5 NATURE URBAN In Autumn the deciduous trees of Japan including the maples and the ginkgos turn into displays of flaming red, orange and yellow leaves. Japan’s bamboo forests give a dramatic and graphic thin vertical structure to the natural landscape at a very fine grain. This bamboo stand is next to the Nankai Koya line as it winds up to Mount Koya. The torii gate that defines the beginning of the Kumano Kodo trail that for over a thousand years pilgrims have followed as it weaves through the Kii mountains to sacred shrines. The intricate structure of the cantilevered beams and brackets that hold up the roofs of Japan’s temples have been continued for centuries as has their flaming red or vermillion colour. The front door to Sekisui House’s House of Wind on the outskirts of Tokyo is typical of the use of thin timber slats that are used on Japanese domestic architecture. The screens give a delicate transition from indoor to the outside. An urban torii gate in Kyoto is next to the Museum of Modern Art designed by Fumiko Maki and it’s gigantic scale can be seen from the upper levels of the museum. The gate defines the entry to the urban museum precinct.