Tadao Ando is now one of the world-class architects representing Asia, but there was a time when his talent wasn't recognized simply because he was only a high school graduate.
Apparently, officials openly dismissed him and his ideas, asking things like, 'What did you even learn in school?' or 'Are you seriously that undereducated?'
They even asked about his family's financial situation, demonstrating peak rudeness. Ando’s chosen solution against these people was...
When Tadao Ando was discouraged, Chairman Pinault supposedly smiled and replied, 'Oh yeah? Then let's go to Venice.' Ando thought, 'This person never gives up, he’s amazing.' That’s how the museum in Venice was built.
The museum embodies Ando's stubborn adherence to architecture that seeks harmony without destroying the surrounding environment.
It looks like a secluded spot where light would be hard to get in, but he even factored that in, making it a building designed to easily capture light.
Venetians were amazed that a non-Italian Japanese architect had made the location even more valuable while they maintained their identity and culture. BTW, if you look up more of Ando's works:
The Church of the Water (Hokkaido)
The Church of the Light (Osaka) (All other architects refused, saying it wasn't profitable; only Ando accepted).
Bonte Museum (Jeju Island)
The Water Temple (Hyōgo Prefecture) (Looks kinda meh from far away).
If you actually go, it leads underground and looks simple, but there's a certain mystical feeling.
Tadao Ando, the architect who tries to incorporate 'globalism' into his buildings. BTW, once Ando became world famous, Japanese people demanded to know who those people were who had insulted him and rejected his proposals back then. The officials involved in the Nakashima Republican Party incident reportedly responded, saying, 'We never said that to Ando,' and 'It was just judged to be too unreasonable at the time.'
"Ando’s genius means either getting blinded by sacred light or suffering through a single shared landline phone in the office. Aesthetics > Practicality, always."
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