Kyoto’s Land, Water, and the Gestures of Its People

A Salon as Cultural Interface

“Privé” means private or invitation-only in French. The term originates from the salons of 18th and 19th century Paris, where intellectuals, artists, and political thinkers gathered to exchange ideas that shaped their era.

Kyoto has long absorbed external influences, from Tang dynasty culture to European modernity, transforming them into its own aesthetic language. This salon extends that cultural attitude into the present. It reinterprets the spirit of the Parisian salon within a city shaped by over a thousand years of history.

Each session is designed as a multisensory experience. Participants engage with architecture, food, and atmosphere specific to Kyoto, followed by open conversation after the talk.

Revisiting Culture from the Ground Up

Prof. Matsuda approaches architecture and cities not only as human creations, but as systems shaped by land and water. Having lived in Kyoto for many years while conducting research across Japan, she examines how physical conditions influence cultural formation.

At the center of her talk was the idea of “uncontrollable ground.” Much of what we call culture cannot be separated from terrain, water distribution, and soil conditions. Yet these factors are often omitted in discussions of cities.

One of her key research experiences took place in Tokyo during the pandemic. For over five days, she walked through the city following a single rule, to trace only natural springs. This revealed hidden layers of the city, from Jomon-era sites aligned with underground water veins to the valley topography of Shibuya shaped by spring water, and springs that still remain behind Shingawa. These are not visible through ordinary routes of movement or tourism, but when one walks with a clear question in mind, the underlying logic of the land begins to emerge. As she noted, Shibuya developed in its current form precisely because it remained waterlogged for so long that it could not be easily developed.

Her analysis extended to Kyoto. The placement of the ancient capital Heian-kyo on the west side of the Kamo River, the concentration of early settlements on gently sloping land within the Kyoto basin rather than at the foot of the Higashiyama mountains, and the vast underground water system beneath the city all point to a deep relationship between land and human activity. This groundwater, stored in geological layers formed through repeated cycles of marine transgression and land formation over millions of years, continues to sustain the city today, typically accessed by digging to depths of 60 to 80 meters or more. The fact that Kyoto’s water is supplied from beneath the city, carrying what could be described as the “memory of the land,” was received by participants with a sense of fresh surprise.

She also introduced the concept of “migiwa,” a liminal zone between land and water. Many major Japanese cities were formed in such ambiguous spaces. From this perspective, places like Saiho-ji, known for its moss garden, can be understood not as finished masterpieces but as cultural landscapes shaped through repeated loss and renewal. Its buildings and gardens were destroyed multiple times by floods and warfare, yet the site has been maintained through continuous care of land covered in moss and water. Rather than preserving a fixed, completed beauty, its uniqueness has emerged through ongoing negotiation with uncontrollable ground.

Beauty here is not maintained through control, but emerges from ongoing adaptation.

Designing Gesture Beyond AI

Akane Kikuchi, CEO of KiQ, approached the discussion from the perspective of human-robot interaction and embodied intelligence.

KiQ’s work includes motion design for humanoids at Osaka Expo 2025, long-term collaborations with major manufacturers on future production environments, and research into applying geiko and maiko gestures to product and interface design.

Across these projects, a common thread is an interest in questions that extend beyond efficiency alone.

Kikuchi pointed to a fundamental limitation in current AI systems. Average emotions and standardized movements can be reproduced. However, subtle variations shaped by personal history, context, and physical condition remain difficult to model. The slight misalignments, the pauses, the timing that create a sense of humanity are still beyond full computational design.

This is why Kyoto’s hanamachi culture holds particular interest. Gestures there are not simply learned forms. They are transmitted through relationships, adapted to individual bodies, and shaped by context.

Gesture is shaped within relationships, and does not easily lend itself to standardization or mass production.

She also noted that Japan’s cultural imagination around robots differs from that of the United States or Europe. Rather than opposition between human and machine, there is a long-standing narrative of coexistence and co-evolution. This perspective may offer a unique contribution to global technological development.

Questions That Deepened the Dialogue

The latter half of the session unfolded as an open discussion with participants.

The conversation began with a question from a Kyoto-based landscape gardener, which led to the shared perspective that Kyoto is a city deeply shaped by its imagination of water. While much of its drinking water depends on Lake Biwa, water remains visibly present throughout the city in forms such as local gardens and the Kamo River. Over time, this has cultivated a sensibility in which water is not only treated as a resource, but also as an integral element of space and culture.

Responding to this, Prof. Matsuda expanded the discussion through comparisons with other cities, most notably Kumamoto. In Kumamoto City, groundwater serves as the primary water source. However, this water system does not exist solely within the city’s administrative boundaries, it is sustained by a broader watershed that extends across multiple municipalities, including the foothills of Mount Aso. As a result, initiatives such as reforestation and groundwater recharge through agricultural land are carried out through inter-municipal collaboration, highlighting the importance of understanding water as part of a continuous flow within a watershed.

In the region, the abundance and purity of Aso’s groundwater have attracted numerous high-precision manufacturing facilities, including semiconductor companies from Taiwan. At the same time, a coalition of eleven municipalities has been formed to collectively manage the recharge of groundwater, which also supplies drinking water to residents. Efforts such as supporting upstream reforestation and collaborating with farmers to maintain flooded rice fields during winter demonstrate how water, as a shared concern, gives rise to governance structures that extend beyond administrative boundaries.

“Kyoto’s water cannot be considered independently of Lake Biwa or the Yodo River basin,” Prof. Matsuda noted. “When viewed through the lens of water systems, municipal boundaries begin to dissolve. From the perspective of the land’s natural systems, we may need to reconsider how human life, culture, and development are structured upon it.”

This perspective reframes the city not as a fixed territory, but as something defined through relationships, offering important implications for how we understand the balance between tradition and development.

A question then emerged from the audience, while water offers a compelling lens, how does it connect to the realities of Kyoto as a modern city, including overtourism and the influx of capital?

Prof. Matsuda responded candidly:

“Today Kyoto can, in some ways, be seen as dismantling its own traditional urban structure. In the city center, condominium developments are significantly disrupting land aggregation patterns that have persisted for centuries, in other words, the very form of the urban fabric. Landowners and stewards who have historically maintained these properties are increasingly compelled to transfer them, a shift that has accelerated over the past thirty years.

When we consider how the economy and development of a historic city should evolve, this is a fundamental issue. The widely held image of Kyoto as a ‘city that has been preserved from destruction’ must be discussed alongside the realities of its ongoing transformation. That is precisely why raising this question, here and now, carries meaning.”

Those who understand what is being lost gather to ask what should be carried forward into the next thousand years.

This is the reason KiQ and the Kyoto City convene Salon Privé Kyoto.

Another question that stood out was, “Why does Kyoto have so many enduring businesses and cultural practices?”

Prof. Matsuda reframed the notion of continuity, not as something unique to Kyoto, but as a result of its historical conditions:

“In pre-war Japan, maintaining the household was a fundamental responsibility. The concept of the ‘ie’ (household), combined with Kyoto’s deep historical layering and the dense concentration of urban trades and family businesses, creates the impression of continuity when compared to other cities.”

She further noted that Kyoto’s commercial life had long been supported by enduring relationships with institutions such as the imperial court and the warrior class. After these structures dissolved in the modern era, a shared sense of urgency emerged, alongside tightly knit networks within industries and neighborhoods. Within these networks, knowledge, including the failures, was rapidly exchanged and accumulated as practical wisdom.

The cultural identity of Kyoto’s economy has been sustained by the coexistence of traditional family enterprises and commercial activity. However, Prof. Matsuda pointed out that the urban spaces that have supported this balance are now under increasing pressure.

It is precisely for this reason, Akane Kikuchi noted, that Kyoto must embrace a mindset capable of generating and allowing new forms of innovation, a shift in perspective that will define its future.

Connecting to Kyoto’s Long-Term Vision

Moderator Keishi Ito from the City of Kyoto linked the discussion to the recently established Kyoto Vision, a 25-year policy framework. The document begins with a philosophical statement: humans are sustained by the past while living toward the future, and sustained by nature while living within it.

Questions without clear answers, including those that AI cannot resolve, are becoming part of governance. In this context, Kyoto’s accumulated cultural knowledge offers a way to approach complexity.

The salon itself functions as a space to translate these ideas into lived dialogue, bridging policy and practice.

Insights from Participant Feedback

A selection of insights from the pre- and post-event surveys conducted with participants is shared below.

According to the pre-event survey, participants were primarily business leaders and entrepreneurs (28.6%), business professionals (28.6%), and creators, designers, and artists (21.4%).

When asked about their impressions of Kyoto (multiple responses allowed), the most common response was “depth” (71.4%), followed by “historical weight” (64.3%) and “creativity” (42.9%).

In terms of motivation for attending, “interest in Kyoto’s culture” (42.9%) ranked highest, while “interest in KiQ’s initiatives” (28.6%) also showed a strong presence.

In open-ended responses, participants often described Kyoto’s appeal through less tangible qualities. Many referenced “a deep spiritual culture” or “a sense of time that flows differently from other cities.” These reflections point to an expectation of values that are not immediately visible, but are instead experienced over time.

It was precisely these expectations that the salon sought to engage. TThe post-event survey showed that a strong majority of participants gained new perspectives or insights through the session. Interest in attending future gatherings was similarly high.

When asked what constitutes a “Kyoto-like experience” from the perspective of land and water, participants offered a wide range of reflections. Many described experiences such as walking along the Kamo River and canal systems, or sensing the presence of underground water flows. Others pointed to cultural practices, including sake production in Fushimi and the tea ceremony. Some highlighted water-dependent industries, such as pickling and fabric dyeing, which have developed over time.

There were also more nuanced observations, including the management of purity and impurity, and the way their interaction can give rise to moments of serendipity.

Together, these responses point to concrete places and practices where water is deeply embedded in everyday life, industry, and culture. They suggest that the themes explored during the session resonated closely with participants’ lived experiences.

A significant number of respondents also noted that their perspective on Kyoto had shifted. This outcome reflects a clear alignment with the salon’s intention, to deepen understanding of Kyoto through new and layered viewpoints.

Toward the Next Session

Salon Privé Kyoto will continue with evolving themes. The questions raised in this session, including watershed governance, urban continuity, coexistence beyond humans, and the relationship between AI and the body, form a foundation for future dialogue.

The aim is to create a cycle. Those who encounter these ideas visit Kyoto, engage in new conversations, and contribute to an ongoing exchange.

For Those Interested in Engaging with Kyoto

For those considering a deeper relationship with Kyoto, whether through relocation, dual residency, or long-term work, this salon offers an entry point.

Kyoto is not only a place to visit. It is a place to engage with, to question, and to contribute to.

https://preservekyoto.city.kyoto.lg.jp/

Noriko Matsuda

Associate Professor, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Kyoto Prefectural University
Architectural and Urban History

Professor Noriko Matsuda explores the relationship between humans and the land through the lenses of settlements, towns, cities, and architecture. Her work investigates the long-term history of how humans have constructed their living environments, and considers possible future modes of habitation. In 2019, she co-founded the research field “History of Living Environment Formation,” which examines the evolution of human-built environments.
Her research also extends to themes such as “Liminal Human History,” focusing on the boundary between water and land, and “City and Earth.”
|Her publications include the monograph Beppu in Picture Postcards, and co-edited works such as Crisis and the City, Postwar Spatial History: City, Architecture, and Humanity, and Tokyo Waterfront Walks. She has also co-authored The Future of Transforming Cities: A Multi-perspective Urban Theory, Secrets of Shibuya, and 15 Lectures on Global Architectural History, among others.

Akane Kikuchi

Founder & CEO, KiQ
Director, Shosa Lab
Shosa Director

Based in Tokyo and Los Angeles, Akane Kikuchi leads projects centered on nonverbal expression and embodied behavior design. In collaboration with the Kyoto City, she is advancing cultural strategy under the theme of “Future Shosa,” exploring new forms of human expression in the age of AI.

Master concept of Kyoto

editor | Akane Kikuchi（KiQ）