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Uchi/Soto
“In Japan, ‘public’ is more of a mental construct than a physical
presence”[8] and the concept of ‘privacy’ has never taken hold[9]. The
closest native Japanese approximation of private-public may be uchi
(family, clan, group)-soto (that which is not uchi) where uchi extends
the Western ‘private’ to ‘other private’ plus ‘public’ [10]. A history
and present of close quarters, paper-thin walls and sliding doors that
open onto the street evoke the permeation of daily life into public
space[11]. Memory and current practice/conception regard whole
neighbourhoods as ‘home’ [12], with parks as multifunctional common
yards[13] [14].
Use
The Japanese city can be characterised by use – (1) the perceived
strength of the individual plot, (2) utilitarian public spaces, and (3)
public space as a domain for temporary invasion and annexation[15].
Following, ‘modern life’ in Tokyo can be said to be ‘city affirming’ –
exhibiting commitment and positive interest in personal level
‘feathering the urban nest’ [16] and so much like how the urban
development of Edo/Tokyo took place around many scattered nuclei[17] so
too the scattered nuclei of Tokyo’s informal gardens provide foundation
for everyday humane life – the multilayered units of urban space growing
more refined and human as they grow closer to the daily lives of the
people of the city[18]. Tokyo uchi can thus be understood as a
‘place-by-place’ [19] plot-by-plot discontinuous and autonomous series
of oases[20].
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more about urban Japan:
Design For Flooding: Architecture, Landscape, And Urban Design For Resilience To Climate Change
Hazard Mapping and Vulnerability Assessment
GIS Infrastructure in Japan — Developments and Algorithmic Researches
The New Urbanism: Kichijoji Style
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