Kengo Kuma
Substance
- This publication is organized by six materials—wood, bamboo, metal, paper, textile, and stone. It features ambitious, small-scale projects, such as pavilions, exhibitions, tea houses, and footbridges, as they enable experimentation with materials and ideas. The projects are from Australia, China, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, and United Kingdom
- Concise, insightful narratives detail the concept and craftmanship of each structure, and beautiful imagery showcases how Kuma’s architectural designs are conceived and constructed
- Many of the projects are designed and constructed using elements of traditional Japanese architecture combined with AI and advanced digital technology. In doing so, Kuma proposes technology does not exist to keep humans away from nature. Rather, it can enable a return to nature
- This is the first time that many of the projects have been published, providing an opportunity for readers to learn more about the breadth of Kuma’s work, his design philosophy, and how he experiments and realizes projects on a smaller scale
- Kengo Kuma: Substance is the follow up to the best-selling Kengo Kuma: Topography (2021). It is printed on matte coated paper and a cover with scuff-resistant matte lamination
- Kengo Kuma & Associates has 425,000 followers on Instagram: @kkaa_official
Kengo Kuma’s work masterfully engages experimentation, traditional Japanese design, and advanced technology. This results in highly innovative yet beautifully simple, evocative, and human-scaled structures. Kengo Kuma: Substance features thirty-five ambitious, small-scall projects, from around the world, ranging from captivating wood pavilions, ethereal metal installations, and sculptural woven structures to experiential stone monuments, intricate bamboo tea houses, and luminous shape-shifting domes.
Among the featured projects, Domino 3.0 reimagines a forest made with salvaged timber, while Kodama emphasizes a harmonious relationship with nature. The changing shape of Krug x Kuma introduces a variety of spatial experiences, and Bamboo Passage invites people to experience the structure from the inside. Through these experimentations with materials and ideas, Kuma seeks to restore the relationship between people, buildings, and nature, and foster a greater sense of humanity in architecture. Kengo Kuma: Substance will be a prized addition for architects, designers, and fans of Kengo Kuma. It is also a valuable resource for those interested in the fusion of traditional and contemporary architecture, design, craftsmanship, and technology.
- Publisher
- Images Publishing
- ISBN
- 9781864709926
- Published
- 7th Nov 2025
- Binding
- Hardback
- Territory
- World
- Size
- 300 mm x 223 mm
- Pages
- 272 Pages
- Illustrations
- 250 color, 12 b&w
- Name of series
- Kengo Kuma
Distributed by ACC Art Books
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