A Study on Bruno Taut's Way of Thought

The purpose of this study is to discover the most significant characteristics of Bruno Taut's (1880- 1938) theoretical activity in his last years and to clarify their relation with his previous theories. Taut spent his last years (1933-1938) in exile, first in Japan, then in Turkey. He stayed in Japan for three and half years, where he spent much time researching and writing articles and books about Japanese art, architecture and social life, which have been acclaimed both in Japan and overseas. In this book I will try to provide a conceptual analysis of Bruno Taut's way of thought from his early visions of Expressionist period to his researches on Japanese architecture. That is, this study aimed to clarify how Taut could see and interpret traditional Japanese architecture in an original way. To achieve this purpose I've divided this study into two main parts. Part I aims to understand theoretical basis of Taut's thought in the years prior to his arrival in Japan. Taut's main findings in Japanese architecture, as well as the sources that might be influential on his way of expression in his books published in Japan, are discussed in part II.