ōdo
The ōdo is the large door similar to a gate seen in machiya townhouses and old farm houses in Japan. In many cases, a kugurido side gate has been installed to allow people to pass through. The types of opening and closing varies. Some ōdo and kugurido are sliding doors, while others are hinged
Texts From Articles (20)
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Why Norman Foster Scoops Daylight into his Buildings
Norman Foster, known for blending art and science in architecture, has led the field since the late 20th century. His designs, balancing high-tech with environmental consciousness, have earned global …
24 May 2024
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Terunobu Fujimori│005: The Katōmado of the Shizutani School Auditorium: An Un-Japanese Japanese Window
…t one can be reborn in the Western Paradise [the jōdo, or “pure land”, of the Amitabha Buddha] by reciting the phrase “Namu Amida Butsu” [an expression of one’s faith in Amitabha Buddha], and as exemp…
05 Jul 2023
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Issue 3: Where the Pavilions Went : Orchid Island (Part 2)
I left the village of Yeyin and took a trip around the island. Going on the road made me conscious of being in another land, but in a different way from mainland Taiwan, whether I encountered a pack o…
12 Jan 2022
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Issue 2: The Buried Black Roofs : Orchid Island (Part 1)
,While we may often speak of “Taiwanese people,” people belonging to a variety of ethnicities and religions live in Taiwan. While I flew to Taiwan’s main island for this installment,…
11 Nov 2021
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Today/Yesterday #2
This column is the second in a series by artist Yokomizo Shizuka, who lives in London. She weaves together photographs and text to show us what she sees through her windows as the everyday changes dra…
09 Mar 2021
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Starting by Surrounding: Takht-e Soleymān, Iran
,I took a cheap shared taxi from Zanjan in northwest Iran, headed next to the ancient ruins of Takht-e Soleymān. An archeological site centered around a massive crater lake, Takht-e Soleymān is said t…
03 Jul 2019
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A Desert Below Sea Level — Turpan, Part 1
,What kind of place is a desert below sea level? ,,Turpan is located in the west of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, an autonomous region of China. The city has long served people as an oasis of…
08 Mar 2017
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Zhangcun: The Needs of the Underground Part 3
I realized something was strange here in the centenarian’s Yaodong. The entrances to Yaodongs are generally shaped into a pointed arc, but upon closer inspection, I noticed that the corner arches were…
26 Jan 2017
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Zhangcun: The Needs of the Underground Part 2
I’ve come to realize that meeting with elders is the best way to learn about their village. Walking through a loess land of beautiful green trees, I continued to develop this method I’ve worked on thr…
05 Jan 2017
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Zhangcun, “needs of underground” Part 1
,A square hole on dry, ocherous land. ,,People live inside that hole. ,,I stopped in on the village of Zhangcun in Sanmenxia City, Henan. It is located within the Loess Plateau (or the Huangtu Plateau…
09 Dec 2016
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Part 6: Proverbs Left to us by Laozi
The aperture in Japanese architecture is the “ma,” or “space between objects.” The aperture in western architecture is the “hole.” What is it in Chinese architecture, then? This is a study on the as o…
05 Dec 2018
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Looking at Freespace through the Windows, Part 2
The Arsenale Rozana Montiel Estudio de Arquitectura For Mexico-based architect Rozana Montiel, freespace indicates freeing space and actions, or a space for the act of placemaking. She describes archi…
04 Nov 2018
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Looking at Freespace through the Windows, Part 1
The 16th Venice Architecture Biennale is currently open from Saturday, May 26 to Sunday, November 25, 2018 in Venice, Italy. Appointed Directors Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, who head Grafton A…
07 Sep 2018
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America (1)
When we hear the term “American houses”, we may generally tend to think of timber-frame houses that incorporate European styles. But the original American houses were actually built in accordance with…
19 Jan 2017
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Architectural Ethnography, Part A
To commemorate the occasion of the 16th International Architecture Exhibition La Biennale di Venezia (May 26th-November 25th, 2018), the Window Research Institute caught up with Momoyo Kaijima, curato…
01 Jun 2018
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Thoughts on “The Joys of Making Windows”
This serial article, “the Joys of Making Windows” by Hiroto Kobayashi Laboratory of Keio University, comprises five parts and introduces their window-making projects in various locations a…
20 Mar 2018
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Hoi Truong Thong Nhat
A window of the Reunification Palace (built on the site of the former Norodom Palace) in Ho Chi Minh City. Three continuous floors of rotating windows in the double-skin façade work together for the a…
06 Mar 2018
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Part 3: Apertures for Walking Through
One way to use an aperture is to pass physical things through it. In most cases apertures are installed at the border between an inside space and outside space. Through them people and things go in an…
15 Nov 2017
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Design Action, Self-involvement: The World Seen from Making a Window
Hiroto Kobayashi Laboratory at Keio University SFC implements activities aiming for regeneration and reinforcement of a community with a focus on its rich heritage and micro-culture as well as creatio…
06 Sep 2017
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Window and Passive Design
Prof. Kodama was spotlighted who has published a multiple number of projects centered on “passiveness,” attracting public notice. He eloquently spoke of the role and attractiveness and further the cha…
10 Jun 2013