Toyo Ito (born 1941), the 2013 Pritzker Prize laureate, is Japan’s great architect of lightness — his Sendai Mediatheque (2001) replaced columns with swaying tubes of steel lattice and changed structural thinking worldwide, while the cave-like National Taichung Theater abolished the straight line altogether. From the Tower of Winds to Kaohsiung’s solar stadium, these 20 projects trace fifty years of reinvention.
Toyo Ito’s Famous Works at a Glance
| Project | Location | Year |
|---|---|---|
| White U House | Tokyo, Japan | 1976 |
| Sendai Mediatheque | Sendai, Japan | 2001 |
| TOD’S Omotesando Building | Tokyo, Japan | 2004 |
| VivoCity | Singapore | 2006 |
| San Francisco Federal Building | San Francisco, California, USA | 2007 |
| Kaohsiung National Stadium | Kaohsiung, Taiwan | 2009 |
| Odate Jukai Dome (Nipro Hachiko Dome) | Odate, Japan | 1997 |
| Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre | Matsumoto, Japan | 2004 |
| Meiso no Mori Municipal Funeral Hall | Kakamigahara, Japan | 2006 |
| Za-Koenji Public Theatre | Tokyo, Japan | 2009 |
| Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture | Imabari, Omishima, Japan | 2011 |
| Mikimoto Ginza 2 | Tokyo, Japan | 2005 |
| White O House | Marbella, Chile | 2009 |
| Tower of Winds | Yokohama, Japan | 1986 |
| Serpentine Gallery Pavilion (with Cecil Balmond) | London, UK | 2002 |
| Torre Realia BCN (Porta Fira) | L’Hospitalet, Barcelona, Spain | 2010 |
| National Taichung Theater | Taichung, Taiwan | 2016 |
| Museo Internacional del Barroco | Puebla, Mexico | 2016 |
| Shinmai Media Garden | Nagano, Japan | 2018 |
| Tokyo Mother’s Clinic | Tokyo, Japan | — |
Pritzker price winner, Toyo Ito who is known for his conceptual architecture designs has made a mark in this architecture world by creating structures those results from combining elements of minimalism with the blend of technology, which finds a way to balance between traditional and contemporary architecture. Here are 20 such projects that demonstrate that Architecture is best learnt through experience:
1. White U House, Japan
Year: 1976 Type: House Location: Nakano, Tokyo, Japan
2. Sendai Mediatheque, Japan
Year: 2000 Type: Library Location: Aoba-Ku, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
3. TOD” S, Japan
Year: 2004 Type: Commercial Location: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan
4. Vivo City, Singapore
Year: 2006 Type: Public Location: HarbourFront Walk, Singapore
5. San Francisco Federal Building, California, US
Year: 2007 Type: Public Location: Hachioji, Tokyo, Japan
6. Kaohsiung National Stadium, Taiwan
Year: 2008 Type: Sports Location: Kaohsiung, Taiwan
7. Odate Dome (Nipro Hachiko Dome), Japan
Year: 1997 Type: Sports Location: Odate, Akita, Japan
8. Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre
Year: 2004 Type: Art museum Location: Matsumoto, Nagano, Japan
9. Meiso no Mori Municipal Funeral Hall, Japan
Year: 2006 Type: Shrines and memorials Location: Gifu, Japan
10. Za-Koenji Public Theatre, Japan
Year: 2008 Type: Public Location: Suginami-Ku, Tokyo, Japan
