Mamoru Kawaguchi: Master of motion and lightness of structures

Abstract

Mamoru Kawaguchi (1932–2019) was one of the great structural engineers of the late 20th century. He developed his career mostly in Japan and he has also superb works in China, Singapore and Spain. The spectrum of his structures is manifold: he designed shells, space frames, inflatable structures, tension structures, timber–steel hybrid systems and so on. With them, he conceived and provided the bones and muscles of sports halls, exhibition halls, museums, railway stations, towers, bridges and sculptures. Kawaguchi collaborated with some of the best architects of his time: Kenzo Tange, Arata Isozaki and Kazuyo Sejima just to cite some of the internationally most renowned. For his works, he was awarded many times in Japan, as well as internationally (the Architectural Institute of Japan award, the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures Torroja Medal, the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering International Award and many others). In this article, I review Mamoru Kawaguchi’s main professional and academic achievements, and discuss his design philosophy, sources of inspiration and means to develop his ideas from my own personal experience.