INTENTIONALLIES

PEOPLEText: Chinashi

There is an architectural label “Intentionallies“(ITL) which was set up to practice creation through architecture in ’95. While drawing the attention of mass media, it has committed themselves to designing a wide range of design such as an id design for Towa Tei‘s CD jacket, furniture, graphic design collaborated with Tycoon graphics, even multistorey buidings and so on.

Every idea emerges from a question “How should it be performed?”, and an earnest attitude of travelling across genres, occasionally transforming itself and shaking territories. It is certain that that flexible attempt inspires architecture with a new blood.

This month, SHIFT interviewed the members of Intentionallies, Shuwa Tei, Jiro Endo and Shin Ohhori at Endo’s house in Jinguu-mae, Tokyo.

As for the definition of Intentinallies, you mentioned that it’s “a label” to practice architectural mateliarisation. As far as I know, it’s the whole practice of materialasation mainly stressing on architecture that you specialise in. How come did you first reach to that idea?

Tei (T): We learned design at school and thought there should be more to do in design. What we want to do is practice the whole process of matelialisation. We believe that architectural elements including interior, outerior, graphics even music are all essential, not that each element comes before them in the first place.


Towa Tei “Sound Museum”CD ID Design

In essence, you mean you stick to every detail of the elments in architecture.

T: We want to work on it at an easy pace.

Endo (E): We believe that we should adopt an idea “an act as architecture” and an architectural act is to solve problems one by one, and then create, not to totalise the elements.

For instance, I feel this beautiful enlarged house where we are now is just like a cafe that can attract and gather people. You made this house that can be directly associated with our reality in real world, didn’t you?

E: Right. Nothing’s peculiar and abnormal here.

T: A completion of architecture doesn’t finish when it’s completed, does it? Many events will happen to a building afterwards.
For example, this gathering we have right now is one of the events.

Ohhori (O): The design can be completed by holding an event like this.

“Architectural act” implies that?

T: It does, yes.

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