Tokyo Collage

The Donald Richie readings just enforced what I'd already been learning from our walk around Azabujuban with Ron and the architecture history lecture. Basically Tokyo is an ecclectic collection of buildings because that is what fits it best economically. The Japanese don't feel much connection to their buildings because they will be torn down or become billboards for advertising. Wabi sabi (the Japanese term for subtle beauty in art) doesn't apply to Tokyo streets or Japanese homes. According to Richie, they prefer to cram as much as possible into the small space. Places can become multifunctional, or, more importantly, many spaces are used for the different purposes people want to acheive. The ecclectic essence of Tokyo has anything and everything available, and the city visually exaggerates that characterisitc.