Talking about Zen Architecture
Published May 7th, 2009
Linked here is a video of architect, woodworker and Zen priest Paul Discoe talking about his craft and about his recent book, Zen Architecture.
Paul was a student of Suzuki Roshi and was ordained by him in 1970. Just before he died, Suzuki Roshi encouraged Paul to travel to Japan to study traditional temple building. When he returned to the States five years later, Paul helped design and build many of the structures at Tassajara (including the current zendo) and Green Gulch Farm.
I found it interesting how Paul was able to implement the traditional building methods that he had learned – some of them several centuries old – using modern and locally available materials, not to mention the ingenious way he was often forced to adapt these practices to conform to modern building codes.

