Tadao Ando: who is the architect who won the Pritzker and Beyoncé People

The cost of the new mansion of music queen Beyoncé is approximately R$ 974 million. With 2,787 square metres, it is considered most expensive house Already sold in California. Residence was designed by Tadao EndoAn award-winning architect who has won over celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Kanye West with his unique talent.

The exterior of Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s mansion is made of concrete, which has a more brutal touch, although the glass and the surrounding nature balance the construction. Home designed in 2003 for art collector William BellThe building is a great example of Ando’s philosophy of “critical regionalism”, focusing on modern tradition while still setting the building in its geographical and cultural context. In this case, the insertion of minimalist and spacious concrete hallways with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Kim Kardashian is another name who appreciates Japanese architecture and hired Tadao Ando to design her new mansion in Palm Springs, whose features resemble a spaceship. The most common material used in this home is concrete, which explains the shades of gray throughout the space.

Who is Tadao Ando?

Tadao Endo is an architect whose main characteristic is brutalism and is strongly inspired by Le Corbusier. With a difference: It creates the perfect combination between nature, light and concrete. His works are apparently solid, but display such lightness from the phenomenon of light. As one of the major architects influencing contemporary Japanese architecture, Ando was awarded the Pritzker Prize, the Nobel Prize in Architecture, in 1995.

In addition to the architect’s signature residences, many other constructions such as churches, museums, buildings and art centers are spread across the globe. Ando is known for turning buildings into expanses of landscape, reason enough for the world to become interested in his work.

Invited by the Kering Group, François-Henri Pinault chose to leave in Tadao’s hands the reconstruction of the Stock Exchange building in Paris, where the businessman’s contemporary art collection is located. hey Armani TheaterLocated in Milan, Italy, it is one of the greatest sites of architecture built by him. The building was commissioned by the stylist Giorgio Armani And it is a project that brings present and past together, with cracks in the walls serving to illuminate the space with natural light. In Malibu, Rapper Kanye West Bought a $100 Million Vacation Home, and Endo Collaborated with Curators Season Dress CenterAndrew Bolton, at his exhibition honoring the late Karl Lagerfeld.

Discover more works by Tadao Ando, ​​below:

1. Ibaraki Church of Light (1989)

In Osaka, Japan, is the Ibaraki Church of Light. The project blends solid and void like light and shadow, and reinforces minimalism by creating an image of a cross allowing sunlight to enter through the concrete.

2. Church on the Water (1988)

Unlike the previous project, church on the water, in Tomamu, Japan, keeps the building above water. A cross at the edge of the waterfall connects the building to nature, placing concrete in the interior and glass in the upper part.

3. 21_21 Design Site (2007)

in Tokyo, Japan, the 21_21 Design Vision is built Tadao Endo In partnership with Issey Miyake, who brings Japanese design to the fore. Much of the building is underground, as its façade brings in natural light through the surrounding glass.

4. Suntory Museum (1994)

located in tempozan Osaka Bayin japan, Suntory Museum stands as a monument. The glass-enclosed building has an inverted cone shape, allowing a panoramic view of the entire bay and square. Its central part houses a cinema, aquarium, restaurants and shops, while a square provides access to the sea. This is another example of the concept of critical regionalism. Ando, ​​which contemplates man, nature and architecture.

5. Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art (2002)

in Fort Worth, in the United States, we find Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art, which has 5 pavilions and one is situated over the lake. Its center is made of concrete, while the façade and its entire length are covered with a layer of glass, which lets in light and provides an overview of the interior environment. In this construction it is possible to discern the main characteristics of the architect: lightness, functionality, connection with nature and its brutalist style.

6. Hill of Buddha (2015)

In the center of a cemetery in Sapporo, Japan, is a statue of Buddha, which stands 13 meters tall, and is crowned with a concrete structure that tapers to the head. illuminated by natural light, Buddha Hill It is in perfect harmony with the environment where it is located, and is found following a 40-metre underground passage – which makes the experience even more special and mysterious.