Kenzō Tange is the brilliant architect behind Tokyo’s Cocoon Tower, a “palace of knowledge” that houses three schools and 10,000 students in the heart of the city. Tange is considered the founder of the Metabolism artistic movement, which has influenced architecture since the 1960s.
But what was the vision behind this school of thought?
Metabolism, which refers to the set of processes that produce and use energy, was used as a metaphor to describe the rebirth of Japanese architecture after the Second World War. This vision led to a new perspective capable of adapting and growing, responding to an uncertain yet promising future: post-war Japan.
A prime example of the Metabolism movement was the Nakagin Capsule Tower Building (1972), composed of residential modules resembling space capsules. These prefabricated units, designed to be replaced and adapted over time, reflected social changes and the fragmentation of urban life.
Metabolism is considered the last great wave of modernist architecture. Based on the vision of continuous transformation of metropolises, architect Kenzō Tange was among the first in the world to describe the city as a living organism.
