Steven Holl Architects: T-Husene

Drawing inspiration from the Scandinavian sky and twilight, Steven Holl Architects recently presented the designs for the spectacular T-Husene (T-Houses) to be constructed in Ørestad, Copenhagen, Denmark. For those who live in Japan, the following quote from the architect may make you wish somebody would hire him to do something here:

“We wanted to create a sense of autonomy, individuation, and particularity for each apartment and tower. One of the failures of modern housing comes from the lack of individualization. Concepts should not be based on the mass, but on individuals. We aim for an architecture that is in connection to each human being. Therefore, new typologies need to be created of which the dancing T’s are an example.”

Ring any bells? Although architects in Japan struggle under incredibly strict rules relating to strength (for earthquakes), zoning laws, space limits, parking requirements and a whole host of other regulations which stifle their creative freedom to quite an extent, most apartment blocks and a great number of private residences built here are all but indistinguishable from each other. It would be great to see something like this being built in Japan. Almost all the Japanese architects that this article was shown to, however, furrowed their brows and stated that it was "unlikely" that they would be given the go-ahead to create a building like this. All of which may go some way to explaining why so many are keen to work overseas, or at least design buildings for construction outside Japan.

It's a pity; there is a wealth of architectural talent here in Japan and a desire for residences that are more individual. Strength and optimum use of limited space does not have to mean ugly.

Image: © Steven Holl Architects.