Toyo Ito was born in Seoul Metropolitan City in 1941. While attending the University of Tokyo he studied Architecture and worked at Kiyonori Kikutake Architects and Associates. After graduating he started his own studio, Urban Robot in 1971, eventually changing the name to Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects eight years later.
Toyo Ito has received numerous awards and prizes for his works from 1986 to 2017 including the Grand Prize of Good Design Award 2001 from the Japan Industrial Design Promotion Organization (JIDPO), the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement of the 8th International Architecture Exhibition NEXT at the Venice Biennale in 2002, a Royal Gold Medal from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 2006, the Golden Lion for Best National Participation for the Japan Pavilion of the 13th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Biennale in 2012, and the UIA Gold Medal in 2017.