Cross-Current Contribution : A Study on East Asian Influence on Modern Architecture in Europe

Abstract

This research started from the premise that East Asia – China, Korea and Japan – played a remarkable role in the development of modern architecture. In this study, attention is paid to the lack of a synthetic research about the influence of East Asia on European modernism as a counterpart to its influence on American modernism. Thus, the intention of this paper is to construct an integrated discourse on the East Asian contribution to European modern architecture. By analyzing recently published/presented articles on the related subjects, this study suggests how European modernists encountered the East, what attracted them to the East, and how they applied East Asian aesthetics in their designs. While a number of architects adopted East Asian formal elements directly, at times superficially, others extracted the underlying principles. As a whole, this analysis offers insights at several levels. First, it provides a balance to the view of the East Asian influence on modern architecture by providing an investigation into its influence on European modernism as a counterpart to its influence on American modernism. Second, the multi-faceted nature of modern architecture is further illuminated in this study. Third, an important example of “positive-Orientalism” is provided, which contrasts with the rather negative image implied by E. Said’s ‘Orientalism’. In conclusion, this paper provides a critical assessment of the fundamental motive of European modernists’ adoption of East Asian aesthetics.