Catch the ephemeral. Mist, clouds, smoke, bubbles, in contemporary japanese architecture

Abstract

Subtle atmospheric phenomena, such as clouds or mist, are highly appreciated by Japanese culture, which is clearly manifested in literature, poetry or painting. These phenomena, ephemeral in their very nature, are associated with a certain typically Japanese pathos, the mono no aware, which appreciates light and fleeting things for their own changing and perishable condition, as well as for their association with the ephemeral condition of human life. These qualities are undeniably present in traditional architecture, closely linked to the landscape in which it is set and perishable in nature by its very materiality, and in the 20^th and early 21^st centuries, Japanese architecture has sought to re-establish a relationship with nature that seemed to have disappeared. To this end, it has not only tried to re-establish the lost closeness, resorting to traditional compositional methods adapted to new materials, needs and urban realities, but has also sought new ways of establishing a poetic relationship with its surroundings. One of the most widespread mechanisms for achieving this has been the use of metaphor, associating the architectural object with an image that serves as a formal or conceptual reference. It is in this context that the cloud, in its various manifestations, has proved to be a productive image when it comes to acting as an architectural reference.