Speaker: Kengo KUMA (Architect), and James KONDO (Chairman, International House of Japan)
Moderator: Yuko HASEGAWA (Director of Art and Design, International House of Japan, Director of the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa)
Internationally acclaimed architect Kengo Kuma and I-House Chairman James Kondo explore the historical context of Japan-US postwar reconciliation, examining the interplay between architecture and diplomacy. They share their vision of “architecture as a setting for reconciliation”—as exemplified by I-House and both the former and current National Stadiums. The conversation also delves into the evolving relationship between architecture and information and expands to include reflections on “companion robots,” symbolized by Doraemon, offering insights into the future of technology and humanity.
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What Is Interdisciplinary Talk?
Our orderly ways of life have been disrupted in many places around the world, notably in Ukraine and Gaza, and there is little prospect of an early recovery. The issues modern society must consider, such as generative AI, climate change, and DEI promotion, have also grown more complex. The I-House Art and Design Division, under the leadership of Director Yuko Hasegawa, is organizing discussions among experts from different fields to explore the roles culture and art can play in promoting empathy and communication and connecting today’s divided cultural, political, economic, scientific, and other domains.
Kengo KUMA
was born in 1954. He established Kengo Kuma & Associates in 1990. He is currently a University Professor and Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo and a member of the Japan Art Academy after teaching at Keio University and the University of Tokyo. KKAA projects are currently underway in more than 50 countries. Kengo Kuma proposes architecture that opens up new relationships between nature, technology, and human beings. His major publications include Kengo Kuma Onomatopoeia Architecture Grounding (X-Knowledge), Nihon no Kenchiku (Architecture of Japan, Iwanami Shoten), Zen Shigoto (Kengo Kuma – the complete works, Daiwa Shobo), Ten Sen Men (Point Line Plane, Iwanami Shoten), Makeru Kenchiku (Architecture of Defeat, Iwanami Shoten), Shizen na Kenchiku (Natural Architecture, Iwanami Shinsho), Chii-sana Kenchiku (Small Architecture, Iwanami Shinsho) and many others.
James KONDO
is an executive in the social, technology and policy arena. He is currently Chairman of International House of Japan (I-House), an independent foundation that promotes international cooperation for a free, open, and sustainable world.
In addition, James is also Senior Advisor of OpenAI; Co-Chair of Asia Society Japan Center; and a Visiting Professor at Keio Medical School. He was previously Vice President of Growth Strategy at Twitter Inc and Chairman of Twitter Japan, having also served as Special Advisor at the Cabinet Office of the Japanese Government.
James has been selected Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, Yale World Fellow by Yale University, Asia 21 Fellow by Asia Society, and Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy. He was a visiting student at Brown University and is a graduate of Keio University and Harvard Business School. James currently resides in Tokyo and enjoys cooking, jazz and zen meditation.