Akira Watanabe Architect & Associates   Tokyo

First exhibition in Europe of the work of the Japanese architect Akira Watanabe.

Craftsmanship is an integral part of architecture. The contemporary world is concerned with information and circulation. Architecture should keep a very intimate relationship with the caprice of its time, and also with whatever brought it into being.

How does one be a contemporary architect ? How does one meet the needs and constraints of an information society while ensuring the craftsmanship that architecture requires ?

The world of information and craftsmanship are often understood as two extremes ; they are seen as « high-tech » and « low-tech ». But when one looks closely at the genesis of craftsmanship, one realizes that it is itself an assembly of information.

The traditional foundations of « Tewaza » have been analyzed and interpreted differently in Japan and in the rest of the world.

« Tewaza » must be decoded ; through drawing, the architect is able to forge a link between elements such as materials, nature, and the client’s way of life.

(Original text of 2001, machine translated in 2026.)