Hayashi

If we define "life and work" as "play and work," it's very difficult to draw the line there. For example, if you're browsing Facebook in a large company's office, that would be considered "play." However, when working in a social job, there are surely cases where not being able to access Facebook would mean you can't work. So I think the question itself, "Is Facebook play? Or is it work?" is already invalid.

Shigematsu

Speaking of Facebook, we are involved in the design of their headquarters office, which requires a scientific perspective on how to accommodate an increase in staff and how to utilize meeting rooms to increase efficiency. The same is true for financial office spaces in New York, where the nature of workspaces is determined by scientific laws. Meanwhile, the design of apartment buildings is also shackled by various frameworks, starting with economic efficiency. I personally confront these constraints while interacting with clients in the role of a "spatial translator." I feel that we are being asked to consider how to create new values and give them form within these frameworks.

Hayashi

Taking into account both my life and work, I chose the theme of "adventure and creativity," which I feel strongly about. On an adventure, there is no guarantee of where you will reach or whether you will succeed, but it is an exciting feeling. And right now, I am particularly interested in "forests." In order to open up these forests to society, I founded a company called "Hida no Mori de Kuma wa Dancing" (commonly known as Hidakuma) (*3) in 2015.
Seventy percent of Japan's land area is forest. Although a large number of trees were planted across the country 50 or 60 years ago, they have now been abandoned and their value has been forgotten. However, forests store rainwater in the soil, preventing it from running off all at once, and also preserve biodiversity. I want to reconnect with these forests and trees, and the lifestyles that have been cultivated within them.
(※3) Hida Forest Bears Dance Co., Ltd. https://hidakuma.com/ (※3) Hida Forest Bears Dance Co., Ltd.
https://hidakuma.com/

The kumiki I brought today is an attempt to combine tradition and innovation by computerizing what carpenters have traditionally done. One side of the piece is made of plastic resin output by a 3D printer, and the other is made of wood cut by a CNC (computer numerical control) machine.
What excites me about this is the potential for the users of the space to take the lead. Rather than architects and designers defining the function of a space, the people who live in the forest themselves will utilize their environment and create their own living space. In that sense, I believe that in the future, it will be important for places and cities to be designed in a way that puts people at the center. For example, in New York, there is a park called the High Line (*4), which utilizes the former elevated railway tracks, and local residents are voluntarily involved in maintaining the plants and other aspects of the park. In a similar vein, I am working on a project to get people in the Shibuya shopping district to maintain the roadside flowerbeds. By transforming this space from "someone else's place" where you don't have to do anything to "a place where you have to do something," we are trying to create "our own place" for each individual.
(*4) High Line http://www.thehighline.org/ (*4) High Line
http://www.thehighline.org/