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Zero Yen House

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Zero Yen House is an exhibition by Japanese architect and artist Kyohei Sakaguchi, inspired by the constructions of Japanese homeless people.

Sakaguchi, a graduate of the Department of Architecture at Waseda University, became interested in "vernacular architecture" whilst a student, and since then has documented the temporary structures created by the homeless in the cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya.[1][2] In 2004, he published a book, Zero Yen Houses, which contained photographs of many of these constructions.[1][3]

The exhibition includes video footage, sketches, large ink-jet prints, a detailed architectural drawing of a zero-yen house, and a full-scale replica of one such structure entitled An Evolving House (the original, in Tokyo, was built by an unnamed camera engineer).[1][2]

Sakaguchi sees the zero yen house as uniquely Japanese phenomenon, rooted in the austerity of traditional Japanese Buddhism.[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Alternative Japanese Housing Designs on Display at the Vancouver Art Gallery". Daily News. Canadian Architect. Sep 8, 2006. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
  2. ^ a b Laurence, Robin (October 12, 2006). "Kyohei Sakaguchi: Zero Yen House". Straight.com. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
  3. ^ Margolis, Eric (5 March 2021). "In Japan, His Disaster Art Saves Lives". New York Times. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
  4. ^ "Coming To A Gallery Near You: Japanese Homeless Architecture". Times-Union. Associated Press. March 16, 2006. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
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