Japan  

about Japanese influence...
that question is troubeling me too now. (though I agree basically that it's there)
Some of you might have read "Shogun", the popular novel about the time the jesuits were setting foot in Japan. Europeans were in close contact with the country back then, in trade and proselytizing. Basically that was the problem with western involvement in the east, it was about profit and missionary work. I guess inspiration was rarely brought back, exept for fairy tales (the Marco Polo kind).
But you're right, that changed in the late 1800s. A creative elite (Taut *1880, Wright *1880...) could have had access to information about japanese art & architecture.
I think with european modernist the problem is that they were very quiet about their inspirations (if any) as the whole modernist movement was about starting from scratch, disregarding the past/history. Katsura is a rare example.
Wright, in my opinion, was about establishing a distinct American style in contrast to the international style, with an own vocabulary. But he might have had the Japanese in mind, as an example of an independent, native way of expression and as a source of inspiration.
Actually, two points about Wright and Japan come to my mind:
1. His office complex for Johnson Wax was compared to a specific asian temple (I think japanese) due to the floor plan which featured a solitary tower surrounded by premises.
2. He built a hotel in Kyoto or Tokyo which blended in with the old town almost perfectly.
I have pictures of both, just don't know where 🙂
Any actual quote or refference would be great!
I examined the (perfect!!) symmetry of the building vissible in the first pic, if anyone is interested:

Japanese Design
Japanese Design(Not just in MCM or ,,modern,, design)
I love japanese design, and nice you bring this things to discuss.
It,s nice, and refreshing, to see a non occidental solution to some same problems.
I admire those ,,Japanese,, modern designs, with that ,,I don,t know,,
But, from time to time, we should try to look at, and don,t compare it, with the same parameters you/we use, (occidental), and look at it as ,,different,,. The same way they categorizes the not Japanese:
,,different,,.