The architecture students in studio 3.2 at Kingston University, led by tutors Simon Jones and Takeshi Hayatsu, have made their own interpretation of the 11th century massive wooden temple gate, Todai-ji Nandaimon, Nara Japan. This studio’s focus on craft has been explored through studying miyadaiku, the Japanese craft of carpentry. The Japanese are masters of advanced joinery, something the students experienced first-hand on their field trip to Japan in October 2014.
Studio 3.2’s interpretation of the temple gate includes half of the original structure; the 18 columns are reduced to 9. The structure is about 5.5 meters tall, and uses the same bracketing system as the original building. The bracketing arms sits in the column with a notch, and they’re tightened with a wedge hammered in above or underneath the beam. The project was not only about replicating the original temple wooden structure, but also to work with others as a team, to understand what it means to build something large together. 22 students from the Studio worked intensely in the university’s 3D Workshop. Over 3000 components were prefabricated in the workshop over two weeks in January 2015, produced from Scottish spruce, provided by James Jones and Sons. Standard modern sizes of 2x2”, 2x3”, in addition to the corrugated steel roof, provided by EuroClad, contributes - to a contemporary interpretation. Many of the components were tested using prototypes and jigs before commencing the mass production. The construction logistics and health and safety issues relating to the project were addressed throughout the process, from the designing of the structure, the testing of mock ups, and the construction on site. The structural frame of the temple itself was used to support a temporary working platform to work at height safely.
The installation of the structure at 1:5 was completed in May 2015 in the garden of Dorich House in Kingston Hill, and it forms part of London Festival of Architecture Todai-ji Nandaimon is the Great South Gate of the Todai-ji. It burnt down in 1180, only 400 years since it’s founding. The new framework was erected in 1199, a reconstruction led by Buddhist monk Chogen (重源). Chogen made several pilgrimages to China, and learnt to master the latest knowledge and information from the continent. He utilised a new style of timber construction; the Chinese method called Daibutsu-yo which is characterised by horizontal beams mortised through massive round columns creating stacked cantilevered supports the overhanging roof eaves.
Todai-ji Nandaimon has five bays across, the central three bays being the entrance and exit section. There is a bracketing system to support the rafters on the deep eaves, which calls for nine layers of bracket arms under each projecting eave. Between the tiers of bracket arms are carefully lined bearing blocks, which serve as connectors and support the beams, which project further out as they go upwards. The brackets are set into holes cut into the column and the tie beams are thread all the way through the columns. This system provides great lateral stability, a requirement in this place where earthquakes happen on a daily basis. The temple gate is a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site as ‘Historic Monument of Ancient Nara’.
