built in 1934
File:專賣局(今臺灣菸酒股份有限公司)古蹟.jpg|[[Monopoly Bureau]] Building in Taipei, built in 1915
File:Former Osaka Shosen Taipei Branch restoration 20190525b.jpg|Former Osaka Shosen (now [[Mitsui O.S.K. Lines]]) Office Building in Taipei, built in 1937
File:Taichung prefectural hall 1 cathypeng81.jpg|[[Taichung Prefectural Hall]] in Taichung, built in 1913
File:台中市役所 (4).jpg|[[Taichung Shiyakusho]] in Taichung, built in 1911
File:臺南州廳西側入口2.jpg|[[National Museum of Taiwan Literature]] Building in Tainan, built in 1916
File:Seoul-City.Hall-02.jpg|[[Seoul]] Metropolitan Library, built in 1925 
File:Manchukuo State Council Building cropped.jpg|[[Manchukuo]] State Council building, [[Changchun]] 
File:Краеведческий музей Южно-Сахалинска.jpg|The Museum of [[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]], completed in 1937 
File:Yokohama Specie Bank Dalian.JPG|Bank of China [[Dalian]] branch, designed by [[Tsumaki Yorinaka]] in 1909 
File:Kyoto National Museum 01.jpg|[[Kyoto National Museum]] in Kyōto, [[Tōkuma Katayama]], built in 1895
File:Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.jpg|Bank of Japan, [[Tokyo]], [[Kingo Tatsuno]], built in 1896
File:Osaka prefectural nakanoshima library01 1920.jpg|[[Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library]], [[Osaka]], {{ill|Magoichi Noguchi|ja|野口孫市}}, built in 1904
File:Imperial Hotel Wright House.jpg|[[Imperial Hotel, Tokyo|Imperial Hotel, Tōkyō]], [[Frank Lloyd Wright]], built between 1913 and 1924
File:Sumitomo bld02s3200.jpg|Sumitomo Building, Osaka, {{ill|Eikichi Hasebe|ja|長谷部鋭吉  }}, built in 1924
<!--File:Morigo Building.jpg|Morigo Shoten Building, Tōkyō, Togo Murano, built in 1931-->
File:Diet of Japan Kokkai 2009.jpg|[[National Diet Building]] in Tōkyō, [[Kenkichi Yabashi]], {{ill|Yoshikuni Okuma|ja| 大熊喜邦}}, built in 1936
File:090408 aichi kenchou.jpg|Main building of Aichi Prefectural Office, {{ill|Yoshitoki Nishimura|ja|西村好時}}, [[Jin Watanabe (architect)|Jin Watanabe]], built in 1938
File:Kurobe Daini Hydropowerstation.jpg|[[Kurobe Dam]] No 2 Power Plant, {{ill|Bunzō Yamaguchi|ja| 山口文象 }}, built in 1938
File:Japanese-style House in Sujeong-dong, Busan.jpg|Jeong Ran Gak House in [[Busan]],  built in 1943
</gallery>

==Late Showa period==
[[File:Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum 2009.jpg|thumb|[[Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum]], built in 1955]]
After the war and under the influence of the [[Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers]], General [[Douglas MacArthur]], Japanese political and religious life was reformed to produce a demilitarised and democratic country. Although a new [[Constitution of Japan|constitution]] was established in 1947, it was not until the beginning of the [[Korean War]] that Japan (as an ally of the United States) saw a growth in its economy brought about by the manufacture of industrial goods.<ref>Hein, Diefendorf & Yorifusa (2003), p.&nbsp;2</ref> In 1946 the Prefabricated Housing Association was formed to try and address the chronic shortage of housing, and architects like Kunio Maekawa submitted designs. However, it was not until the passing of the Public Housing Act in 1951 that housing built by the private sector was supported in law by the government.<ref>Hein, Diefendorf & Yorifusa (2003), p.&nbsp;25</ref> Also in 1946, the War Damage Rehabilitation Board put forward ideas for the reconstruction of thirteen Japanese cities. Architect [[Kenzo Tange|Kenzō Tange]] submitted proposals for [[Hiroshima]] and [[Maebashi, Gunma|Maebashi]].<ref>Hein, Diefendorf & Yorifusa (2003), p.&nbsp;29</ref>

In 1949, Tange's winning competition entry to design the [[Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum]] gave him international acclaim. The project (completed in 1955) led to a series of commissions including the Kagawa Prefectural Office Building in Takamatsu (1958) and Old Kurashiki City Hall (1960). At this time both Tange and Maekawa were interested in the tradition of Japanese architecture and the influence of local character. This was illustrated at Kagawa with elements of Heian period design fused with the International Style.<ref>Frampton (1985), p.&nbsp;260</ref>

[[File:National museum of western art05s3200.jpg|thumb|left|[[National Museum of Western Art]], Tōkyō, built in 1955]]
In 1955, Le Corbusier was asked by the Japanese government to design the [[National Museum of Western Art]] in Tōkyō. He was assisted by his three former students: Maekawa, Sakakura and [[Takamasa Yoshizaka]]. The design was based upon Le Corbusier's museum in [[Sanskar Kendra|Ahmedabad]], and both of the museums are square and raised on [[piloti]].<ref>Reynolds (2001), pp.&nbsp;177 & 178</ref>

Due largely to the influence of Tange, the 1960 World Design Conference was held in Tōkyō. A small group of Japanese designers who came to represent the [[Metabolist Movement]] presented their manifesto and a series of projects. The group included the architects [[Kiyonori Kikutake]], [[Masato Ōtaka]], [[Kisho Kurokawa]] and [[Fumihiko Maki]]. Originally known as the Burnt Ash School, the Metabolists associated themselves with idea of renewal and regeneration, rejecting visual representations of the past and promoting the idea that the individual, the house and the city were all parts of a single organism. Although the individual members of the group went in their own directions after a few years the enduring nature of their publications meant that they had a longer presence overseas. The international symbol of the Metabolists, the capsule, emerged as an idea in the late 1960s and was demonstrated in Kurokawa's [[Nakagin Capsule Tower]] in Tōkyō in 1972.<ref>Goldhagen & Legault (2000), pp.&nbsp;279–297</ref>

In the 1960s Japan saw both the rise and the expansion of large construction firms, including the [[Shimizu Corporation]] and [[Kajima]]. [[Nikken Sekkei]] emerged as a comprehensive company that often included elements of Metabolist design in its buildings.<ref>Bognar (1995), p.&nbsp;19</ref>
[[File:Kokuritsu Yoyogi Kyōgijō 1.jpg|thumb|Yoyogi National Gymnasium, built for the 1964 Summer Olympics]]
The [[1964 Summer Olympics]] in Tokyo saw a large boost to new design. Venues were constructed and the [[Yoyogi National Gymnasium]], built between 1961 and 1964 by [[Kenzo Tange]], became a landmark structure famous for its suspension roof design, recalling traditional elements of Shinto shrines. Other structures include the [[Nippon Budokan]], the [[Komazawa Gymnasium]] and many others. The Olympic Games symbolised the re-emergence of Japan after the destruction of World War II, reflecting the new confidence in its architecture.

During the 1960s there were also architects who did not see the world of architecture in terms of Metabolism. For example, [[Kazuo Shinohara]] specialised in small residential projects in which he explored traditional architecture with simple elements in terms of space, abstraction and symbolism. In the Umbrella House (1961) he explored the spatial relationship between the ''[[Minka|doma]]'' (earth-paved internal floor) and the raised [[tatami]] floor in the living room and sleeping room. This relationship was explored further with the House with an Earthen floor (1963) where a tamped-down earthen floor was included in the kitchen area. His use of a roof to anchor his design for the House in White (1966) has been compared with Frank Lloyd Wright's [[Prairie Houses]]. Shinohara explored these abstractions as "Three Styles", which were periods of design that stretched from the early sixties to the mid seventies.<ref>Stewart (2002), pp.&nbsp;198–205, 268 & 269</ref>

A former employee of Kenzo Tange was [[Arata Isozaki]] who was initially interested in the Metabolist Movement and produced innovative theoretical projects for the City in the Air (1961) and Future City (1962). However he soon moved away from this towards a more [[Mannerism (architecture)|Mannerist]] approach similar to the work of [[James Stirling (architect)|James Stirling]]. This was particularly striking at the Oita Branch for Fukuoka Mutual (1967) with its mathematical grids, concrete construction and exposed services. In the Gunma Prefectural Museum (1971–74) he experimented with cubic elements (some of them twelve metres to a side) overlaid by a secondary grid expressed by the external wall panels and [[Fenestration (architecture)|fenestration]]. This rhythm of panelling may have been influenced by Corbusier's detailing on the Museum of Western Art in Tōkyō.<ref>Stewart (2002), pp.&nbsp;223–226, 251–255</ref>

Japanese cities where they lack European-like [[piazza]]s and squares often emphasise the relationship of people with the everyday workings of the street. Fumihiko Maki was one of a number of architects who were interested in the relationship of architecture and the city and this can be seen in works like Ōsaka Prefectural Sports Centre (1972) and [[Spiral (building)|Spiral]] in Tōkyō (1985). Likewise, [[Takefumi Aida]] (member of the group known as ArchiteXt) rejected the ideas of the Metabolist Movement and explored urban [[semiology]].<ref>Bognar (1995), pp.&nbsp;21&22</ref>

[[File:Rokko Housing Tadao Ando.jpg|thumb|left|Rokkō Housing 1, Kōbe, built in 1985]]
In the late seventies and early eighties [[Tadao Ando]]'s architecture and theoretical writings explored the idea of [[Critical regionalism]] – the idea of promoting local or national culture within architecture. Ando's interpretation of this was demonstrated by his idea of reacquainting the Japanese house with nature, a relationship he thought had been lost with [[Modernist architecture]]. His first projects were for small urban houses with enclosed courtyards (such as the Azuma House in Ōsaka in 1976). His architecture is characterised by the use of concrete, but it has been important for him to use the interplay of light, through time, with this and other materials in his work.<ref>Frampton (1985), p.&nbsp;324</ref> His ideas about the integration of nature converted well into larger projects such as the Rokkō Housing 1 (1983) (on a steep site on [[Mount Rokkō]]) and the Church on the Water (1988) in Tomamu, [[Hokkaido|Hokkaidō]].<ref>Bognar (1995), pp.&nbsp;23, 47 & 227</ref>

The late eighties saw the first work by architects of the so-called "Shinohara" school. This included [[Toyo Ito|Toyō Itō]] and [[Itsuko Hasegawa]] who were both interested in urban life and the contemporary city. Itō concentrated on the dynamism and mobility of the city's "urban nomads" with projects like the Tower of Winds (1986) which integrated natural elements like light and wind with those of technology. Hasegawa concentrated on what she termed "architecture as another nature". Her Shōnandai Cultural Centre in Fujisawa (1991) combined the natural environment with new high-tech materials.<ref>Bognar (1995), p.&nbsp;28</ref>

Highly individualist architects of the late eighties included the monumental buildings of [[Shin Takamatsu]] and the "cosmic" work of Masaharu Takasaki.<ref>Bognar (1995), pp.&nbsp;29 & 305</ref> Takasaki, who worked with the Austrian architect [[Günther Domenig]] in the 1970s shares Domenig's organic architecture. His Zero Cosmology House of 1991 in [[Kagoshima Prefecture]] constructed from concrete has a contemplative egg-shaped "zero space" at its centre.<ref>Takasaki (1998), p.&nbsp;29–43</ref>

<gallery class="center">
File:Kanagawa Concert Hall 2009.jpg|Kanagawa Prefectural Library and Music Hall, Yokohama, built in 1954
File:26 martyrs museum.jpg|[[Twenty-Six Martyrs Museum and Monument]], Nagasaki, built in 1962
File:Kobe port tower11s3200.jpg|[[Kobe Port Tower]], Kōbe, built in 1963

File:Azuma house.JPG|[[Row House in Sumiyoshi|Azuma House]], Ōsaka, built in 1976
File:Kirin Plaza.JPG|Kirin Plaza, Ōsaka, built in 1987 (now demolished)
File:ゼロのいえ - Zero House - ZERO COSMOLOGY.jpg|Zero House, Kagoshima, built in 1991
</gallery>

==Heisei period==
[[File:Sendai Mediatheque 2009.jpg|thumb|right|Sendai Mediatheque, Sendai, 2001]]
[[File:Rolex Learning Center 07-2009.jpg|thumb|right|Rolex Learning Centre, Lausanne, 2010]]
The [[Heisei period]] began with the collapse of the so-called [[Economic bubble|"bubble economy"]] that had previously boosted Japan's economy. Commissions for commercial works of architecture virtually dried up and architects relied upon government and [[Prefectures of Japan|prefectural]] organisations to provide projects.<ref>Slessor (2001), p.&nbsp;44</ref>

Building on elements from the Shōnandai Culture Centre, Itsuko Hasegawa undertook a number cultural and community centres throughout Japan. These included the Sumida Cultural Centre (1995) and the Fukuroi Community Centre (2001) where she involved the public in the process of design whilst exploring her own ideas about the filtration of light through the external walls into the interior.<ref>Slessor (2001), pp.&nbsp;57–60</ref> In his 1995 competition win for [[Sendai Mediatheque]], Toyō Itō continued his earlier thoughts about fluid dynamics within the modern city with "seaweed-like" columns supporting a seven-story building wrapped in glass.<ref>Webb (2001), pp.&nbsp;46–51</ref> His work later in the period, for example, the library to [[Tama Art University]] in Tōkyō in 2007 demonstrates more expressive forms, rather than the engineered aesthetic of his earlier works.<ref>Gregory (2007), pp.&nbsp;47–54</ref>

Although Tadao Ando became well known for his use of concrete, he began the decade designing the Japanese pavilion at the [[Seville Expo '92|Seville Exposition 1992]], with a building that was hailed as "the largest wooden structure in the world". He continued with this medium in projects for the Museum of Wood Culture, Kami, Hyōgo Prefecture (1994) and the Komyo-ji Shrine in Saijo (2001).<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20041224215751/http://www.famusoa.net/achin/courses/ando/walker.pdf Essay by Keith H. Walker for the Hyatt Foundation, Chicago, sponsors of the Pritzker Architecture Prize]. Retrieved on May 21, 2011</ref><ref>[http://www.expo2000.de/expo2000/geschichte/detail.php?wa_id=19&lang=1&s_typ=31 The History of the World Expostions] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110527174311/http://www.expo2000.de/expo2000/geschichte/detail.php?wa_id=19&lang=1&s_typ=31 |date=May 27, 2011 }}, Retrieved on May 21, 2011</ref>

The UK practice, [[Foreign Office Architects]] won an international competition in 1994 to design the [[Ōsanbashi Pier|Yokohama International Port Terminal]]. It is an undulating structure that emerges from the surrounding city and forms a building to walk over as well as into.<ref>Sumner & Pollock (2010), p.&nbsp;54</ref> Klein Dytham Architecture are one of a handful of foreign architects who managed to gain a strong foothold in Japan. Their design for Moku Moku Yu (literally "wood wood steam"), a communal bathhouse in Kobuchizawa, Yamanashi Prefecture in 2004 is a series of interconnected circular pools and changing rooms, flat-roofed and clad in coloured vertical timbers.<ref>Sumner & Pollock (2010), p.&nbsp;112</ref>

After the 1995 [[Great Hanshin earthquake|Kōbe earthquake]], [[Shigeru Ban]] developed cardboard tubes that could be used to quickly construct refugee shelters that were dubbed "Paper Houses". Also as part of that relief effort he designed a church using 58 cardboard tubes that were 5m high and had a tensile roof that opened up like an umbrella. The church was erected by Roman Catholic volunteers in five weeks.<ref>Thompson (2000), pp.&nbsp;93–101</ref> For the [[Nomadic Museum]], Ban used walls made of shipping containers, stacked four high and joined at the corners with twist connectors that produced a checkerboard effect of solid and void. The ancillary spaces were made with paper tubes and honeycomb panels. The museum was designed to be disassembled and it subsequently moved from New York, to Santa Monica, Tōkyō and Mexico.<ref>Webb (2006), pp.&nbsp;48–52</ref>

Historian and architect [[Terunobu Fujimori]]'s studies in the 1980s into so-called architectural curios found in the city inspired the work of a younger generation of architects such as the founders of [[Atelier Bow-Wow]]. Yoshiharu Tsukamoto and Momoyo Kajima surveyed the city for "no-good" architecture for their book ''Made in Tokyo'' in 2001. Their work in turn seeks to embrace its context rather than block it out. Although their office in Tōkyō is on a tight site they have welcomed the city in with huge windows and spacious porches.<ref>Sumner & Pollock (2010), pp.&nbsp;16, 17 & 23</ref>

[[Sou Fujimoto]]'s architecture relies upon a manipulation of basic building blocks to produce a geometric [[primitivism]]. His buildings are very sensitive to the topographical form of their context and include a series of houses as well as a children's home in [[Hokkaido|Hokkaidō]].<ref>Gregory (2007), pp.&nbsp;56–61</ref>

Two former employees of Toyō Itō, [[Kazuyo Sejima]] and [[Ryue Nishizawa]] formed a collaborative partnership in 1995 called [[SANAA]]. They are known for creating lightweight, transparent spaces that expose the fluidity and movement of their occupants. Their [[Christian Dior S.A.|Dior]] store in Shibuya, Tōkyō, in 2001 was reminiscent of Itō's Mediatheque, with cool white acrylic sheets on the external facade that filter the light and partially reveal the store's contents.<ref>Sumner & Pollock (2010), pp.&nbsp;14, 15, 236, 237</ref> Their dynamic of fluidity is demonstrated by the [[Rolex Learning Center|Rolex Learning Centre]] at [[École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne]], completed in 2010. This building has an undulating floor plane set under a continuous concrete shell roof that was poured in one go over two days. The plan is like a biological cell punctuated with tables and courtyards alike.<ref>Payne (2010), pp.&nbsp;10 & 11</ref> In 2009 they designed the [[Serpentine Gallery]] Pavilion in London that comprised a reflective, floating aluminium roof supported by slender columns.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.serpentinegallery.org/2009/02/serpentine_gallery_pavilion_20_13.html |title=Gallery |access-date=2011-05-21 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110519141136/http://www.serpentinegallery.org/2009/02/serpentine_gallery_pavilion_20_13.html |archive-date=May 19, 2011  }}. The Serpentine Gallery 2009 Pavilion. Retrieved on May 21, 2011.</ref>

<gallery class="center">
File:Church of Light.JPG|[[Church of the Light|The Church of the Light]], Ibaraki, Ōsaka, built in 1989
File:Pabellon de japon expo 92.jpg|Japanese pavilion at the 1992 Seville Exposition <br /> Built in 1992
File:Ki-no-dendo04s3200.jpg|Museum for Wood Culture, Kami, Hyogo Prefecture <br /> Built in 1994
File:Osanbashi Pier2.jpg|Yokohama International Port Terminal <br /> Built between 1994 and 2002
File:Takatori Catholic Church.JPG|Paper Church, Kōbe <br /> Built in 1995
File:Within the dome structure, Yamanashi Fruit Museum and Garden, Japan.jpg|Yamanashi Fruit Museum <br />Built in 1996
File:Tama Art University Library.JPG|Tama Art University Library, Tōkyō <br /> Built in 2007
</gallery>

== Japanese interior design ==
Japanese interior design has a unique aesthetic derived from [[Shinto]], [[Taoism]], [[Zen Buddhism]], world view of ''[[wabi-sabi]]'', specific religious figures and the West. This aesthetic has in turn influenced Western style, particularly [[Modernism]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kanushok |first=Siarhei |date=2024-04-09 |title=What is Japandi Interior Design? |url=https://doordesignlab.com/blog/what-is-japandi-interior-design/ |url-status=live |website=}}</ref>

=== Traditional Japanese aesthetic ===
What is generally identified as the Japanese aesthetic stems from ideals of Japanese [[Shinto]] and Chinese [[Taoism]].<ref name="Black 2000 6–11">{{cite book|last=Black|first=Alexandra|title=The Japanese House: Architecture and Interiors|year=2000|publisher=Tuttle Publishing|location=Massachusetts|isbn=0-8048-3262-5|pages=6–11}}</ref> Japanese culture is extremely diverse; despite this, in terms of the interior, the aesthetic is one of simplicity and minimalism.

The specific idea that a room's true beauty is in the empty space within the roof and walls came from [[Laozi]], a philosopher and the founder of [[Taoism]], who held to the "aesthetic ideal of emptiness",<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/> believing that the mood should be captured in the imagination, and not so heavily dictated by what is physically present.<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/> Japanese design is based strongly on craftsmanship, beauty, elaboration, and delicacy. The design of interiors is very simple but made with attention to detail and intricacy. This sense of intricacy and simplicity in Japanese designs is still valued in modern Japan as it was in traditional Japan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.designsojourn.com/how-japanese-culture-influences-their-designs/ |title=How Japanese Culture influences their Designs |date=November 17, 2009 |access-date=2011-11-27 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111226031632/http://www.designsojourn.com/how-japanese-culture-influences-their-designs/ |archive-date=December 26, 2011  }} How Japanese Culture Influences Their Designs</ref>

Interiors are very simple, highlighting minimal and natural decoration. Traditional Japanese interiors, as well as modern, incorporate mainly natural materials including fine woods, bamboo, silk, rice straw mats, and paper ''[[shōji]]'' screens. Natural materials are used to keep simplicity in the space that connects to nature. Natural color schemes are used and neutral palettes including black, white, off-white, gray, and brown.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.designsojourn.com/how-japanese-culture-influences-their-designs/|title=How Japanese Culture influences their Designs – Design Sojourn|date=November 18, 2009|website=designsojourn.com|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111226031632/http://www.designsojourn.com/how-japanese-culture-influences-their-designs/|archive-date=December 26, 2011}}</ref>

Impermanence is a strong theme in traditional Japanese dwellings.<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/> The size of rooms can be altered by interior sliding walls or screens, the already mentioned ''shōji''. Cupboards built smoothly into the wall hide [[futon]], mattresses pulled out before going to bed, allowing more space to be available during the day. The versatility of these dwellings becomes more apparent with changes of seasons. In summer, for example, exterior walls can be opened to bring the garden and cooling breezes in. The minimal decoration also alters seasonally, with a different scroll hanging or new flower arrangement.

The Japanese aesthetic developed further with the celebration of imperfection and insufficiency, characteristics resulting from the natural ageing process or darkening effect.<ref name="Saito 1997 377–385">{{cite journal|last=Saito|first=Yuriko|title=The Japanese Aesthetics of Imperfection and Insufficiency|journal=The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism|year=1997|volume=55|issue=4|pages=377–385|doi=10.2307/430925|jstor=430925}}</ref> [[Shinto]], the indigenous religious tradition of Japan, provides a basis for the appreciation of these qualities, holding to a philosophy of appreciation of life and the world. [[Sei Shōnagon]] was a trend-setting court lady of the tenth century who wrote in '[[The Pillow Book]]' of her dislike for "a new cloth screen with a colourful and cluttered painting of many cherry blossoms",<ref name="Saito 1997 377–385"/> preferring instead to notice "that one's elegant Chinese mirror has become a little cloudy".<ref name="Saito 1997 377–385"/> Her taste was not out of place in the ancient Japanese court. In the twelfth century a Buddhist monk, [[Yoshida Kenkō]], exerted his influence on Japanese aesthetic sensibility resulting from his philosophy of life. He asked, "Are we to look at cherry blossoms only in full bloom, the moon only when it is cloudless? ...Branches about to blossom or garden strewn with faded flowers are worthier of our admiration."<ref name="Saito 1997 377–385"/> The incomplete is also praised by Kenkō, "uniformity and completeness are undesirable".<ref name="Saito 1997 377–385"/> Underpinning or complementing these aesthetic ideals, is the valuing of contrast; when imperfection or the impoverished is contrasted with perfection or opulence, each is emphasised and thus better appreciated.<ref name="Saito 1997 377–385"/>

===Traditional materials of the interior===

Japanese interior design is very efficient in the use of resources. Traditional and modern Japanese interiors have been flexible in use and designed mostly with natural materials. The spaces are used as multifunctional rooms. The rooms can be opened to create more space for a particular occasion or for more privacy, or vice versa closed-off by pulling closed paper screens called ''[[shōji]]''.<ref name="spaciousplanet.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.spaciousplanet.com/world/new/7-principles-of-Japanese-Interior-Design |title=7 Principles of Japanese Interior Design – Spacious Planet |access-date=2011-11-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111203154346/http://www.spaciousplanet.com/world/new/7-principles-of-Japanese-Interior-Design |archive-date=December 3, 2011}}</ref>

Japanese Zen interior designs draw inspiration from elements of nature as they have immense respect for nature. Their designs have a strong connection with natural elements such as wood, plants, natural lighting and more.

A large portion of Japanese interior walls are often made of ''shōji'' screens that can be pushed open to join two rooms together, and then close them allowing more privacy. The ''shōji'' screens are made of paper attached to thin wooden frames that roll away on a track when they are pushed. Another important feature of the ''shōji'' screen, besides privacy and seclusion, is that they allow light through. This is an important aspect to Japanese design. Paper translucent walls allow light to be diffused through the space and create light shadows and patterns.

''[[Tatami]]'' mats are rice straw floor mats often used to cover the floor in Japan's interiors; in modern Japanese houses there are usually only one or two ''tatami'' rooms. Another way to connect rooms in Japan's interiors is through sliding panels made of wood and paper, like the ''shōji'' screens, or cloth. These panels are called ''[[fusuma]]'' and are used as an entire wall. They are traditionally hand painted.<ref name="spaciousplanet.com"/>

''Tatami'' are the basis of traditional Japanese architecture, regulating a building's size and dimensions. They originated in ancient Japan when straw was laid on bare earth as a softener and warmer. In the [[Heian period]] (794–1185), this idea developed into moveable mats that could be laid anywhere in the house to sit or sleep on before becoming a permanent floor covering in the fifteenth century.<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/> ''Tatami'' are suitable for the Japanese climate because they let air circulate around the floor.<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/><ref name="spaciousplanet.com"/>

[[Bamboo]] is prominently used and even expected in the Japanese house, used both for decorative and functional purposes. Bamboo blinds, ''[[sudare]]'', replace ''[[shoji]]'' in summer to prevent excess heat inside and also offer greater ventilation. Country dwellings and farmhouses often use it for ceilings and rafters.<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/> The natural properties of bamboo, its raw beauty with the knots and smooth surface, correspond to Japanese aesthetic ideals of imperfection, contrast and the natural.

The use of paper, or ''[[washi]]'', in Japanese buildings is a main component in the beauty and atmosphere of the Japanese interior, the way variation of shadow combines to create a "mystery of shadows".<ref name="Black 2000 6–11"/> A range of papers are used for various purposes in the home.

Wood is generally used for the framework of the home, but its properties are valuable in the Japanese aesthetic, namely its warmth and irregularity.

A recessed space called ''[[tokonoma]]'' is often present in traditional as well as modern Japanese living rooms. This is the focus of the room and displays Japanese art, usually a painting or calligraphy.

===Western influence===
[[File:Houmei-Den of Meiji Palace.JPG|thumb|The ''Hōmei-Den'' of the Meiji era Tokyo Imperial Palace]]
After the [[Meiji Restoration]] of 1868, Japan's relations to Euro-American powers became more prominent and involved.<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71">{{cite journal|last=Teasley|first=Sarah|title=Furnishing the modern Metropolitan: Moriya Nobuo's Designs for Domestic Interiors, 1922–1927|journal=Design Issues|date=Autumn 2003|volume=19|issue=4|pages=57–71|jstor=1512092|doi=10.1162/074793603322545064|s2cid=57572360}}</ref> This spilled into a broader interacting with the modern world, which in terms of interior design, resulted in the introduction of western style interiors, while the vernacular style came to be more associated with tradition and the past.<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71"/> The typical interiors found in Japanese homes and western homes in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were vastly different with almost opposing attitudes to furniture, versatility of space and materials.<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71"/>

Many public spaces had begun to incorporate chairs and desks by the late nineteenth century, department stores adopted western-style displays; a new "urban visual and consumer culture" was emerging.<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71"/> In the [[Separate spheres|domestic sphere]], the manner and dress of inhabitants were determined by the interior style, Japanese or Western. One of the examples is the ''Hōmei-Den'' of the Meiji era Tokyo Imperial Palace, which fused Japanese styles such as the coffered ceiling with western parquet floor and chandeliers.

There was a push by bureaucrats for Japan to develop into a more "modern" (Western) culture. The modernising of the home was considered the best way to change the daily life of the people.<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71"/> Much of the reason for modernisation was a desire to "present a 'civilised' face to the world, thus helping to secure Japan's position as a modern nation in the world order".<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71"/> Even with governmental encouragement to transform the home, the majority of Japanese people still lived in fairly traditional style dwellings well into the 1920s,<ref name="Teasley 2003 57–71"/> partly due to economic situation in the early 1910s that meant western style was out of reach for the majority of people. It was also difficult to incorporate furniture into traditional dwellings due to their small size and intended flexible use of space, a flexibility made difficult to maintain when bulky furniture was involved; it was impractical, but aesthetically incongruent too.

===Influence on the West===
Some of the earliest influence on the West came in the form of Japanese art, which gained popularity in Europe in particular, in the latter part of the nineteenth century.<ref>{{cite book|last=Pile|first=John F.|title=Interior Design|year=2003|publisher=Harry N. Abrams, Incorporated|location=New York|isbn=0-8109-0559-0}}</ref> In terms of architecture and interior design though, the influence on the West is much more centered on the United States of America.<ref name="Lancaster 1953 217–224">{{cite journal|last=Lancaster|first=Clay|title=Japanese Buildings in the United States before 1900: Their Influence Upon American Domestic Architecture|journal=The Art Bulletin|date=September 1953|volume=35|issue=3|pages=217–224|doi=10.1080/00043079.1953.11408188|jstor=3047491}}</ref>

Before the twentieth century, very little of the West's knowledge of the Japanese building was gained in Japan. Instead it was gained through exhibitions the Japanese partook in such as the [[Centennial Exposition|1876 Centennial International Exhibition in Philadelphia]].<ref name="Lancaster 1953 217–224"/> The early influence of such exhibitions was more in the creation of an enthusiasm for things Japanese instead of something more authentic.<ref name="Lancaster 1953 217–224"/> The result was exuberant Japanese decoration, the simplicity of Japanese design lost in the clutter of Victorian ostentation.<ref name="Lancaster 1953 217–224"/>

During the twentieth century though, a number of now renowned architects visited Japan including [[Frank Lloyd Wright]], [[Ralph Adams Cram]], [[Richard Neutra]] and [[Antonin Raymond]]. These architects, among others, played significant roles in bringing the Japanese influence to Western modernism.<ref name="Lancaster 1953 217–224"/> Influence from the Far East was not new in America at this time. During the eighteenth and a large part of the nineteenth centuries, a taste for Chinese art and architecture existed and often resulted in a "superficial copying". The Japanese influence was different however. The modernist context, and the time leading up to it, meant that architects were more concerned with "the problem of building, rather than in the art of ornamenting".<ref name="Lancaster 1953 217–224"/> The simplicity of Japanese dwellings contrasted the oft-esteemed excessive decoration of the West. The influence of Japanese design was thus not so much that it was directly copied but rather, "the west discovered the quality of space in traditional Japanese architecture through a filter of western architectural values".<ref>{{cite journal|last=McNeil|first=Peter|title=Myths of Modernism: Japanese Architecture, Interior Design and the West c. 1920–1940|journal=Journal of Design History|year=1992|volume=5|issue=4|pages=281–294|jstor=1315992|doi=10.1093/jdh/5.4.281}}</ref>
The culture that created traditional Japanese architecture is so far removed from Western values philosophies of life that it could not be directly applied in a design context.

== See also ==
{{Portal|Architecture}}
* [[Shinto architecture]]
* [[Japanese Buddhist architecture]]
* [[Japanese-Western Eclectic Architecture]]
* [[Japanese garden]]
* [[Architecture of Tokyo]]
* [[List of Japanese architects]]
* [[Architectural forgery in Japan]]
* [[Housing in Japan]]
* [[Giboshi]]

==Notes and references==

{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book|title=The Japan Guide|last=Bognar|first=Botond|publisher=Princeton Architectural Press|year=1995|isbn=1-878271-33-4|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/japanguide0000bogn}}
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== External links ==
* [https://www.mooponto.com/ mooponto — Portal for Japanese minimalist architecture] Explore the vision behind the modern Japanese minimalist architecture
* [http://www.aisf.or.jp/%7Ejaanus/ JAANUS (Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System)] On-line dictionary of Japanese architectural and art historical terminology

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[[Category:Architecture in Japan| ]]