Kengo Kuma – The Architect

‘My inspiration always starts from the place where the project will be. In the past, I have visited Scotland many times. It is a very beautiful country and I’m truly in love with the Scottish landscape and nature.

‘When we started this competition, the first thing I wanted to do was visit the site. I always want to do this. I would be too scared otherwise. After all, certain things can be felt there and nowhere else.

‘The uniqueness of this project for us is in the position between the water and the city – it is very different from a normal site as it sits in between land and water. As we started thinking about the project one of my colleagues showed me a picture of the cliffs of north-eastern Scotland – it’s as if the earth and water had a long conversation and finally created this stunning shape. The design of V&A Dundee attempts to translate this geographical uniqueness into the building by creating an artificial cliff.

‘For V&A Dundee we tried to produce a design that reflects the two main axes of the city – Union Street and Discovery Point – and then coordinate them together in a spiralling motion. The form is inherently dynamic as it grows from the street up.

‘The building acts like a connector between the river and the city – creating a frame through which to see the river from the city, and to see the city from the river. Dundee was a city built on trade and the river played a vital role. The building acts like a gate through which the city can once again access the world.

‘The big idea for V&A Dundee was bringing together nature and architecture, and to create a new living room for the city.

‘I hope the museum can change the city and become its centre of gravity. I am delighted and proud that this is my first building in the UK.’

Kengo Kuma is a professor of the Graduate School of Architecture at Tokyo University and employs over 150 architects in Paris and Tokyo. His key projects include Suntory Museum of Art in Tokyo, Bamboo Wall House in China, Louis Vuitton Möet Hennessy’s Japan headquarters, and Besançon Art Centre.