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Remnant 2 and the World of Tadao Ando

A cocktail of bare geometry, two heaping spoons of “let’s-get-lost,” and a pinch of pure void. #architecture #videogame

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Stefano Besi
Aug 20, 2025
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Welcome back to Artcade, the Rubik’s cube with so many faces no one will ever solve it—so we might as well keep playing. Today we wander through spaces not to explain them but to see what sticks to our skin after we cross the threshold. Sounds like that old “journey over destination” chestnut; turns out it may have been right all along. At this point I’d keep an eye on “Old hens make the best broth” and “A hard-boiled egg will choke the rooster,” too—odd proverbs, sure, but you never know, especially if you frequent chicken coops. Enjoy the read!


Tadao Ando started where many architects start—designing houses. Except his look like this:

The Azuma House (left: exterior - right: interior courtyard)

Sure, sure, Tadao Ando started out with houses. But then he moved on to things like this:

The Hill of the Buddha

The Hill of the Buddha is a 44‑foot statue that peeks out from a lavender‑covered mound as if playing hide‑and‑seek with the sky.

Exposed concrete in its natural hue, surgical use of light, lines pared down to the bone—over time these ingredients have baked a distinctly recognizable architectural poetics (whatever that means).

Valley Gallery – Photograph by Katsuyoshi Yano
Armani Theater
Ando Museum

Ando’s portfolio hops from the dramatic Valley Gallery to the sleek Armani Theater, from the Ando Museum to the piece that first floored me: the Church of the Light. One exterior shot was all it took to pull me into Ando’s orbit; the interior view sealed the deal.

Church of the Light, exterior
Church of the Light, interior

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