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Arata Isozaki in 1996

Arata Isozaki (磯崎 新, Isozaki Arata; 23 July 1931 – 29 December 2022) was a Japanese architect, urban designer, and theorist from Ōita. He was awarded the RIBA Gold Medal in 1986 and the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2019.

Contents

1 Biography

2 Awards

3 Gallery

4 Notable works

5 Current projects

6 References

7 External links

Biography

Isozaki was born in Oita on the island of Kyushu and grew up in the era of postwar Japan.

Isozaki completed his schooling at the Oita Prefecture Oita Uenogaoka High School (erstwhile Oita Junior High School). In 1954, he graduated from the University of Tokyo where he majored in Architecture and Engineering. This was followed by a doctoral program in architecture from the same university. Isozaki also worked under Kenzo Tange before establishing his own firm in 1963.

Isozaki's early projects were influenced by European experiences with a style mixed between "New Brutalism" and "Metabolist Architecture" (Oita Medical Hall, 1959–1960), according to Reyner Banham. His style continued to evolve with buildings such as the Fujimi Country Club (1973–74) and Kitakyushu Central Library (1973–74). Later he developed a more modernistic style with buildings such as the Art Tower of Mito (1986–90) and Domus-Casa del Hombre (1991–1995) in Galicia, Spain. The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles, completed in 1986, was his first international project and his best known work in the U.S. In 2005, Arata Isozaki founded the Italian branch of his office, Arata Isozaki & Andrea Maffei Associates. Two major projects from this office include: the Allianz Tower CityLife office tower, a redevelopment project in the former trade fair area in Milan, and the new Town Library in Maranello, Italy.

Despite designing buildings both inside and outside Japan, Isozaki has been described as an architect who refuses to be stuck in one architectural style, highlighting "how each of his designs is a specific solution born out of the project’s context." Isozaki won the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2019.

Isozaki died on 29 December 2022, at the age of 91.

Awards

Annual Prize, Architectural Institute of Japan in 1967 and 1975

Mainichi Art Award in 1983

RIBA Gold Medal in 1986

International Award "Architecture in Stone" in 1987

Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters in 1988

Chicago Architecture Award in 1990

Honor Award, the American Institute of Architects in 1992

RIBA Honorary Fellow in 1994

Golden Lion, 6^ Venice Biennale of Architecture in 1996

The ECC Award in 2012 for his Venice installation Zhongyuan.

Pritzker Prize in 2019

Gallery

One of Isozaki's early projects, Oita Medical Hall (1959-1960), "mixed New Brutalism and Metabolist Architecture," according to one critic

Model of Isozaki's Palau Sant Jordi

Entrance to CaixaForum Barcelona (2001)

Art Tower in Mito, Ibaraki (1990)

Notable works

Ōita Prefectural Library, (1962–1966) Ōita, Ōita, Japan

Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art (1972–1974) in Fukuoka, Japan

Kitakyushu Central Library (1973–1974) in Fukuoka, Japan

Museum of Modern Art, Gunma (1974) in Takasaki, Japan

Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), (1981–1986) Los Angeles, California, United States

Sports Hall for the 1992 Summer Olympics, (1983–1990) Barcelona, Spain

Ochanomizu Square Building – Casals Hall, (1984–1987) Tokyo, Japan

Palladium nightclub building interior (1985) in New York City, United States

Lake Sagami Country Clubhouse (1987–1989), with stained glass skylights and lantern by Brian Clarke, Yamanishi, Japan

Art Tower Mito, Mito, (1986–1990) Ibaraki, Japan

Team Disney Orlando, (1987–1990) Florida, United States

Bond University, – Library, Administration Building, Faculty of Humanities Building (1987–1989) Gold Coast, Australia

KitaKyushu International Conference Center (1987–1990) Fukuoka, Japan

Palafolls Sports Complex Pavilion, (1987–1996) Barcelona, Spain

Centre of Japanese Art and Technology, (1990–1994) Kraków, Poland

Nagi Museum Of Contemporary Art, (1991–1994) Okayama, Japan

Kyoto Concert Hall, (1991–1995) Kyoto, Japan

Nara Centennial Hall, (1992–1998) Nara, Japan

Domus: La Casa del Hombre, (1993–1995) A Coruña, Spain

Shizuoka Performing Arts Center (SPAC), (1993–1998) Shizuoka, Japan, opened 1999 for the second Theatre Olympics

COSI Columbus, (1994–1999) Columbus, Ohio, United States

Municipal Daycare and Hospital Complex (1997－1998) Tokyo, Japan

Shenzhen Cultural Center, (1998–2007) Shenzhen, China

Includes Shenzhen Library and Shenzhen Concert Hall

New entrance of the CaixaForum Barcelona building, (1999–2002) Barcelona, Spain

Isozaki Atea, (1999–2009) Bilbao, Spain

Torino Palasport Olimpico, (2000–2006) Turin, Italy

Museum of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, (2003–2008) China

New Concert Hall Building, (2003–) Thessaloniki, Greece, 2010

Himalayas Center, (2003–) Shanghai, China

Pavilion of Japanese Army in World War II, Jianchuan Museum Cluster, (2004–2015) Chengdu, China

Diamond Island, (2006–) Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (complete in 2012)

Coliseum da Coruña, A Coruña, Galicia, Spain, 1991

Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Education City, near Doha

Qatar National Convention Center, opened 2011

New Town Library (2012) in Maranello, Italy (Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei)

D38 Office (2012) in Barcelona, Spain

Allianz Tower (Il Dritto) (2015), in Milan, Italy (Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei)

Harbin Concert Hall (2015), in Harbin, China

Current projects

The University of Central Asia's three campuses in Tekeli, Kazakhstan; Naryn, the Kyrgyz Republic; and Khorog, Tajikistan

The New exit for the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy – competition winner (Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei)

The renovation of the Bologna Centrale railway station, Bologna, Italy – competition winner

Metropolis Thao Dien, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam