Itō Chūta 伊東忠太 | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Pictured in May 1954 edition ofInternational Architecture (国際建築,Kokusai kenchiku) | |
| Born | (1867-10-26)26 October 1867 |
| Died | 7 April 1954(1954-04-07) (aged 86) |
| Alma mater | Imperial University |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Awards | Order of the Sacred TreasureOrder of Culture |
| Practice | Japan Art Academy (final) |
| Buildings | Tokyō University of Commerce Tsukiji Hongan-ji Kanematsu Auditorium at Hitobashi University |
Itō Chūta (伊東 忠太; 26 October 1867 – 7 April 1954) was a Japanesearchitect,architectural historian, andcritic. He is recognized as the leading architect and architectural theorist of early 20th-centuryImperial Japan.[1]
Second son of a doctor inYonezawa, present-dayYamagata Prefecture, Itō was educated inTokyo.[2] From 1889 to 1892 he studied underTatsuno Kingo in the Department of Architecture at theImperial University.[1]Josiah Conder was still teaching in the department, whileErnest Fenollosa andOkakura Kakuzō were also influential in the formation of Itō's ideas.[1][3] For graduation he designed aGothic cathedral and wrote a dissertation on architectural theory.[1] His doctoral thesis was on the architecture ofHōryū-ji.[1][4] He was professor of architecture at the Imperial University from 1905, then ofWaseda University from 1928.[5]
Itō travelled widely, to theForbidden City with photographerOgawa Kazumasa in 1901 and subsequently, after fourteen months in China, to Burma, India, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Europe and the United States.[2][5][6] Later he was involved in the planning ofChōsen Jingū inSeoul and a survey of the monuments ofRehe inManchukuo.[7][8] He incorporated elements of thediverse architectural styles he encountered in his many writings and approximately one hundred design projects.[5][9] He was also a leading proponent of theImperial Crown style of architecture, which had been developed for the Japanese Empire by architectShimoda Kikutaro.[10][11]
Itō helped formulate theAncient Temples and Shrines Preservation Law of 1897, an early measure to protect theCultural Properties of Japan.[12] He is also credited withcoining theJapanese term for architecture, namelykenchiku (建築) (lit. 'erection of buildings') in place of the formerzōkagaku (造家学) (lit. 'study of making houses').[2] A member of theJapan Academy, in 1943 he was awarded theOrder of Culture.[1][5] Itō has more recently been criticised, with specific reference to his writings onIse Grand Shrine, for having 'blurred a religio-political discourse with an architectural discourse'.[13]
| Project | Date | Location | Comments | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heian Jingū[2][14] | 1895 | Sakyō-ku,Kyoto | recreation on a smaller scale of the Daikokuden (Great Hall of State) of the ancient capital ofHeian-kyō; Itō worked with fellow architect Kiko Kiyoyoshi, drawing on his studies of old records andpicture scrolls |  | |
| Asano Sōichirō pavilion (浅野総一郎邸)[15] | 1909 | Tokyo | Japanese-style pavilion; destroyed in theGreat Kantō earthquake | ||
| Niraku Villa (二楽荘,Nirakusō)[5][16] | 1910 | Kobe,Hyōgo Prefecture | forŌtani Kōzui, one of the pioneering explorers ofCentral Asia and theSilk Road; destroyed by arson on 18 October 1932; to the north ofKonan University; photographic documentation exists | ||
| Asoka Shinryōjo[17][18] | 1912 | Shimogyō-ku,Kyoto | for theShinshū Believers Life Insurance Company; now the Hongan-ji Dendo'in;Municipal Cultural Property | 34°59′28.9″N135°45′14.3″E / 34.991361°N 135.753972°E /34.991361; 135.753972 | |
| Main Gate (正門,Seimon),Tokyo Imperial University[19][20] | 1912 | Bunkyō,Tokyo | replacement for theEdo-period Akamon, moved to one side;Emperor Meiji was the first to ride through, on graduation day 1912; Itō was professor at the University from 1905;Registered Tangible Cultural Property |  | |
| Meiji Jingū[2] | 1920 | Shibuya,Tokyo | shrine toEmperor Meiji; destroyed in theTokyo air raids of World War II; rebuilt in 1958 following the original design |  | |
| Uesugi Jinja (上杉神社)[21] | 1923 | Yonezawa,Yamagata Prefecture | rebuilding after a great fire in 1919 that destroyed over a thousand buildings; in the city of Itō's birth |  | |
| Great Hall (大殿,Daiden),Zōjō-ji[5][22] | 1925 | Minato,Tokyo | an earlier hall was lost in a fire in 1873 and its replacement in a fire in 1909; Itō's hall was destroyed in 1945; the Great Hall was rebuilt in 1978 | ||
| Tekigai Villa (荻外荘,Tekigaisō)[5] | 1927 | Suginami,Tokyo | forPrime MinisterFumimaro Konoe, founder of theTaisei Yokusankai movement |  | |
| Gion Kaku (祇園閣)[23] | 1927 | Higashiyama-ku,Kyoto | 34 m; inGion;Registered Tangible Cultural Property |  | |
| Ōkura Shūkokan (大倉集古館)[2][24][25][26] | 1927 | Minato,Tokyo | rebuilding after theGreat Kantō earthquake; houses theŌkura Museum of Art with a collection that includes threeNational Treasures; Registered Tangible Cultural Property |  | |
| Kanematsu Auditorium (兼松講堂,Kanematsu kōdō)[24][27] | 1927 | Kunitachi,Tokyo | Romanesque Revival style; part ofHitotsubashi University; Registered Tangible Cultural Property |  | |
| FormerHankyū Umeda Station Concourse (旧阪急梅田駅地上駅コンコース)[28] | 1929 | Kita-ku,Osaka | with dome, gilding, chandeliers, andarabesque |  | |
| Tokyo Memorial Hall (東京都慰霊堂,Tōkyōto ireidō)[24][29] | 1930 | Sumida,Tokyo | Dedicated to 58,000 victims of theGreat Kantō earthquake of 1 September 1923 and 105,000 victims of thebombing of Tokyo on the night of 9/10 March 1945 |  | |
| Tokyo Reconstruction Memorial Hall (東京都復興記念館,Tōkyōto fukkō kinenkan)[24] | 1931 | Sumida,Tokyo | houses exhibits relating to reconstruction after the Great Kantō earthquake; located inYokoamichō Park near the Tokyo Memorial Hall |  | |
| Yūshūkan[24] | 1931 | Chiyoda,Tokyo | rebuilding after the Great Kantō earthquake; museum ofYasukuni Jinja |  | |
| Shōgyōden (聖教殿),Hokekyō-ji[24] | 1931 | Ichikawa,Chiba Prefecture | reinforced concrete structure to house temple treasures, including texts byNichiren, founder of theNichiren School (On Establishing the Correct teaching for the Peace of the Land andThe Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind) |  | |
| Sōji-ji Daisodo[30] | 1933 | Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama | Monks' training center |  | |
| Shinmon (神門),Yasukuni Jinja[31][32] | 1934 | Chiyoda,Tokyo | reminiscent of theshinmei-zukuri style of theIse Grand Shrine |  | |
| Tsukiji Hongan-ji[2][24][33] | 1934 | Chūō,Tokyo | rebuilding after the Great Kantō earthquake; evokeschaitya no.9 at theAjanta Caves; near theTsukiji fish market; Registered Tangible Cultural Property |  | |
| Haiseiden (俳聖殿)[34] | 1942 | Iga,Mie Prefecture | for the 300th anniversary celebrations of the birth ofMatsuo Bashō; in the grounds ofIga Ueno Castle;Important Cultural Property |  |
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