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Architects: comma design office
- Area: 132 m²
- Year: 2012
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Photographs: Takumi Ota
Text description provided by the architects. The house is located in Nagahama city , Shiga, Japan, Nagahama is an old town. There are more active relationships within the neighborhood community than in Tokyo. On the other hand, Nagahama is modernized with cars and shopping malls along the main roads. It is common in any local cities in Japan.
The site is bounded by the residential area on the southwest; the road on the west is mainly used for the pedestrians. There is a peaceful landscape on the northeast, where the rice fields and open space spread to Mt. Ibuki. However, there is a busy street on the north. The speed of the traffic is completely different from the slow pace living. There are several gaps in scale and difference in speed within the environment.
We planned a space that holds various relationships within the variety of environment. The space was created by providing a" buffer zone" instated of the space directly opens to a particular subject. The one story volume with the courtyard fills up the site; the first floor opens to the neighborhood, while the second floor opens to the distant view. The central unclosed courtyard simultaneously opens up to each surrounding environment. By looking at one’s own house over the courtyard, it looks like a house of otheres .
The facade is covered with the fiber cement board accented with gold stained aluminum, which often conveys the anonymous/neutral impression. However, it picks up various shades of light depending on the weather.
