Kengo Kuma. Architecture in dialogue

Kuma’s architecture explores lightness, softness, nature and geometry in a totally unique way, producing buildings that blend into their surroundings and restore the link between living beings and the world around them. Verging on the poetic, the exhibition examines the way we build, experience and conceive architecture, in a world where progress is taking us away from the places where we really belong. Kengo Kuma was born in 1954 in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. He set up the Kengo Kuma & Associates agency in Tokyo in 1990. Drawing inspiration from traditional Japanese architecture, he developed a style that combines modernity, natural materials and local expertise, but always remains in close dialogue with nature. He has won numerous international accolades, including the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture in 2016, and was appointed an Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in France. He is a Professor Emeritus at Tokyo University and is currently working on amazing projects in more than 50 countries across the globe. His iconic buildings include the Victoria & Albert Museum in Dundee (Scotland) and the Saint-Denis-Pleyel metro station for the 2024 Paris Olympics. This exhibition is being organised as part of the “160 years of friendship between Japan and Belgium” anniversary and in collaboration with Kengo Kuma & Associates, the Embassy of Japan in Belgium, Nihonjikai, the Japan-Belgium Association and Wallonie-Bruxelles International. From 16.04.2026 Micro-architecture – Fondation Folon, La Hulpe Inspired by the work of Kengo Kuma, the result of a collaboration between his agency, teaching staff and architecture students at the ULB. With the support of the Walloon Region, the Province of Walloon Brabant, Visit Wallonia, ULB Faculty of Architecture/La Cambre Horta, Delen Bank, Uhoda, Its wood, AGC Glass Europe, Atenor, the municipality of La Hulpe, La Première, Musiq3, Le Soir, Soir Mag and TVCOM.