Edo's endgame: real or virtual?

This paper considers a series of alternatives that have been put forward for the future of the city of Tokyo since the beginning of the period which historian Alexandre Kojeve identifies as Japan's ‘post-history’. In particular, it traces the development towards the city's virtualization b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inUrban design international (London, England) Vol. 2; no. 3; pp. 137 - 143
Main Author Chaplin, Sarah
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basingstoke Palgrave Macmillan 01.09.1997
Subjects
Architecture
Communication
Computer mediated communication
Computer terminals
Cultural theory
Stadiums
Technology
Japan
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Summary:This paper considers a series of alternatives that have been put forward for the future of the city of Tokyo since the beginning of the period which historian Alexandre Kojeve identifies as Japan's ‘post-history’. In particular, it traces the development towards the city's virtualization by examining the visions of four leading Japanese architects, namely Kenzo Tange, Kisho Kurokawa, Arata Isozaki and Toyo Ito. It will consider how their different proposals respond to the issue of computer-mediated communication, how they relate to shifts taking place within contemporary cultural theory, and how far they anticipate or accommodate the increasingly virtual nature of today's urban existence. Finally, it will examine the current status of virtual technology in Japan and discuss the ways in which the Japanese are predisposed towards integrating its possibilities, thereby addressing the question, Edo's endgame: real or virtual?
ISSN:1357-5317
1468-4519
DOI:10.1057/udi.1997.24