Toyo Ito facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Toyo Ito
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Ito, at a lecture in April 2009
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| Born | 1 June 1941 Seoul, Korea under Japanese occupation
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| Nationality | Japanese |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Awards | Pritzker Prize (2013) |
| Practice | Toyo Ito & Associates |
Toyo Ito (伊東 豊雄, Itō Toyō, born 1 June 1941) is a famous Japanese architect. He is known for designing buildings that blend the real world with a "virtual" or imagined world. Many people call him one of the most creative and important architects in the world.
In 2013, Toyo Ito won the Pritzker Architecture Prize. This is one of the highest awards an architect can receive. Winning this award showed that his amazing work over many years was truly special.
Contents
Early Life and School
Toyo Ito was born in Seoul, Korea, on June 1, 1941. At that time, Korea was under Japanese rule. In 1943, he moved to Japan with his mother and two sisters. They lived in a countryside area called Shimosuwa until he was in middle school. Ito went to Hibiya High School in Tokyo. He then studied architecture at the University of Tokyo, graduating in 1965.
His Amazing Career
After finishing college, Toyo Ito worked for another architect from 1965 to 1969. In 1971, he started his own design studio in Tokyo. He first called it Urbot, which meant "Urban Robot." Later, in 1979, he changed the name to Toyo Ito & Associates.
Early in his career, Ito designed many private homes. These homes showed different parts of city life in Japan. Some of his most famous early designs include the White U (1976) and Silver Hut (1984).
In the 1980s, Ito created projects like Pao for the Tokyo Nomad Girl. These showed how people lived in Japanese cities during a time of fast economic growth.
His Tower of Winds (1986) and Egg of Winds (1991) are special landmarks. They are in public places and react to their surroundings. These structures are actually vents for an underground system. But Ito made them look amazing. During the day, they look solid. At night, they seem to disappear! This happens because of computer-controlled lights. These lights create a changing display based on things like noise levels nearby.
Many talented young architects have worked at Toyo Ito's office. Some of them, like Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, later became famous architects themselves.
His Ideas About Architecture
Toyo Ito sees architecture as a kind of "clothing" for people living in cities. He thinks about how buildings can connect a person's private life with the busy public life of a city.
His current work explores new shapes and forms. He tries to find new ways to create spaces that feel open and connected.
Exhibitions of His Work
Toyo Ito's designs have been shown in many places around the world. In 1991, he used 130 video projectors for an exhibition in London. It was called Visions of Japan and showed what Tokyo was like.
Later, his exhibition Vision and Reality traveled to different museums. He also used video projections to show his architecture in the Blurring Architecture exhibition. This show traveled to several cities from 1999 to 2001.
Ito also designed the Berlin-Tokyo/Tokyo-Berlin Exhibition in Berlin in 2006. This huge show featured a smooth, wavy landscape inside the museum. In 2006, a big show about all of Ito's work was held in Tokyo. It was called Toyo Ito: The New "Real" in Architecture.
Famous Buildings and Projects
Here are some of Toyo Ito's well-known works:
- 1976 – White U House (a house he designed for his sister)
- 1984 – Silver Hut (his own house)
- 1986 – Tower of Winds, in Yokohama
- 1991 – Yatsushiro Municipal Museum
- 2001 – Sendai Mediatheque: This building is a library, art gallery, and film studio all in one. It is one of his most famous designs.
- 2002 – Temporary Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, in London
- 2004 – Matsumoto Performing Art Center
- 2004 – Tod's Omotesandō Building, Tokyo
- 2007 – Library of Tama Art University, Tokyo
- 2008 – World Games Stadium in Kaohsiung, Taiwan
- 2009 – Suites Avenue Building, Barcelona, Spain
- 2009 – Torre Realia BCN and Hotel Porta Fira, Barcelona, Spain
- 2011 – Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari, Japan
- 2014 – National Taichung Theater, Taiwan
- 2015 – Meiso no Mori Municipal Funeral Hall, Japan
- 2016 – International Museum of the Baroque, Mexico
Gallery of works
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Nagaoka Lyric Hall (1994, Nagaoka)
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Serpentine Gallery, London, UK (2002)
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Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre (2004)
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TOD's Omotesando Building, Tokyo, Japan (2004)
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Mikimoto Ginza 2, Tokyo, Japan (2005)
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VivoCity, Singapore (2006)
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Library of Tama Art University, Tokyo, Japan (2007)
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World Games Stadium, Kaohsiung, Taiwan (2008)
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Torre Realia BCN and Hotel Porta Fira, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain (2009)
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Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture, Imabari, Ehime, Japan (2011)
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National Taichung Theater, Taichung, Taiwan (2014)
Awards and Recognition
Toyo Ito has received many important awards for his work, including:
- 1986 – Architectural Institute of Japan Award for Silver Hut
- 1992 – Mainichi Art Award for Yatsushiro Municipal Museum
- 2001 – Gold prize of the Japanese Good Design Award
- 2006 – RIBA Royal Gold Medal
- 2009 – Asahi Prize
- 2010 – Praemium Imperiale
- 2013 – Pritzker Prize for Architecture (a very high honor)
- 2017 – UIA Gold Medal
- 2018 – Person of Cultural Merit (Japan)
Teaching Career
Ito is a professor at the Japan Women's University. He is also an honorary professor at the University of North London. He has been a guest professor at Columbia University and teaches at Tama Art University.
See also
In Spanish: Toyoo Itō para niños
