The origin of beautiful urban landscapes

So, what does the landscape of modern Tokyo look like? The other day, I had the opportunity to look down on the city from a high-rise building in Ginza. The rooftops of many buildings were covered with machinery and piping, and cooling tower fans were running. It looked just like a chemical plant. While Ginza is an attractive shopping area for people walking on the ground, thanks to its diverse facade designs, when viewed from a high-rise building, I was struck by how ugly it looked, like exposed internal organs. As buildings become taller, we are increasingly getting a bird's-eye view of the city. Rather than simply trying to attract the attention of passersby with eccentric facade designs, I hope people will be aware that they are also being watched from above.

On the other hand, electric poles and wires are a concern in residential areas. It has long been said that the city would be more beautiful if electric poles were simply removed, but except for some parts of the city center, the undergrounding of electric wires has not progressed very much. If you walk down the street and look up at the sky, electric and telephone wires run vertically and horizontally in the air, making it impossible to see only the sky. They also obstruct the bird's-eye view. Furthermore, in recent years, with consideration for the global environment, solar panels for power generation and solar heat utilization have become more prominent on rooftops in residential areas. These panels are simply panels that do not harmonize with the architectural design and spoil the scenery. Various equipment will continue to be developed and retrofitted to buildings. We have gained comfortable and convenient lives thanks to advances in science and technology, but until now, there has been no effort to harmonize this engineering with the architecture and scenery. This is in stark contrast to automobiles, trains, airplanes, and other such inventions made during the development of modern civilization, which not only achieved the function of speed but also integrated designs with air conditioning, communications, and electrical equipment to ensure the comfort of the people riding in them, and which pursued beauty in form and space.

For modern buildings expected to last more than 100 years, it is not easy to integrate the latest equipment and design. However, to create beautiful landscapes, we must consider the integration of engineering, such as energy, communications, electricity, and air conditioning, with Landscape and architectural design. Vertically separated engineering and architectural design will not improve urban and architectural spaces. To achieve this, these engineering disciplines must be deeply involved in Architectural Design, and a design integration must be practiced that is not an afterthought. We also need to change the mindset of Architectural Design. Architecture expresses the diverse cultural aspects of humanity, influenced by the climate, ethnicity, and civilization unique to each region. It can also be said that the hearts of the people who live there are reflected in the landscape. I believe that our environmental design, as we live in the modern age, must create spaces that surpass the beautiful landscapes of the era when rows of houses with Japanese roofing tiles were used.