The 46th Pritzker Prize winner was Arata Isozaki, the ninth winner from Japan. The award ceremony will take place at the Palace of Versailles in May (note that Tadao Ando was presented with the same award in 1995 at the Petit Trianon).
Born in 1931 in the city of Oita Arata Isozaki, he studied under Kenzo Tange, was influenced by the ideas of metabolism, but he always adhered to his own line, which approached either brutalism, then postmodernism, or neo-modernism. Isozaki traveled a lot from his youth, combining architecture with philosophy and journalism, he is known as a witty essayist and polemicist. Attention to both the global and the local - the unique - allowed him not only to rely on a variety of sources of forms and ideas (including the inevitable Russian avant-garde), but also to become one of the first Japanese architects who received success and vocation in the West, and then in the Middle East. and in China. His buildings in his homeland, as well as in the USA, Italy, Spain, Poland, are distinguished by an amazing erudition, which makes any of his statements full of interest.
The jury of the Pritzker Prize (Isozaki was a member of it at the time of its first award in 1979 and the next five years) notes the versatility of his figure, however, we will not quote his verdict, but another laureate of this award, Hans Hollein … This text was written by the Austrian architect in May 2005 - for the large exhibition of Arata Isozaki "The Newly Ruined Hiroshima", which was held in the summer of the same year in the "Ruin" wing of the Moscow Museum of Architecture: "After 30 years, Arata Isozaki is a universal figure of our era. He is not only one of the best architects in the world, but also stands out for his belonging to both Western and Eastern culture and the global scale of his personality. Deep knowledge of the philosophical ideas of the East and West, the history of architecture and civilization is combined in it with fundamental information about the future paths of development of science and technology. He is an observer, as well as a creator, hero, seer, artist. His works - constructed and non-embodied - constitute a fundamental contribution to the modern picture of the world. Isozaki came to architecture in the 1960s with developed visionary ideas, but soon managed to prove himself in implemented projects. He uses various - unconventional - methods of displaying his works, but these means carry meaning in themselves. This was his "Electric Labyrinth" at the 1968 Triennial in Milan. This exhibition was a turning point for the very idea of such events: Aldo van Eyck and I also presented installations there instead of exhibits on pedestals and partitions. It was a new interaction with the viewer - as a participant. Unfortunately, due to the political events of that time, only a few were able to visit the exhibition. It is all the more important that this installation by Isozaki has been reconstructed and will be shown in Moscow. It is not only a historical artifact: it is still relevant today and will give vitality to the entire exhibition. Works from different periods will be presented, including current projects. Isozaki's visionary projects have a lasting influence on his work and contemporary architecture. Isozaki can go back to his early ideas and implement them later. The complexity of its architecture stems from its particular way of thinking. It is interesting to see how works such as "City in the Air" of the early 1960s turned into an ongoing project of the Qatar National Library. There is continuity in his work - not due to repetition, but due to constant changes. Like life and death. His works can sparkle and explode, or be reduced to rubble. Or start with … a metaphorical passage. This is not a solution to the problem. This is a statement about the state of the world today."
