Tin has a bright silver-like color and a dull sheen, giving a very elegant impression. Despite the association of metal with hardness, it is soft and easily marked by the user.
Tin is considered to have a noble color and has been used for tableware, but it has not been used much in architecture because it is too soft.
It was used only in British pub counters, where it was called pewter.
Since it is a soft metal, it does not make much noise or hit when you put a glass on it. And above all, as you use it, its color and expression change with the years of the place.
I wanted to create such an impression, so I wrapped the counter of THE WINE STORE in Azabu-juban, designed by our company, with tin as well.
The tin we were holding dripped during the construction of the counter.
And the wrapped tin got more and more marks just by putting glasses on it.
It was an exciting experience, and I discovered once again that the attachment to something that changes over time is only possible with genuine materials.
In recent years, architecture has become more industrialized, and unstable materials that change over time are not used as much anymore.
It is understandable that people no longer feel the need to use things for a long time.
Architecture can exist for a long duration if it is cherished.
In Kobe, there is a Minka, or a private house, called Hakogi Sennen-ya, which is said to have been built a thousand years before.
Although private houses are not often categorized in architectural history research, according to some theories, it is so old that it was already called ‘Sennen-ya’ during the Edo period.
Since it is a private house, it was built without an architect.
When I visited the house, I saw that it was smaller than it looked in the picture, but the proportions were excellent.
The low eaves and mud walls gave it the atmosphere of a building in some exotic land.
The mud walls, wood, and thatched roofs are all made from natural materials.
As one would expect, not everything remains the same as it was before, and the thatch is periodically replaced.
Just like human cells, the house is being renewed without changing its appearance.
This is an embodiment of the fact that things change softly.
Things that have endured through the years have an indescribable atmosphere, and the beauty of Sennen-ya includes the time that the building has passed.
I sincerely hope to create something like Sennen-ya that is loved by its users and has the strength to transcend time.
I wonder if I will be able to see the tin counter that glows dully, enduring the passage of time, one day.
