Architecture

The Architect Kuma Kengo

建築家, 走る

Kuma Kengo (Author)

Lim Taehee (Advisor)

Min Kyung-wook (Translator)

2014. 3. 29. 344 pages 130×170 mm Hardcover 9788970597294 KRW 20,000

Buy

The Running Architect: Kuma Kengo’s First Autobiography

Humans are fragile beings. That is why we build architecture—together. Every day, my heart races.

Renowned architect Kuma Kengo likens himself to a racehorse, tirelessly traveling the world. Waking up in a different country every other day has become his norm. Unlike the rigid, pristine structures made of concrete, he has long pursued an architecture that is small, soft, natural, connected, and even embraces mortality.

Following the March 11 earthquake, his architectural philosophy—subtly advocating for fragility, harmony, and organic connection—has gained global recognition, including in South Korea, where buildings infused with his vision are gradually taking shape.

Kuma, who has introduced his ideas to Korean readers through books like Natural Architecture, Connecting Architecture, Weak Architecture, and The Three Low Principles, shares his 35-year architectural journey in this compelling autobiography.

From his childhood, where renovating homes was a family ritual, to the bitter failure of his debut project, M2, and on to landmark works such as the Girozan Observatory, Stone Museum, and Aore Nagaoka, Kuma recounts his evolution as an architect who maximizes local materials and communal participation. The book also details his crowning achievement, the Kabuki-za Theater, Japan’s most prestigious architectural honor.

A joyful yet relentless pursuit of architecture, a journey of learning and adaptation—this book offers an intimate glimpse into the life, struggles, and triumphs of one of the world’s most influential architects.

Kuma Kengo

Born in Yokohama in 1954, he studied architecture at the University of Tokyo and was a visiting scholar at Columbia University’s Department of Architecture and Urban Planning in the United States. He is currently a principal of Kengo Kuma and Associates and a special professor and professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo. His major works include Kiro-San observatory (1994), Water/Glass, Atami, Noh Stage in the Forest /Moributai Traditional Performing Arts Museum, Bato Hiroshige Museum, Great (Bamboo) Wall House, Nagasaki Prefectural Art Museum, Suntory’s Tokyo office building, China Academy of Art’s Folk Art Museum, V&A Dundee, and the Japan National Stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Lim Taehee

After completing a research program in Architecture at Kyoto University, he returned to South Korea and gained six years of practical experience in the field. He later went back to Japan and earned a Ph.D. in Architecture from Kyoto Institute of Technology. Currently, he runs Im Taehee Design Studio, continuing to work on various projects.

Min Kyung-wook

He graduated from Korea University, Department of History and Education, and works as a professional translator. He ran the Japanese culture portal ‘The Way to Japan’, which led him to become a professional translator. His major works include Shinkai Makoto’s Weathering With You, Higashino Keigo’s Heart of Brutus, The Murder in Mansion Hakuba, Beautiful Weapon, and Dream Flower, Yoshida Shuichi’s Onna tachi wa Ni do Asobu, Ikeido Jun’s Shylock no Kodomotachi, Yakumaru Gaku’s Shimei, Higashiyama Akira’s The Ones I Killed and the Ones Who Killed Me, and Yasumi Kobayashi’s Ushinawareta Kako to mirai no hanzai.

Ahn Graphics