Kengo Kuma is here in THE MATRIX

Explore the Visionary Worlds of Kengo Kuma

The Matrix of Visionary Worlds originated in a record shop in the old colonial center of Salvador, Bahia, inspired in (the kabbalah-inspired fiction of) El Aleph, that of the cellar in Buenos Aires (was this a "true" example of an Aleph?), and that in the pillar in Cairo's Mosque of Amr, where the universe in its entirety throughout all time is perceivable as an infinite hum from deep within the stone...

You are connected to Kengo Kuma. This is neither mysticism nor fiction. Within a labyrinthine six or so degrees you are connected to every trumpet player in New Orleans, to every novelist in Delhi, to every DJ in Jakarta, to everybody below, and all of these to you.

The matrix is constructed upon the principle behind such unexpected proximity (the small-world phenomenon), with the profound difference that within the matrix, connections can be followed. Algorithms and artificial intelligence not required. Humanity yes. The Brazilian Aleph doesn't hum, it sings.

I'LL TAKE YOU THERE! ↗

I'LL BRING 'EM HERE! (Kengo Kuma ←)

"I'LL TAKE YOU THERE!"

Curations by: The Matrix

Who I Am & Where I Live

Name: Kengo Kuma
City: Tokyo
Country: Japan

My Life & Work

Bio: Kengo Kuma was born in 1954. Before establishing Kengo Kuma & Associates in 1990, he received his Master’s Degree in Architecture from the University of Tokyo, where he is currently a Professor of Architecture. Having been inspired by Kenzo Tange’s Yoyogi National Gymnasium, built for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Kengo Kuma decided to pursue architecture at a young age, and later entered the Architecture program at the University of Tokyo, where he studied under Hiroshi Hara and Yoshichika Uchida.

During his Graduate studies, he made a research trip across the Sahara, exploring various villages and settlements, observing a unique power and beauty. After his time as a Visiting Scholar at Columbia University in New York, he established his office in Tokyo. Since then, Kengo Kuma & Associates has designed architectural works in over twenty countries and received prestigious awards, including the Architectural Institute of Japan Award, the Spirit of Nature Wood Architecture Award (Finland), and the International Stone Architecture Award (Italy), among others.

Kengo Kuma & Associates aims to design architecture which naturally merges with its cultural and environmental surroundings, proposing gentle, human scaled buildings. The office is constantly in search of new materials to replace concrete and steel, and seeks a new approach for architecture in a post-industrial society.