Renzo Piano, One of Italy’s most renowned architects, was born in Genoa Italy in 1937. Most of his family consisted of contractors, though Renzo chose to study the design side of construction. Renzo studied and graduated from the Milan Polytechnic Architecture School in 1964. Renzo’s first big break was the famous Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. This museum in the heart of Paris has an ultra modern look, showcasing its exposed structure of steel webbing. He also is known for a few projects closer to home, namely the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. This design included a living roof, recycled steel and concrete for the walls, and rainwater recycling. Renzo has received many awards including the AIA Gold Medal, Sonning Prize, Kyoto Prize, and the Pritzker Architecture Prize.
Kenzo Tange, One of Japan’s most respected architect was born in 1913. Kenzo Graduated from University of Tokyo in 1935. He is known from combining modernism with traditional Japanese architecture. He drew his inspiration from Swiss modernist Le Corbusier. Kenzo’s first big project was the Hiroshima Peace Centre. The interior and exterior finish was bare concrete, the reason being so people would focus on the contents of the museum and not the building itself. One of his biggest and most well known accomplishments was the Yoyogi National Gymnasium built for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Inspiration drawn from the Roman coliseum, it features a roof skin suspended from two large masts. Kenzo won a Pritzker Prize for the Yoyogi National Gymnasium which was described as "among the most beautiful buildings of the 20th century". Another radical design by Kenzo is St. Mary’s Cathedral in Tokyo. The foundation of the cathedral forms a cross, but when looked at from the sides you see the steep swopping walls made from stainless steel.
Both kenzo and Renzo design their structures under the modernist style. Though they have their similarities there are some differences between them....