The latest issue of the design magazine "AXIS," Vol. 238, goes on sale October 1!

Axis Co., Ltd. (Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Juhei Shimazaki) released the latest issue, Vol. 238, of its design magazine "AXIS" on Thursday, October 1, 2026.

COVER STORY

Norman Foster(Foster + Psrtners)

Architecture is a Social Art

Norman Foster, a leading British architect who has shaped the field of architecture for decades, continues to engage creatively with the challenges of the present and the future. A recipient of the Pritzker Prize and numerous other architectural honours, Lord Foster of Thames Bank remains active at the age of 91, travelling extensively around the world. Guided by the principles of innovation, sustainability and design, Foster sees architecture as a social art and firmly believes that good design can make a positive difference. His work ranges from architecture and urban planning to education,extending even to projects beyond Earth. In an exclusive interview at his riverside studio on the Thames in London, we explore what has kept him at the forefront of the profession for more than half a century and how he continues to expand its horizons.

Feature

Reweaving Architecture

Since the dawn of modern architecture, the field has expanded its possibilities hand in hand with technologies related to materials, structures, building systems, and more. The High Tech architectureof the late 20th century sought to demonstrate a new vision of architecture by leaving steel,glass, building systems, and structures exposed.But in a time when challenges related to the environment and resources are growing increasingly urgent, what does "technology" mean in the context of architecture? It's reinterpreting the passage of time that is etched into existing structures,bringing out the innate qualities of materials such as earth and wood, and incorporating natural forces such as light, wind, and heat into the architecture. This is not about showing off technological prowess but exploring the potential in what currently exists in an effort to utilize it to the fullest.Here, we explore what architecture might look like beyond High Tech.

Introduction
Looking back at the future of architecture ーWhat has technology really changed?

How far has technology changed the future of architecture? Taking as its starting point the provocation posed by the architect Cedric Price in 1966--'Technology is the answer, but what was the question?'--this essay traces the trajectory from the High Tech architecture of the 1960s to the age of AI. Re-examining the possibilities and limits that technological progress has brought to architecture, and technology's complex relationship with society and culture,it considers how we should use technology and how we might shape the future.

Chapter_1  Editing Architecture
Case_1  From grain silos to art museum:Architecture that preserves an industrial heritage for future generations

Serving as a symbol of reviving industrial heritage, Kunstsilo converted a cluster of grain silos built in the 1930s into a contemporary art museum. Architects built the facility right into the silos, making them the museum's center while harnessing existing forms, materials, and past vestiges. The project realized radical revitalization that unlocked the potential for the future, which was hidden in the layers of history.

CASE_2  Editing the Urban Commons

On the banks of the Charleroi-Brussels Canal, a vast 1930s Citroën factory is being transformed into KANAL-Centre Pompidou,a cultural institution on an unprecedented urban scale. Atelier Kanal preserves the complex's monumental industrial frame while threading public routes, climate-controlled galleries, and everyday civic programs through its 40,000 square meters.More than a museum renovation, the project recasts a modernist landmark as an urban commons--an open interior where art, architecture, social life, and the contested history of Brussels can meet.

Conversation: Daisuke Nagano × Tsuyoshi Tane

Architecture That Inherits Time

Buildings do not simply come into being the moment they are completed; they are nurtured within society over 30,50, even 100 years. Daisuke Nagano, President and Representative Director of Sony Enterprise Co., Ltd., identifies the principles and values of place from a brand perspective,while architect Tsuyoshi Tane gives form to the beginnings of the future through architecture. Drawing on their work with places where nearly a century of history and human memory have accumulated--including the Imperial Hotel Tokyo and the former Sony Building, now Ginza Sony Park--they discuss what should be carried forward into the future through architecture.

Chapter_2  Architecture Shaped by Materials

Case_3  Architect Yuko Nagayama's "Moving Architecture"

How do Ettore Sottsass's works, activities, and underlying philosophy resonate into today's design? We examined the insights of various individuals connected to Sottsass ――including a gallerist handling Memphis Milano works, a design coordinator living in a Sottsass-designed house, leaders of local industries, as well as designers, architects, and illustrators who say they were deeply influenced by him. A diverse portrait of Sottsass emerges through these varied perspectives.

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