Arata Isozaki (磯崎新, ''Isozaki Arata''; born 23 July 1931) is a Japanese architect, urban designer, and theorist from Ōita. He was awarded the RIBA Gold Medal in 1986 and the

Pritzker Architecture Prize The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international architecture award presented annually "to honor a living architect or architects whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produ ...

in 2019.

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 Museum of Contemporary Art (often abbreviated to MCA, MoCA or MOCA) may refer to: Africa * Museum of Contemporary Art (Tangier), Morocco, officially le Galerie d'Art Contemporain Mohamed Drissi Asia East Asia * Museum of Contemporary Art Shangha ...

(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 Allianz Tower ( it, links=yes, Torre Allianz), also known as Isozaki Tower ( it, links=yes, Torre Isozaki), is a fifty-floor, skyscraper in Milan, Italy. Designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki and Italian architect Andrea Maffei, it serves ...

CityLife office tower, a redevelopment project in the former trade fair area in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, 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

in 2019.

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 Venice Biennale of Architecture (in Italian Mostra di Architettura di Venezia) is an international exhibition of architecture from nations around the world, held in Venice, Italy, every other year. It was held on even years until 2018, but 202 ...

in 1996 *The ECC Award in 2012 for his Venice installation ''Zhongyuan''. *

Pritzker Prize The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international architecture award presented annually "to honor a living architect or architects whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produ ...

in 2019

Gallery

Image:Ooita-Ishi.jpg, One of Isozaki's early projects, Oita Medical Hall (1959-1960), "mixed New Brutalism and Metabolist Architecture," according to one critic Image:Arata Isozaki-Maquesta del Palau Sant Jordi.jpg, Model of Isozaki's

Palau Sant Jordi Palau Sant Jordi (, en, St. George's Palace) is an indoor sporting arena and multi-purpose installation that is part of the Olympic Ring complex located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Designed by the Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, it was ...

Image:Isozaki (11-11-08).jpg, Entrance to CaixaForum Barcelona (2001) Image:Mito Art Tower.JPG, Art Tower in Mito, Ibaraki (1990)

Notable works

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

Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art The is located in Tobata-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Designed by Arata Isozaki, it sits on a hill straddling the three wards of Kokura Kita, Tobata, and Yahata Higashi. The museum houses more than 6,000 pieces of art, as well as of ...

(1972–1974) in

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...

, Japan * Kitakyushu Central Library (1973–1974) in Fukuoka, Japan * Museum of Modern Art, Gunma (1974) in Takasaki, Japan *

(MOCA), (1981–1986)

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, United States * Sports Hall for the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

, (1983–1990)

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, Spain *Ochanomizu Square Building –

Casals Hall is a concert hall in Ochanomizu, Tokyo, Japan. It is named in honour of cellist Pau Casals. The hall opened in 1987 as a venue for chamber music and has a shoebox-style auditorium which seats 511. Arata Isozaki was the architect, with acoustic ...

, (1984–1987)

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, Japan * Palladium nightclub building interior (1985) in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, United States *Lake Sagami Country Clubhouse (1987–1989), with stained glass skylights and lantern by

Brian Clarke Brian Clarke (born 2 July 1953) is a British painter, architectural artist and printmaker, known for his large-scale stained glass and mosaic projects, symbolist paintings, set designs, and collaborations with major figures in Modern and conte ...

, Yamanishi, Japan *

Art Tower Mito is an arts complex in Mito, Ibaraki, Japan. It opened in 1990 as part of the centennial celebrations of the municipality of Mito. There is a concert hall that seats 680, a theater for up to 636, a contemporary art gallery, and a landmark tower. ...

Mito Mito may refer to: Places *Mito, Ibaraki, capital city of Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan *Mito, Aichi, a Japanese town *Mito, Shimane, a Japanese town * Mitō, Yamaguchi, a Japanese town * Mito District, a district in the province of Concepción, Per ...

, (1986–1990) Ibaraki, Japan * Team Disney Orlando, (1987–1990)

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, United States *

Bond University Bond University is Australia's first private not-for-profit university and is located in Robina, a suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland. Since its founding on 15 May 1989, Bond University has primarily been a teaching-focused higher ed ...

, – Library, Administration Building, Faculty of Humanities Building (1987–1989)

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

, 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 Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, Poland * Nagi Museum Of Contemporary Art, (1991–1994)

Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The city was founded on June 1, 1889. , the city has an estimated population of 720,841 and a population density of 910 persons per km2. The total area is . The city is ...

, Japan *

Kyoto Concert Hall is a concert hall in Sakyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. It opened in 1995 as part of the 1200th anniversary celebrations of the foundation of Heian-kyō. The shoebox-style Main Hall seats 1833 and the Ensemble Hall Murata 500. It is the home of the . ...

, (1991–1995)

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

, Japan *

Nara Centennial Hall is a multi-use complex in Nara, Japan. It opened in 1999 as part of the centennial celebrations of the municipality of Nara. There is a large hall that seats up to 1720, a smaller concert hall with a capacity of 446, and a gallery. Arata Isozaki ...

, (1992–1998)

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

, Japan * Domus: La Casa del Hombre, (1993–1995)

A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...

, Spain *

Shizuoka Performing Arts Center is the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, and the prefecture's second-largest city in both population and area. It has been populated since prehistoric times. the city had an estimated population of 690,881 in 106,087 households, and ...

(SPAC), (1993–1998)

Shizuoka Shizuoka can refer to: * Shizuoka Prefecture, a Japanese prefecture * Shizuoka (city), the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture * Shizuoka Airport * Shizuoka Domain, the name from 1868 to 1871 for Sunpu Domain, a predecessor of Shizuoka Prefecture ...

, Japan, opened 1999 for the second

Theatre Olympics The Theatre Olympics is a non-profit organisation that promotes theatrical exchange where dialogue between different theatremakers, irrespective of ideological, culture and language differences is encouraged. The primary output of the organisatio ...

COSI Columbus Cosi, COSI or CoSi may refer to: * ''Così'', a 1992 play by Louis Nowra ** ''Cosi'' (film), 1996, based on the play * Così (restaurant), an American fast-casual restaurant chain * Compton Spectrometer and Imager, or COSI, a NASA telescope to be ...

, (1994–1999)

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

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

Shenzhen Cultural Center Shenzhen Cultural Center includes Shenzhen Concert Hall and Shenzhen Library and is located in the Futian district of Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. It was designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. The vineyard-style concert hall seats 1800 and ...

, (1998–2007)

Shenzhen Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern province ...

, China ** Includes

Shenzhen Library Shenzhen Library () is the public library system of Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. The main library is a part of the Shenzhen Cultural Center in Futian District. The main library occupies a building on a plot of land. History It was previously t ...

and

Shenzhen Concert Hall The Shenzhen Concert Hall is a concert hall in Futian District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. History background The city government of Shenzhen funded it. Almost 160,000 people attended performances there in 2017. Arata Isozaki and Associated b ...

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

Isozaki Atea The Isozaki Atea ( eu, Isozaki Gate) twin towers in Bilbao, Spain are the tallest residential buildings in the city and the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. The towers are tall ...

, (1999–2009)

Bilbao ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...

, Spain *

Torino Palasport Olimpico Palasport Olimpico, officially operating with the sponsored name Pala Alpitour except during events prohibiting sponsorship names when it is usually known as simply PalaOlimpico, or occasionally PalaIsozaki after Arata Isozaki, its architect, is ...

, (2000–2006)

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, Italy *Museum of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, (2003–2008) China * New Concert Hall Building, (2003–)

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...

, Greece, 2010 *Himalayas Center, (2003–) Shanghai, China *Pavilion of Japanese Army in World War II,

Jianchuan Museum Cluster The Jianchuan Museum Cluster () is located in Anren Town, Dayi County, Sichuan province, China, about one hour's drive from the provincial capital Chengdu. It consists of 26 museums which showcase China's largest private collection of artifacts am ...

, (2004–2015)

Chengdu Chengdu (, ; Simplified Chinese characters, simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively Romanization of Chi ...

, China *Diamond Island, (2006–)

Ho Chi Minh City , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

, Vietnam (complete in 2012) *

Coliseum da Coruña Coliseum da Coruña is an indoor arena for concerts and shows used in A Coruña, Galicia, Spain. The venue holds 11,000 people for concerts. It was designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, built in 1990 and open on August 12, 1991. It is als ...

, Galicia, Spain, 1991 *

Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) is a branch of Weill Cornell Medicine of Cornell University, established on April 9, 2001 following an agreement between Cornell University and the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Developm ...

, Education City, near

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the coun ...

Qatar National Convention Center The Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) is located in Gharafat Al Rayyan, on the Dukhan Highway in Doha, Qatar. The convention centre is a member of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development and is situated on Qatar ...

, opened 2011 * New Town Library (2012) in

Maranello Maranello ( Modenese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Modena in Emilia-Romagna in Northern Italy, 18 km from Modena, with a population of 17,504 as of 2017. It is known worldwide as the home of Ferrari and the Formula 1 racing ...

, Italy (Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei) * D38 Office (2012) in Barcelona, Spain * Allianz Tower (Il Dritto) (2015), in

Milan, Italy Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

(Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei) *

Harbin Concert Hall The Harbin Concert Hall () is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China. The building is designed Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. Description The concert hall is situated in Harbin, hosting city of the re ...

(2015), in

Harbin, China Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest ci ...

Current projects

*The University of Central Asia's three

campus A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-like se ...

es in Tekeli,

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

;

Naryn Naryn ( ky, Нарын, translit=Naryn, Mongolian : Нарийн, Nariin, Traditional Mongolian ᠨᠠᠷᠢᠨ) is the regional administrative center of Naryn Region in central Kyrgyzstan. Its area is , and its estimated population was 41,17 ...

, the Kyrgyz Republic; and Khorog,

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

* The

New exit for the Uffizi Gallery The New Exit for the Uffizi Gallery ( it, Nuova Uscita per la Galleria Degli Uffizi), designed by architects Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei, was the project that won the closed international design competition launched in 1998 with the purpose o ...

, Florence, Italy – competition winner (Arata Isozaki and Andrea Maffei) * The renovation of the

Bologna Centrale railway station Bologna Centrale is a railway station in Bologna, Italy. The station is situated at the northern edge of the city centre. It is located at the southern end of the Milan-Bologna high-speed line, which opened on 13 December 2008, and the northern ...

, Bologna, Italy – competition winner * Metropolis Thao Dien,

, Vietnam

References

External links

Arata Isozaki & associates
* * Corkill, Edan.

. ''Japan Times,'' 1 June 2008. * Sarah F. Maclaren, "Arata Isozaki e la fine dell’utopia", in "Il senso della fine", ''Ágalma. Rivista di studi culturali e di estetica'', 19, 2009: 61–75. ISSN 1723-0284.
CityLife
Official website of the project * Liddell, Colin.
Arata Isozaki: Solaris
. ''Metropolis,'' 23 January 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Isozaki, Arata 1931 births Living people Japanese architects University of Tokyo alumni People from Ōita (city) Recipients of the Royal Gold Medal Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland * Honorary Members of the Royal Academy Pritzker Architecture Prize winners