Japanese Archives

Cafe interior with white oak tables, burnt orange seats and a wall mural

Paris-based lifestyle brand Kitsuné has opened a cafe next to its boutique in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, both with minimalist interiors featuring white oak and stainless steel.

The interiors of the new Cafe Kitsuné and the renovated Maison Kitsuné store were designed by co-founder Masaya Kuroki to reflect the brand’s French-Japanese culture as well as the West Coast setting.

Facing Sunset Boulevard on the east side of the city, this is the brand’s fourth cafe in North America – following locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Vancouver – and its first in LA.

“A sprawling city of diverse findings, from cutting-edge restaurants to pockets of art and architecture second to none, LA has lent design inspiration and a backdrop to several campaigns for the fashion house,” said the Kitsuné team.

White oak counter front with stainless steel panels behind — White oak tables and surfaces are set against stainless steel counters and panelling for a minimalist look

“Now, it’s the perfect setting for Café Kitsuné, a physical extension of the brand’s Franco-Japanese DNA, and reinvention of the classic Parisian cafe and wine bar experience with a Japanese twist,” they added.

The building’s red-tile exterior and poured concrete flooring were preserved, and hand-painted signage by Californian artist Jeffrey Sincich was added over the large street-facing windows.

Burnt orange dining chairs and upholstered benches highlight the colours of the mural

Inside the 700-square-foot (65-square-metre) cafe, white oak tables and brushed stainless-steel counters feature alongside burnt orange dining chairs and upholstered benches.

Another Sincich mural covers the full length of a wall, offering “a whimsical take on Café Kitsuné’s standard appearance” and presenting the space as an “old-school market”.

A speaker system by Japanese audio company Rotel was installed in the cafe “to provide a top-notch sound experience for customers”, according to Kitsuné.

Next door in the boutique, a similar material palette is used for elements including a built-in storage and display unit across the back wall.

Maison Kitsuné boutique with oak panelling and bright blue central table — The existing Maison Kitsuné boutique next door has also received a refresh

White oak forms the framing, shelves and doors that lead to the stock and fitting rooms, while ribbed stainless-steel sheets provide a backdrop for the items on show.

More oak was used for the minimalist service counter and panelling behind, and a bright blue table sits in the centre to add a pop of colour.

White oak built-in shelving display for clothing, with bent metal chair in front — White oak and stainless steel are repeated in this space to create a visual connection with the cafe

Kitsuné was founded by 2002 by Kuroki and Gildas Loaëc and encompasses the fashion brand, Maison Kitsuné; a music label, Kitsuné Musique; and its line of cafes, bars and restaurants.

Back in 2017, French designer Mathieu Lehanneur designed the Kitsuné store interior in New York’s Soho, adding snaking metal rails for displaying garments.

The photography is by David Kitz.

Reference

Architecture

CASE-REAL transforms 80-year-old traditional japanese house into craft beer brewery

By Zarkon Group,01/01/2024

craft beer Brewery by CASE-REAL

In Saga, Japan, a renovation project by CASE-REAL has transformed an 80-year-old traditional Japanese house into a craft beer brewery, named Whale Brewing. Yobuko, historically known for whaling during the Edo period and later famed for squid fishing, faces modern challenges like a declining population due to youth migration and numerous vacant houses. Given this context, the project was conceived with the aim of acting as a magnet for young people and rejuvenating the town. The chosen location for the brewery was an old traditional house along Yobuko Asaichi-dori, a street bustling with local seafood and goods stalls each morning. This aging house had been abandoned, suffering from leaks, facade deterioration, and structural issues. However, after the interior was dismantled, it revealed a sturdy structure, around nine meters tall, with hidden potential.

the goal of this project was to breathe new life into the town, all images by CASE-REAL

a New Landmark in Yobuko

After extensive discussions with clients, the architects at CASE-REAL chose to incorporate the existing strengths of the house into the new brewery design. The building’s layout features a storefront area with a ceiling on the facade side, while the brewing space utilizes the generous height of the second floor through an open atrium. A continuous glass facade spans both levels, offering a view of the street that showcases the robust beams and the brewery ambiance, despite the ceiling variation in the store area. To accommodate ground conditions, the floor plan includes a sloped design that connects the elevated rear of the building. Stainless steel was selectively utilized for elements like the counter and handles, maintaining a cohesive material theme in line with the brewing tanks. Certain façade pillars, essential for support, were crafted from solid Japanese cypress, accentuating the space’s height and adding a distinctive touch. The incorporation of rounded shapes in the pillars and counter edges was intentional, aiming to introduce a sense of softness and effectively merge structural elements with the overall design.‘By combining the new functions of the brewery with the original characteristics of the building, we hope that this will become a new landmark in Yobuko, firmly rooted in the local community,’ shared the architects.

the brewing space utilizes the generous height of the second floor through an open atrium

the new structure blends the brewery’s functionalities with the house’s original features

Reference

Interior Design

Barde vanVoltt draws on Japanese zen gardens for Calico Club interior

By Zarkon Group,03/11/2023

Dutch studio Barde vanVoltt has used rippled mirrored glass, boulders and pebbles to create the interior of Calico Club, a retail store located in a century-old farmhouse in the Netherlands.

The studio aimed to combine Dutch heritage with Japanese tradition to create an “unexpected” but never overwhelming interior for the store, which is located in the village of Nistelrode.

“The main objective was to pay respect to the monumental 100-year-old farmhouse that Calico Club moved into,” Barde vanVoltt co-founder Valérie Boerma told Dezeen.

“The challenge was to find ways to add materials we could remove easily to keep the original state of the construction as it was,” she added.

Interior of Dutch retailer — Barde vanVoltt added plants to the interior

Boerma and her co-founder Bart van Seggelen added several organic details to the space, which has been divided into different sections.

“The floor plan is shaped like a Japanese zen garden and its traditional elements of rock, water, and plants have been interpreted in more modern and abstract ways,” Van Seggelen explained.

Boulders inside clothing store in the Netherlands — Boulders are scattered throughout the space

On polished concrete flooring, the studio placed whitewashed boulders that are used as retail displays and created elevated pebble islands above which garments are hung.

Barde vanVoltt also designed matching islands made from walnut wood. The same warm wood is also used for the fitting rooms, cabinets and counters.

Wood counter in Calico Club store — Walnut wood is used for the counters inside the store

Materiality is an important aspect of the project, with rippled mirrored glass added in a nod to the water features that are often included in zen gardens.

“Rippled mirrored glass and silver colour was to create contrast and depth,” Boerma said.

“The rippled glass keeps changing from wherever you look at it, this added an extra layer to the space, much like water, that is always changing,” she added.

The aim was for the interior to “nourish creative flow, harmony and support it with a screen-free store policy to create calm in an unpredictable world,” the studio said.

Tree inside Dutch store — A large tree adds a touch of nature at the back of the store

At the back of the store, a tree sits inside a round glass bench behind a metal wall divider.

“Encased in a circular glass bench, the tree and the fashion collection opposite is given its moment thanks to a sheet of curved, rolled metal to separate it from the fitting rooms,” Van Seggelen said.

“And at the front of the store, customers are shown the best of the collection with floating glass display cylinders filled with hay.”

Exterior of Calico Club store — Calico Club is located in a red-brick former farmhouse

The pared-back designs and shiny materials inside the store contrast against its exterior, a rustic red-brick farmhouse.

“With every project we do, we feel the responsibility to search for high quality, natural materials that are produced in a sustainable way,” Boerma said.

“These materials and heritage come with earthy tones and it suited well with our Japanese reference,” Van Seggelen added.

Rippled glass-details in clothing store — Rippled glass references the water in zen gardens

Calico Club has been shortlisted in the retail interior (large) category of Dezeen Awards 2023.

Previous projects by Barde vanVoltt include a former garage in Amsterdam that was transformed into a family home.

Other recent projects in the Netherlands include an underground house and a wood-lined home in Zwaag.

Reference

old japanese timber farmhouse transforms into modest hotel with U-shaped gardens

Architecture

old japanese farmhouse transforms into modest hotel with U-shaped gardens

By Zarkon Group,07/10/2023

Shotaro Oshima Design Studio restores a 1950s farmhouse

KOMORU Goshogawara by Shotaro Oshima Design Studio stands as a quaint hotel on the outskirts of Goshogawara in Aomori, Japan. Surrounded by the scenic Mount Bonjyu and the Iwaki River, the hotel embraces the vast Tsugaru Plain. The building, originally a 1950s farmhouse left vacant for five years, undergoes a sustainable transformation while preserving the existing timber structure. The renovation alters significantly the interior, arranging four guest rooms, a dining room, a kitchen, and ground-floor bathrooms, complemented by an additional guest room and staff space on the upper level.

all images by Yuki Motegi

KOMORU Goshogawara preserves the existing timber structure

Retaining a mindful connection to history, the refurbishment maintains iconic architectural elements like the traditional Japanese alcove, ‘Tokonoma’, enriching the space with a narrative of the original building’s cultural heritage. The interventions extend to various facets, including the creation of U-shaped inner gardens, known as ‘Tsuboniwa’, providing serene outdoor experiences for each guest room.

The design concept expresses intimacy and sensitivity, intricately manifested in the small courtyard of ‘Tsuboniwa’. For KOMORU Goshogawara, the design studio engages in a new front garden design, incorporating local trees and stones to craft a welcoming ambiance for arriving guests. Guests are invited to embark on a spiritual journey, resonating with the harmonious blend of history, culture, and nature.

the project, retaining a mindful connection to history, maintains the original architectural elements

the sustainable transformation preserves the existing timber structure

the refurbishment includes the creation of U-shaped inner gardens

Reference

Architecture

tan yamanouchi’s japanese home unfolds around a spiral staircase

By Zarkon Group,10/09/2023

explore a cat tree house by tan yamanouchi in kamakura

Located in Kamakura, an hour from central Tokyo, A Cat Tree House is a charming private dwelling and architecture studio designed by and for architect Tan Yamanouchi, his partner, and their two cats. As pet owners, the project took shape from the perspective of their little felines. ‘Having lived with the two for ten years, we took our design cues from ‘listening’ to them, although they do not speak human words,‘ says principal architect Tan Yamanouchi.

That being said, he summarized the cats’ needs into three categories: (1) Being able to choose their preferred temperature level at any time of day; as they can sense temperature differences that humans cannot, they like to move around to find the perfect spot. (2) The desire to be in same room as their owners, all while maintaining their space. (3) And lastly (3) the need to have multiple safe places to hide; they like options and may change their minds about where they feel safest depending on the time of day or year. With these in mind, the residence was conceived as a large spiral staircase, known as a caracole, with multiple nooks and crannies, incorporating both the owners’ and pets’ needs.

all images © Lamberto Rubino

organizing the home around a large & skylit spiral staircase

Delving into the details, Tan Yamanouchi organized the spiral staircase around an atrium with a skylight in the center of the house. ‘The rises are designed based on the body measurements of our cats, which led to having 23 different floor levels. The entire house is thus divided into fine stripes of temperature layers, between which our feline clients spend all day traveling,’ explains the architect. The spiral staircase, meanwhile, opens up a line of vision to the whole house from any vantage point. Additionally, the standard dimension of the run of each step is generously set to 900 millimeters so that the cats can hide from people downstairs, keep a certain sense of distance from others, or even sleep peacefully.

To design the caracole, Yamanouchi took cues from a tamasudare, a screen made of loosely woven bamboo sticks for a traditional Japanese street performance, where performers twist, fold, and extend it to form various shapes. Exposed to give accent to the open ceiling space, this structure responds to the highly humid environment of Kamakura with its starkly designed split-level architecture. ‘The standard floor level is set one meter above the ground level, creating a buffer space between the raft foundation and the floor, where outside air is introduced, and hot water pipes for floor heating are laid. We designed the buffer for temperature and humidity control,‘ he continues.

entrance to A Cat Tree House

integrating views and programs around the steps

On each corner of the caracole, a bedroom, guest room, studio, kitchen, dining room, and bathroom are laid out for optimal comfort. As this is an architect’s studio as much as a home, it inevitably has constant guests. When we have unexpected visitors, each room also functions as a hiding place for the cats. The mountain views of Kamakura inspired the design of the handrails implemented in the atrium for fall prevention. The delicate stainless-steel fixture was crafted by skilled ironworkers.

On the wall built along the spiral steps, Yamanouchi designed a bookshelf, transforming the steps from a mere passage to a split-level library. For the cats, the stairs function as cozy bedding, while for humans, they become a book vault with suitable height differences to sit anywhere. A part of the circular steps bisects backward, which reaches at the end a window implemented at the eye level of cats, and the final rise of the steps is as high as a human chair to provide a porch-like space for them.

wooden steps to the house

tan yamanouchi’s L-shaped dwelling boasts a green haven

The form of this house consists of two L-shaped volumes, each with a shed roof of different angles. By interlocking the two volumes, a basic shape comes to life, simplifying construction and blending in with the mountains of Kamakura while still holding a unique aesthetic. ‘We also believe that cats looking out the window is a sight that improves the neighborhood landscape. We meticulously designed the placement and the height of the windows so that passersby and visitors can appreciate the adorableness of the cats as a part of the architectural exterior and the scenery,‘ shares the architect.

As for the landscape design, the garden is divided roughly into two zones. One is the Approach Zone, which leads to the entrance and the garden facing the front road. Another is the Terrace Zone, which includes the wooden deck steps and a kitchen garden, surrounded by a 1.8-meter-high wall on the back of the building. Approximately 80 species of plants are flourishing in the Approach Zone, boasting different colors for a rich palette, and 20 species of edible herbs in the Terrace Zone. Completing the outdoor design is a space covered with fragrant wood chips, offering a place to sit on the steps and enjoy a meal.

Tan Yamanouchi designed the house around his cats’ needs

a large, spiral staircase with multiveled steps and a library

creating a home where the cats can be close to their owners while having their own space

Reference

Architecture

mixed-use wooden house showcases traditional japanese and global influences

By Zarkon Group,01/09/2023

Akio Isshiki infuses three distinct functions into wooden house

Akio Isshiki Architects renovates a wooden house near the beach in Akashi City, Hyogo Prefecture into the designer’s own residence and workplace, as well as a curry restaurant. Within this modest 73 sqm space, the coexistence of three distinct functions creates a unique environment in which notions of time and space, cultural elements, work, and living settings coexist. The design draws from traditional Japanese architecture and employs local materials and techniques while integrating global inspirations.

A noteworthy feature that pays homage to the region’s history of tile production is the flooring, where tiles coat the dirt ground surface. Handcrafted by Awaji’s skilled artisans, these tiles subtly echo the textures and shapes reminiscent of lava stone streets from Central and South American towns. The integration of partitions that resemble mosquito nets and Sudare blinds set against Shoji screens stand as a nod to ancient Japanese architecture. By intertwining spaces both horizontally and vertically, a gentle separation is achieved through the inclusion of native drooping plants. On the second floor, a wall facing the sea displays a scraped texture tinted with red iron oxide, skillfully completed by a local Awaji plasterer. This attempt incorporates vibrant hues of global architecture within a Japanese context. A large window cuts through the volume providing views of the sky and the sea.

all images by Yosuke Ohtake

the architecture Integrates Original and Contemporary Elements

The harmony of various dimensions introduces a sense of depth into the space. Rather than accentuating contrasts between old and new, Akio Isshiki Architects‘ approach acknowledges historical materials and designs as important parts of the ensemble. The intent is to craft an environment that harmonically fuses both the original elements and newly incorporated features, creating a timeless and contemporary look. Existing structural elements such as pillars and beams blend with new architectural features, while new Shoji screens are layered to allow glimpses through the existing figured glass. A cypress pillar stands atop natural stones giving off a feeling of timelessness. Materials with various time axes are mixed and coexist.

L-shaped windows allow views of the seascape

the kitchen appears overhanging above the atrium

the kitchen area seamlessly flows into the living room

existing Fusuma doors are reused within the interior of the wooden house

Reference

Architecture

thinned trees from japanese forest compose barrel-shaped sauna with stepped ceiling

By Zarkon Group,22/08/2023

kairi eguchi studio’s private sauna fosters interplay of light

Based on the classic structure of a barrel sauna, Kairi Eguchi Studio’s YOKI SAUNA sits on the site of an abandoned elementary school in Hyogo, Japan, as a rejuvenating experience rooted in nature and local heritage. Its wooden form is shaped by thinning trees collected from the engulfing natural environment, and is marked by a long, slender window crowned by a stepped ceiling. This distinct feature welcomes an interplay of light and shade into the space, immersing visitors in an ethereal, tranquil ambiance.

all images courtesy of the author

a tranquil experience rooted in nature

Located in Aogaki, Tamba City, the facility fosters a symbiotic relationship with the surrounding environment, with the water used in the sauna’s baths being drawn from the headwaters of the Kakogawa River. Further, extending its scope of the project beyond architectural design, Osaka-based Kairi Eguchi Studio’s branding of YOKI SAUNA pays homage to the backdrop of the nearby mountains. The project is shaped from thinning trees felled in the mountains — an operation initiated by the facility’s management company Ki-ei Co. — which informs the sauna’s logo depicting four interconnected trees.

YOKI SAUNA sits on the site of an abandoned elementary school in Japan

a long, slender window crowned by a stepped ceiling punctuates the elevation

this distinct feature welcomes an interplay of light and shade into the space

thinning trees collected from the engulfing natural environment shape the sauna

a long and narrow window from the stepped ceiling allows morning light to enter

the water used in the sauna’s baths is drawn from the headwaters of the Kakogawa River nearby

diffused natural light enters the sauna from the stepped ceiling

sauna entrance

Kairi Eguchi Studio completes the architecture and brand identity of the sauna

four interconnected trees are symbolized in the logo

project info:

name: YOKI SAUNA
architecture: Kairi Eguchi Studio

location: Hyogo Prefecture, Japan

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: ravail khan | designboom

Reference

Interior Design

Akio Isshiki Architects marries old and new with Japanese home and restaurant

By Zarkon Group,16/07/2023

Japanese studio Akio Isshiki Architects has transformed an old wooden building into a warm-toned home and public restaurant named House in Hayashisaki Matsue Beach.

Located on a coastal street in Akashi in southern Japan, the mixed-use space was built within a 50-year-old building for a local designer and features a curry restaurant as well as residential and working spaces.

Designed to reflect traditional Japanese dwellings, the home and restaurant are contained within a wooden building that was previously dark and separated.

During the renovation, Akio Isshiki Architects aimed to pair existing elements with modern features to reflect the mixed-use nature of the project.

“The house was divided into small rooms, narrow and dark,” studio founder Akio Isshiki told Dezeen.

“It was very old and damaged, but fortunately the carpenter had done a good job, there were no leaks, and the structure was solid.”

Interior photo of House in Hayashisaki Matsue Beach — It is located in Akashi

Accessed from the roadside, a series of circular stones form a path that leads through the planted front garden and curves to extend along the front of the building, providing access to the ground-floor restaurant.

Here, a stepped sheltered porch features external seating and is separated from the interior space by a wide sliding glass door set in a timber frame, which offers views into the garden and can be fully opened to connect the dining space to the outside.

Interior photo of the restaurant at House in Hayashisaki Matsue Beach — The structure contains a restaurant and a home

Inside, the floor has been coated with dark tiles informed by the history of the area, which was formerly a large tile producer.

“These tiles were handcrafted one by one by tile craftsmen in Awaji, with the image of lava stone pavements seen in cities in Central and South America superimposed on the texture and edge shape,” said the studio.

Wooden furnishings, including bespoke D-shaped chairs designed by the studio and created by a local woodworker, are arranged throughout the dining space at the front of the building.

“To ensure stability even on uneven floors, three legs are used as a base for the chairs, and the legs are made of a thick material so that they do not fit in the joints of the Kawara tiles,” said Isshiki.

“I aimed for a primitive design with an unknown nationality, with as simple and crude a composition as possible.”

Separated from the main space by an earth-toned counter, the kitchen is tucked into one side of the dining room and features walls clad in wooden panels and white tiles, along with a lighting fixture formed from two circles that hangs in the street-facing window.

A Japanese shoji screen at the end of the dining room is the first of a series of flexible partitions throughout the home that can be pulled out to provide separation between the spaces.

Photo of House in Hayashisaki Matsue Beach — The upper floor contains private residential space

“Conscious of the tropics and nostalgia, we put nets that look like mosquito nets and sudare blinds on the shoji screens,” said the studio. “The graceful plans created by imperfect partitions such as shoji and fusuma are typical of ancient Japanese architecture.”

“In this house, where cultures, nationalities, times, and various other things are combined, I thought it would be appropriate to have the spaces partially mixed so that they could feel the presence of each other, rather than being permanently partitioned in terms of usage,” it continued.

Photo of a corridor at the Japanese home — Wood was used throughout the interior

Built on a raised timber platform, the rest of the ground floor holds private rooms for the client, which are divided by shoji screens, including a traditional Japanese room that opens onto a garden.

A home office borders the dining space, where a central black ladder leads to the floor above, while a bedroom, bathroom and utility room branch from the other side of the corridor.

Photo of the home — The residential space has views of the sea

Upstairs, the studio added an open arrangement of dining and living spaces with warm-toned surfaces including a red wall and dark wooden beams that interact with the home’s original rustic roof structure.

“The wall on the second floor is a scraped wall mixed with red iron oxide and finished by a plasterer from Awaji,” said Isshiki. “This is an attempt to incorporate the colourful walls of each country into architecture in a Japanese context.”

Interior photo of the home — The home has an open-plan living arrangement

Other Japanese homes recently featured on Dezeen include a Tokyo home spread across two stacked volumes and a concrete home supported by a single column on Japan’s Okinawa Island.

The photography is by Yosuke Ohtake.

Reference

Interior Design

Studio Wok designs bakery Pan as contemporary take on Japanese culture

By Zarkon Group,19/06/2023

Architecture practice Studio Wok has created a matcha-green counter and Japanese-style fabric panels for bakery and wine bar Pan in Milan’s Acquabella district.

The studio created the eatery, which is led by Japanese chefs Yoji Tokuyoshi and Alice Yamada, to have an interior that would represent a meeting between Japan and Milan.

“There are references to Japanese culture, non-literal and far from stereotypes,” Studio Wok said. “The intention was for a deeper understanding, working on the concept of quality, both in materials and in details.”

A central bread counter is the “protagonist piece” in Pan’s interior design.

The counter was constructed from panels of fibreglass grid and its eye-catching colour was informed by the vivid green of matcha, an ingredient widely used in Pan’s food, the studio said.

Fibreglass was also used to create an external bench, linking the bakery with the wider neighbourhood.

Fibreglass bench outside Milan bakery — Fibreglass was also used for an external bench

“We did a lot of research looking for a ‘poor’ material that could be ennobled by being used in an innovative way,” Studio Wok told Dezeen.

“Fiberglass grating is a material used in industry but little used in interiors and it seemed perfect to us.”

Ceiling fins in Pan cafe — Fabric hangs from the ceiling

The green of the fibreglass is echoed in vertical fins of hanging fabric that define the ceiling, creating a dialogue between hard and soft elements within the space.

These suspended sheets of fabric are a contemporary update of the traditional Japanese design element of ‘noren’, meaning curtains or hanging divider panels.

Ceiling inside Pan bakery — Wooden seats have views of the street

“The ceiling sheets have the main function of creating a three-dimensional covering to make the environment more welcoming and also to work from an acoustic point of view,” the studio said.

“They create a suspended three-dimensional world, both continuous and ephemeral. Furthermore, they dialogue with natural light during the day and with artificial light in the evening.”

Bathroom sink by Studio Wok — The bathroom has a decorative stone sink

In the bathroom, the green theme continues with a wall and sliding door featuring translucent panels of pressed cellulose, which have been fixed onto a wooden grid frame.

“We were looking for a translucent material to allow natural light to pass through the anteroom. It also reminded us of the rice paper walls, typical of Japan,” Studio Wok said.

The effect of these materials is to create “a green monochromatic box from which the monolithic element of the sink emerges,” Studio Wok said.

The sink was made of a grey-tinted natural stone called Moltrasio.

In the main space, light grey walls and floors in hand-trowelled cementitious resin amplify the sense of light, while chestnut was used in both its pale natural form and stained black across integrated and freestanding furniture.

Interior of Pan, Milan — Black-stained chestnut was used for the bar area

The bar area has a more serious, less playful atmosphere, informed by the black-stained chestnut wood of the counter and cabinetry.

Here, a rough-hewn natural stone boulder serves as a water counter, introducing a freeform, sculptural element to the space.

Bar at Pan in Milan — Studio Wok designed the bakery and wine bar with references to Japan

To anchor the space in the local neighbourhood, Studio Wok designed large windows with pale chestnut frames that open the bakery up towards the street.

Seating in the window areas “project the interiors of the venue outwards, creating a hybrid threshold space between the domestic and the urban,” the studio said.

“Our vision for the material palette at Pan was to seek a balance between elements with a contemporary and industrial flavour, with others that are more natural and timeless,” said Studio Wok.

“It’s a celebration of Japan and its dualism between innovation and wabi-sabi spirit.”

Studio Wok has previously designed a cavernous pizza restaurant and transformed a barn into a country home.

The photography is by Simone Bossi.

Reference

airhouse's wooden home floats above a steep slope in the japanese forest

Architecture

wooden house in yagota by airhouse floats in the japanese forest

By Zarkon Group,09/04/2023

airhouse unveils hovering house in yagoto

In a hilly residential area in Nagoya City, Japan, Airhouse has nestled a small Aichi Prefecture, residence into a slope engulfed in greenery. The House in Yagoto perches above a steep incline, surrounded by a thick curtain of trees and a forest to its northern edge. Resolving this challenging typology while minimizing cost and impact to the environment, the architects’ design solution conceives a construction foundation of only four steel columns, reducing the building’s ground contact area with a cantilevering reinforced concrete floor atop which a dark cedar-clad home appears to delicately float.

all images by Toshiyuki Yano

a serene mountain villa emerges in the japanese forest

The cantilevered floor serves as the foundation for the House in Yagoto which emerges as a seemingly hovering volume emerging above the landscape and steep slope. Its dark form sits in stark contrast to its context as its outer walls clad in cedar create the appearance of a serene mountain villa. With minimal impact on the natural surroundings, the team at Airhouse was able to economically construct the structure without cutting a confined, flat base in the ground and large retaining walls. ‘As a result, by thinking about the foundation of the building, we were able to build a house economically even on a sloping land, and we believe that we were able to create a rich living environment that floats in the forest,’ notes the Japanese architecture office.

Stepping inside the home, residents are greeted with a serene living experience immersed in nature. Airhouse has devised an airy interior completed with natural materials and open spaces that engages in continual dialogue with its natural context. From the cedar exterior to the carefully calculated height of the platform and structure and large opening in the direction of the forest, the concept seeks to weave views of the outdoors inside for an uplifting getaway.

Airhouse’s House in Yagoto emerges from a hillside in Japan

the home perches atop a reinforced concrete platform

the cedar-clad exterior creates the appearance of a serene mountain villa

a lofty, airy interior with industrial and natural finishes

large windows bring views of the adjacent forest inside

Reference

Japanese

Cafe Kitsuné Los Angeles features Parisian interiors with “Japanese twist”

CASE-REAL transforms 80-year-old traditional japanese house into craft beer brewery

craft beer Brewery by CASE-REAL

a New Landmark in Yobuko

Barde vanVoltt draws on Japanese zen gardens for Calico Club interior

old japanese farmhouse transforms into modest hotel with U-shaped gardens

Shotaro Oshima Design Studio restores a 1950s farmhouse

KOMORU Goshogawara preserves the existing timber structure

tan yamanouchi’s japanese home unfolds around a spiral staircase

explore a cat tree house by tan yamanouchi in kamakura

organizing the home around a large & skylit spiral staircase

integrating views and programs around the steps

tan yamanouchi’s L-shaped dwelling boasts a green haven

mixed-use wooden house showcases traditional japanese and global influences

Akio Isshiki infuses three distinct functions into wooden house

the architecture Integrates Original and Contemporary Elements

thinned trees from japanese forest compose barrel-shaped sauna with stepped ceiling

kairi eguchi studio’s private sauna fosters interplay of light

a tranquil experience rooted in nature

Akio Isshiki Architects marries old and new with Japanese home and restaurant

Studio Wok designs bakery Pan as contemporary take on Japanese culture

wooden house in yagota by airhouse floats in the japanese forest

airhouse unveils hovering house in yagoto

a serene mountain villa emerges in the japanese forest

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