April 7, 2016
Visit by Lord Norman Foster
Lord Foster, of the internationally recognized Foster + Partners studio for architecture and integrated design, toured KIKUKAWA’s factory on March 28th, 2017 as pa2011rt of his visit to Japan.
This visitation follows Lord Foster’s wish to visit our factory, having been KIKUKAWA’s business partner for some time.
Despite the limitations in time, Lord Foster was able to view our facility, various samples and the fabrication process of the products. He was also able to see the mock-up and the fabrication of his ongoing project.
With the actual technology, craftsmanship and product in front of him, Lord Foster showed great interest, asked various questions while he felt the metal with his hands. He shared his impressions, saying, “I saw how the skilled manual work of craftsmen and cutting edge machinery was fused to produce these wonderful products. I didn’t have much time this visit, but I would like to take a closer look at the factory another day.”
At the same time, Lord Foster gifted a book, “Building with History” by Paul Goldberger. On the first page was a hand-written message, “for your great tradition of crafting metal”.
KIKUKAWA will continue to advance its technology and hone its craftsmanship to respond to the needs of industry leading architects of our time.