THE NAKAGIN CAPSULE TOWER stands out from its unremarkable neighbours in Tokyo’s Shimbashi district. Made up of 144 identical cuboids, stacked upon and jutting out from each other, the modular tower is both unabashedly futurist and subtly respectful of tradition. Each cuboid has a round window that evokes both space travel and the ancient architecture of Kyoto. They contain built-in living spaces composed of bath units, beds, desks and household electronics. Kurokawa Kisho, the building’s architect, envisioned his cramped “capsules” as dwellings for what he called Homo movens, or highly mobile modern humans, such as the businessmen who lived in distant suburbs and worked late in Tokyo offices.

在東京新橋一片平平無奇的街區(qū)內(nèi)，中銀膠囊塔顯得卓爾不群。這座模塊式塔樓由144個相同的方形建筑模塊參差堆疊而成，既彰顯未來主義，也有對傳統(tǒng)的含蓄致意。每個方塊都有一扇讓人聯(lián)想到太空旅行和京都古建筑的圓形窗戶。內(nèi)里的生活空間包含浴室、床、書桌和各種家電。其建筑師黑川紀章的設想是，這些狹小的“膠囊”可為他所謂的“移動人”（Homo movens）提供居所，例如家住遠郊而需要在東京的辦公室工作至夜深的商務人士。

When the tower first went up in 1972, it became a prime example of Metabolism, an influential architectural movement in post-war Japan. Metabolism’s chief exponents had studied under Tange Kenzo, an architect whose works included the park and memorial built in Hiroshima to commemorate the nuclear attack of 1945. The Metabolists designed buildings to be adaptable and replaceable, and resilient to threats such as wars and earthquakes. But not, alas, to neglect. On April 12th work started on demolishing the tower, following a long but ultimately futile battle to preserve it.

中銀膠囊塔于1972年建成，成為戰(zhàn)后日本興起的一個有影響力的建筑流派——新陳代謝派——的典范。其主要倡導者曾師從丹下健三，這位建筑師的作品包括廣島紀念1945年原子彈爆炸的公園和紀念館。他們的設計理念是讓建筑具有適應性和可替換性，能抵御戰(zhàn)爭和地震等威脅?？上s沒包括抵御疏于維護的威脅。4月12日，中銀膠囊塔的拆除工作啟動，此前爭取保留該大樓的長時間努力終告徒勞。

Given that, it is ironic that Metabolists sought to shift thinking about architecture from the mechanical to the biological, conceiving of cities as organisms that grew and changed rather than as static constructions to be planned and maintained. “We regard human society as a vital process, a continuous development from atom to nebula,” they declared in their first manifesto, written ahead of the World Design Conference in Tokyo in 1960.

新陳代謝派當年一心倡導要把建筑當做生命體而非機械物來對待，認為城市應該是不斷生長變化的有機體，而不是需要規(guī)劃和維護的靜態(tài)構造。對比中銀膠囊塔如今的命運，一切顯得頗為諷刺。他們在1960年東京世界設計大會（World Design Conference）召開前發(fā)表的首個宣言中提出：“我們把人類社會看作是一個充滿生機的歷程，是一個從原子到星云不斷發(fā)展的過程?！?/p>

Their ideas were informed both by Western modernism and Eastern philosophy, drawing particular inspiration from Japan’s Ise shrine, which has been entirely reconstructed almost every 20 years since the 7th century. Metabolism also embodied the energy of Japan’s rapid-growth era. The Metabolists did more than just design buildings: in their hands, architecture became a field for reimagining Japanese identity after the ravages of the war.

他們的理念同時受西方現(xiàn)代主義和東方哲學的影響，尤其從日本的伊勢神宮汲取靈感，該神宮自七世紀以來幾乎每隔20年就會全面重建一次。新陳代謝派也體現(xiàn)了日本快速增長的年代里的那種精氣神。這一派的建筑師不僅是在設計建筑：在他們手中，建筑成了一個在受戰(zhàn)爭蹂躪后重構日本身份的領域。

In their texts, the architects pondered the relationship between technology and humanity. They considered the demands of designing cities for a growing urban population and a humming economy. They envisioned structures that floated over the seas and reached for the skies. Kurokawa called his capsules “cyborg architecture”, where “man, machine and space build a new organic body”.

這些建筑師撰文討論技術和人類的關系。他們思考城鎮(zhèn)人口不斷增長和經(jīng)濟蓬勃發(fā)展對城市設計的需求。他們設想著漂浮在海上和延伸向天空的建筑結構。黑川紀章稱自己設計的膠囊方塊為“賽博格建筑”，在里面“人、機器和空間構成了一個新的有機體”。

The ideas were characteristic of an era of change and possibility. “There was great momentum in society,” says Maeda Tatsuyuki of Nakagin Capsule Tower Preservation and Restoration Project. “It was a period when society was bolder and could afford to do such things.”

這些想法正體現(xiàn)了那個充滿變化和可能性的時代?！澳菚r社會上沖勁十足，”參與“中銀膠囊塔保護修復行動”的前田達之說，“那個時期，社會更大膽，也承受得住這樣的嘗試?！?/p>

By the end, the structure was decaying and riddled with asbestos. Many of the capsules were no longer habitable. The tower’s destruction serves as a reminder of the relative caution of contemporary Japan. “These days, nobody would dare to build anything like that,” Mr Maeda sighs. Yet it is also reflective of the same culture of impermanence that once inspired the Metabolists. In Japan, buildings are traditionally made of wood and paper, not intended to last centuries. There is not much of a preservationist movement. “Japan seems to demolish things before there’s even debate,” says Mr Maeda.

到最后，中銀膠囊塔日益破敗，石棉污染嚴重。里面許多膠囊房間已不再適合居住。大樓被拆除印證當代日本社會變得相對謹慎。“現(xiàn)在沒人敢建造這樣的東西了?！鼻疤镞_之嘆道。但這也正體現(xiàn)了那種催生了新陳代謝派的無常文化。在日本，傳統(tǒng)建筑由木材和紙張建造，并不求千百年屹立不倒。建筑保護運動也不多見。“日本在拆東西前似乎都不會先討論一下。”前田達之說。

Still, fans and residents of the Nakagin tower had hoped to raise funds to replace the capsules, in line with Kurokawa’s initial concept. They had been in negotiations about buying the building. But the pandemic halted any momentum they had. Mr Maeda’s group now hopes to rescue some 40 individual capsules, remove the asbestos, recreate the interiors and give them new lives at museums around the world. Mr Maeda compares the process to a “withered dandelion” spreading its seeds. “The capsules will take on a life of their own, scattered across different locations.” It is in keeping with the spirit of Metabolism.?

盡管如此，中銀膠囊塔的粉絲和住戶曾希望籌集資金來更新膠囊，就像黑川紀章最初設想的那樣。他們先前已經(jīng)在就買下這棟樓展開談判。但新冠疫情令一切進展戛然而止。前田達之的行動小組現(xiàn)在希望能保住這里面的約40個膠囊，清除其中的石棉，重新設計內(nèi)部構造，讓它們在世界各地的博物館里重獲新生。前田達之把這比作是讓“枯萎的蒲公英”傳播種子?！斑@些膠囊將散落在不同地方，覓得新生?！边@正契合了新陳代謝派的精神。