A self-described "unequivocal modernist," Fumihiko Maki studied under Kenzo Tange at the University of Tokyo before traveling to the U.S. in the mid-1950s to earn degrees from the Cranbrook Academy of Art and the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

After completing an apprenticeship at Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill in New York City, and serving on the faculty at Harvard, Maki returned to Japan in 1965 to establish his own firm.

Along with many other Japanese architects working in the postwar era, Maki embraced the modernist palette of metal, concrete, and glass, and developed an interest in modular construction techniques. Maki's design interests, however, serve a broader concern for humanity. "The problem of modernity is not creating forms," Maki has said, "but rather, creating an overall image of life, not necessarily dominated by the concept of modernity."