In honor of my recent trip to Japan, we are showcasing some of the work of Japanese Architect Tadao Ando. Below are some photos from a past trip to The Modern Art Musuem in Ft. Worth, Texas.
“...pavilions that seem to float on the water...” The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth's building was designed by the Japanese architect Tadao Ando. The Modern is located in Fort Worth's celebrated Cultural District, directly opposite the Kimbell Art Museum, designed by Louis I. Kahn, and near the Amon Carter Museum, designed by Philip Johnson. Ando's design, which embodies the pure, unadorned elements of a modern work of art, is comprised of five long, flat-roofed pavilions situated on a 1.5 acre pond. (Description from themodern.org).
Blurring the lines of inside and out.
No one can resist touching the smooth concrete walls. Ando's buildings are truly a treat for all of the senses.
The shallow water surrounding the museum provides a buffer of serenity from the noisy city beyond the site.
Tadao Ando is one of my favorite present day architects. My love began with a visit to the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts in St. Louis, Missouri, his first public building in the United States. Though my trip to Japan was short and unplanned, I did seek out a few of his projects in his native country. Architecture Week has called his buildings "a continuous play of light on concrete" and he is noted for his attention for materiality, particularly concrete.
Passage in the middle of the building frames the view of the modern Midtown Development to the West.
Roof and wall in one: drainage channels built into smooth metal roof. View of gallery and gift shop areas, where the wall and the roof are one in the same.
Curtain wall reflection against Ando's signature concrete wall.
Times Gallery, 1991, Kyoto, Japan. High-end shops and salons arranged artfully on a compact city lot.
View from main entry, city waterway to the left and businesses on the right. View from Main Street. (Click on photo for credit) Covered public walkway.
D+A Studio is a San Juan Island & Seattle-based woman-owned design | design/build firm and general contractor. Here we banter about current issues in architecture, urban design, construction, green building and sustainability along with updates and observations about our built projects and other endeavors.
Blurring the lines of inside and out. 
No one can resist touching the smooth concrete walls. Ando's buildings are truly a treat for all of the senses. 
The shallow water surrounding the museum provides a buffer of serenity from the noisy city beyond the site.
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