Sou Fujimoto Architecture
Born: August 4th, 1971
Website: http://www.sou-fujimoto.net/
Twitter: @soufujimoto
After graduating from the University of Tokyo, he spent his first six years without hardly any work. Only after finishing second in the proposal for the Aomori Museum of Art (2000), he got the attention of Toyo Ito and his career finally started to take off.
2013 was his big moment when he was selected to design the temporary summer pavilion at the Serpentine Gallery in London, becoming the third Japanese architect (Ito in 2002 and SANAA in 2009) for the honor.
His more recent works overseas include the L'Arbre Blanc in Montpellier and the House of Hungarian Music in Budapest.
Works within Tokyo
Village as Institute (2021)
Fujimoto designed the extension of the Institut Francais,
tucked away in the Kagurazaka neighborhood, behind the campus of the Tokyo University of Science.
Wow, what a wonderful environment to take classes or just have a chat with someone! It will be interesting to see how it matches with the old building next door, designed by Junzo Sakakura in 1951
Omotesando Branches (2014)
Have fun trying to find it on a side street not far from the main avenue of Omotesando. The ground floor is used as retail while the upper floors are offices. Getting a photo without the ugly powerlines is virtually impossible.
Tokyo Apartment (2010)
Most of Fujimoto's earlier works were residential, including this one near the Kotake Mukaihara Station.
While it's a private residence, you can get a clear view from the park across the street.
Tokyo Toilet Project (2023)
Fujimoto's toilet was the last to open for this major project in the Shibuya Ward. The location is near the Park Hyatt Hotel, on the south side of Koshu Kaido (Highway 20).
The white walls looked great at the time of opening and hopefully the users will respect it and the place can retain the cleanliness.
Location: 3-27-1 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku
Works outside of Tokyo
Uniqlo Shinsaibashi, Osaka (2010)
This was the first commercial building that Fujimoto designed. ETFE Film is used for the exterior, which can be illuminated with different light patterns after dark.
The Uniqlo store closed in 2021 which the company cited is due to a drop in foreign tourists. As of spring 2023, the building was being used as the pop up store for Shein.
Location 1chome-2 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku Osaka
Uniqlo Park, Yokohama (2020)
Not your typical Uniqlo as it comes with a play area and slide.
It's overlooking a marina on Tokyo Bay and while there is plenty of shopping opportunities inside and in the adjacent Mitsui Outlet Park, the area itself is in a warehousing district and not overly inviting.
Shiroiya Hotel renovation, Maebashi (2020)
Maebashi used to have a thriving economy when the silk industry was big. Now those glory days are gone but young entrepreneurs are attempting to put life back into this city in Gunma Prefecture.
This renovation of a hotel has brought some foot traffic back to the city center, which is otherwise dead on weekends.