Jorge Almazán

Tokyo, like New York, London and other world cities, can sustain nearly infinite approaches to documenting and analyzing its urban condition, thanks to its layers of physical history but also the enormous appeal of exploring those layers. This book by Jorge Almazán and Studiolab (the research and design unit led by him at Keio University), with editorial assistance by Joe McReynolds and Naoki Saito, tries to understand Tokyo by focusing on five types of urban conditions: yokochō alleys, zakkyo buildings, undertrack infills, ankyo streets, and dense low-rise neighborhoods. As the title indicates, these are places that emerged spontaneously rather than being planned. Each condition/chapter includes three case studies that are documented through diagrams, maps, photographs, isometrics (like the cover), and text — all thorough and complex yet clear and easy to follow. I have been to one such place: Golden Gai, a yokochō alley and perhaps the most popular case study in the book. The documentation of Golden Gai and the two other case studies in the chapter is brief but beautifully presented, especially the perspectival sections that are reminiscent of Atelier Bow-Wow. Beyond the documentation, the texts also feature "learning from" sections that find Almazán and Studiolab finding the beneficial traits that architects should emulate in their own designs — in Tokyo or elsewhere.… (plus d'informations)