Renovating
Japan’s Riken Yamamoto Wins the 2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize
The architect is known for creating indoor-outdoor homes and buildings that foster a strong sense of community
Architect and social advocate Riken Yamamoto of Yokohama, Japan, has won the 2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize. The annual prize is considered to be the field’s top honour.
Yamamoto is known for designs that blur the lines between private and public spaces to foster a strong sense of community. He rejects “long-standing conditions that have reduced housing into a commodity without relation to neighbours”, the prize’s jury said in its announcement. The architect draws on various cultures, histories and multigenerational age groups to create spaces that are meant to support the future needs of a community.
“For me, to recognise space is to recognise an entire community,” Yamamoto said in the announcement. “The current architectural approach emphasises privacy, negating the necessity of societal relationships. However, we can still honour the freedom of each individual while living together in architectural space as a republic, fostering harmony across cultures and phases of life.”
Yamamoto is known for designs that blur the lines between private and public spaces to foster a strong sense of community. He rejects “long-standing conditions that have reduced housing into a commodity without relation to neighbours”, the prize’s jury said in its announcement. The architect draws on various cultures, histories and multigenerational age groups to create spaces that are meant to support the future needs of a community.
“For me, to recognise space is to recognise an entire community,” Yamamoto said in the announcement. “The current architectural approach emphasises privacy, negating the necessity of societal relationships. However, we can still honour the freedom of each individual while living together in architectural space as a republic, fostering harmony across cultures and phases of life.”
Ishii House in Kawasaki, Japan (1978). Photo courtesy of Shinkenchiku Sha.
Yamamoto built Ishii House in Kawasaki, Japan, in 1978 for two artists. A pavilion-like room with a wide staircase for seating faces a stage that’s used for hosting performances.
A wall of windows entices neighbours to visit the performances and frames nature views. The living quarters sit beneath the pavilion.
Find a local architect on Houzz.
Yamamoto built Ishii House in Kawasaki, Japan, in 1978 for two artists. A pavilion-like room with a wide staircase for seating faces a stage that’s used for hosting performances.
A wall of windows entices neighbours to visit the performances and frames nature views. The living quarters sit beneath the pavilion.
Find a local architect on Houzz.
Pangyo Housing in Seongnam, South Korea (2010). Photo courtesy of Kouichi Satake.
Even Yamamoto’s larger housing projects ensure residents don’t feel isolated. Built in 2010, Pangyo Housing (pictured) in Seongnam, South Korea, features a complex of nine low-rise housing blocks with transparent ground-floor volumes that create interconnectedness among neighbours.
Even Yamamoto’s larger housing projects ensure residents don’t feel isolated. Built in 2010, Pangyo Housing (pictured) in Seongnam, South Korea, features a complex of nine low-rise housing blocks with transparent ground-floor volumes that create interconnectedness among neighbours.
Pangyo Housing. Photo courtesy of Nam Goongsun.
A communal deck across the second floor of Pangyo Housing encourages interaction, with gathering spaces, playgrounds, gardens and bridges that connect one housing block to another.
“One of the things we need most in the future of cities is to create conditions through architecture that multiply the opportunities for people to come together and interact,” says Alejandro Aravena, jury chair and 2016 Pritzker Prize laureate. “By carefully blurring the boundary between public and private, Yamamoto contributes positively beyond the brief to enable community. He is a reassuring architect who brings dignity to everyday life. Normality becomes extraordinary. Calmness leads to splendour.”
A communal deck across the second floor of Pangyo Housing encourages interaction, with gathering spaces, playgrounds, gardens and bridges that connect one housing block to another.
“One of the things we need most in the future of cities is to create conditions through architecture that multiply the opportunities for people to come together and interact,” says Alejandro Aravena, jury chair and 2016 Pritzker Prize laureate. “By carefully blurring the boundary between public and private, Yamamoto contributes positively beyond the brief to enable community. He is a reassuring architect who brings dignity to everyday life. Normality becomes extraordinary. Calmness leads to splendour.”
Riken Yamamoto.
Yamamoto was born in 1945 in Beijing, China, and moved to Yokohama in Japan shortly after the end of World War II. He lived in a house with a deep connection between public and private life. The home was modelled after a machiya, a traditional Japanese townhouse, with his mother’s pharmacy at the front and the family’s living area at the back.
“The threshold on one side was for family, and on the other side for community,” Yamamoto said in a biography provided by the prize committee. “I sat in between.”
A visit to the five-level pagoda at Kofuku-ji Temple in Nara, Japan, at the age of 17 kicked off his interest in architecture. He graduated from Nihon University, Department of Architecture, College of Science and Technology in 1968 and received a master’s degree in architecture from Tokyo University of the Arts, Faculty of Architecture in 1971. He founded his practice, Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop, in 1973.
Here’s a look at some of Yamamoto’s notable designs:
Yamamoto was born in 1945 in Beijing, China, and moved to Yokohama in Japan shortly after the end of World War II. He lived in a house with a deep connection between public and private life. The home was modelled after a machiya, a traditional Japanese townhouse, with his mother’s pharmacy at the front and the family’s living area at the back.
“The threshold on one side was for family, and on the other side for community,” Yamamoto said in a biography provided by the prize committee. “I sat in between.”
A visit to the five-level pagoda at Kofuku-ji Temple in Nara, Japan, at the age of 17 kicked off his interest in architecture. He graduated from Nihon University, Department of Architecture, College of Science and Technology in 1968 and received a master’s degree in architecture from Tokyo University of the Arts, Faculty of Architecture in 1971. He founded his practice, Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop, in 1973.
Here’s a look at some of Yamamoto’s notable designs:
Ecoms House in Tosu, Japan (2004). Photo courtesy of Shinkenchiku Sha.
The Ecoms House is a 115 sq m SOHO (small office home office) prototype in Tosu, Japan. It highlights the efficiency of aluminium as a building material. Lightweight, durable and recyclable aluminium lattice panels are alternated with aluminium sheets and glass, creating a chequered exterior skin.
The Ecoms House is a 115 sq m SOHO (small office home office) prototype in Tosu, Japan. It highlights the efficiency of aluminium as a building material. Lightweight, durable and recyclable aluminium lattice panels are alternated with aluminium sheets and glass, creating a chequered exterior skin.
Jian Wai SOHO in Beijing (2004). Photo courtesy of Tomio Ohashi.
Located east of Tiananmen Square in Beijing, this expansive project includes nine residential towers and four SOHO (small office home office) buildings. The three lower levels of the complex support 177 commercial spaces, while the upper levels comprise the residences. The bustling square is lined with shops, restaurants, public facilities and a sunken garden.
Located east of Tiananmen Square in Beijing, this expansive project includes nine residential towers and four SOHO (small office home office) buildings. The three lower levels of the complex support 177 commercial spaces, while the upper levels comprise the residences. The bustling square is lined with shops, restaurants, public facilities and a sunken garden.
Tianjin Library in Tianjin, China (2012). Photo courtesy of Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop.
A large entry hall runs north to south along the entirety of Tianjin Library in Tianjin, China, maximising access to the large-scale building. A collection of 6 million books lines the library’s shelves, which are incorporated into the intersecting grid of wall beams, resulting in seemingly floating stacks.
A large entry hall runs north to south along the entirety of Tianjin Library in Tianjin, China, maximising access to the large-scale building. A collection of 6 million books lines the library’s shelves, which are incorporated into the intersecting grid of wall beams, resulting in seemingly floating stacks.
Yokosuka Museum of Art in Yokosuka, Japan (2006). Photo courtesy of Tomio Ohashi.
Yokosuka Museum of Art in Yokosuka, Japan, is meant to be a destination for travellers and a daily reprieve for locals. The inviting serpentine entrance evokes the surrounding Tokyo Bay and nearby mountains, while many of the galleries are underground, providing those who approach with a clear, undisturbed visual experience of the natural geography.
Yamamoto is the 53rd laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize and the ninth to hail from Japan.
The Pritzker Prize is awarded every year to a living architect or architects for significant achievement in the field. It was established by the Pritzker family of Chicago through its Hyatt Foundation in 1979. The award consists of $100,000 (£78,545) and a bronze medallion. The 2024 Pritzker Prize ceremony will be held in Chicago this spring.
Tell us…
What do you think of the work and ethos of this year’s Pritzker Prize winner? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Yokosuka Museum of Art in Yokosuka, Japan, is meant to be a destination for travellers and a daily reprieve for locals. The inviting serpentine entrance evokes the surrounding Tokyo Bay and nearby mountains, while many of the galleries are underground, providing those who approach with a clear, undisturbed visual experience of the natural geography.
Yamamoto is the 53rd laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize and the ninth to hail from Japan.
The Pritzker Prize is awarded every year to a living architect or architects for significant achievement in the field. It was established by the Pritzker family of Chicago through its Hyatt Foundation in 1979. The award consists of $100,000 (£78,545) and a bronze medallion. The 2024 Pritzker Prize ceremony will be held in Chicago this spring.
Tell us…
What do you think of the work and ethos of this year’s Pritzker Prize winner? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Yamamoto plays with transparency and the continuity of landscape to create strong connections between private and public spaces. This approach lets people within a space experience the environment outside.
His own home, Gazebo, built in Yokohama, Japan, in 1986 (pictured), features terraces and rooftops that allow interactions with neighbours.