Born on this day in the town of Imabari on Shikoku, Japanese architect Kenzo Tange (1913-2005) has been called the "Father of 20th Century Japanese Architecture."

A student of the great Swiss architect Le Corbusier, Tange spearheaded the country's reconstruction after World War II and played an important role in his country's rebirth and economic upswing.

"It is very hard to be satisfied with past work," Tange once said. "I'll only retire when I die."

His 1949 Centre of Peace in Hiroshima captured the city's desire for peace and brought him international fame. Tange's artistic trademark celebrated the blend of Eastern simplicity with European elegance, while remaining true to Japan's past and ever-changing future.

Whether an art museum, hotel, cathedral, urban planning design, or the tallest building in Tokyo, Tange's versatile accomplishments of form were dynamic reflections of social structure, energizing Japan... and the world.

"I feel very fortunate to have witnessed the transformation of Japan from war-devastation to the affluence of today." he said.

In 1987, Tange was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Jury Prize Laureate, the world's most prestigious award in architecture. His 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games stadiums were often described as among "the most beautiful structures built in the twentieth century."

"Architecture must have something that appeals to the human heart," Tange once explained.  "Creative work is expressed in our time as a union of technology and humanity."

The key to the future is blending technology with the heart.