The Design of Zaha Hadid’s Moonsoon

As part of our public programme for the exhibition Zaha’s Moonsoon: An Interior in Japan, the Zaha Hadid Foundation invited former collaborators of Zaha Hadid, Daniel Chadwick, Kar Hwa Ho and Michael Wolfson, to come together to discuss the beginnings of Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) and its early projects.

In particular, the creation of the Moonsoon bar and restaurant (1989–1990) in Sapporo, Japan, Zaha’s first built interior outside of the UK.

The talk was convened by the curator of Zaha’s Moonsoon Johan Deurell (ZHF), and the panel guided the audience through a series of rare photographs and recounts of their relationship to Zaha during the earliest years of her practice. They explored how early key works, such as unrealised commercial projects Tomigaya (1986) and Azabu-Jyuban (1987), would inspire an eclectic two-floor interior for Moonsoon and subsequently its influence on later built works in Japan like the Osaka Folly (1990).

They also discussed their collaborations for the project including Daniel’s presentation model and briefcase, Kar’s perspective line drawings and Michael’s boomerang-shaped sofas, which were on show at Zaha’s Moonsoon: An Interior in Japan.