-
Architects: Atelier KUKKA Architects
- Year: 2017
-
Photographs:HIROKAZU TOUWAKU
-
Manufacturers: & Traditons, -, FIR, Flos
Text description provided by the architects. This is a house for a family (a couple and two children). A site is located at the south foot of high mountains(3200 ft. above sea level), near Kanto plain, Japan. Originally, the site was a forest of Japanese walnuts. In many trees, there is a remarkably big and impressive one. The family hoped to leave this.
From there, the project began. The family requested the main room that all family members can gather feeling the walnut tree. At west half of the house that faces to the walnut tree, I arranged a living room. And divided the room into an outdoor space and an indoor space by big windows. An outdoor space (outdoor-living) connects an indoor-living to the natural environment.
I designed a great opening of the roof (top light) at the outdoor-living to have a continuity with the tree and the sky. And settle the cedar partial walls with consideration for privacy. One could feel the tree and the sky directly at the outdoor-living, and indirectly at the indoor living.
Approaching from a road, over the walnut tree, one could see the gradually ascending gabled roof. So the house becomes the background of the walnut tree in harmony with nature. In the ground floor, I located outdoor-living, indoor-living, a kitchen, a private room, a bathroom.
The first floor, I located a child room and a multi-purpose room with bookshelves. In contrast with the high ceiling living room, it has a feeling of low ceiling attic space, but also enough space to live. At an east side roof terrace, one could look at the south high mountains. The terrace also leads morning sunlight into the ground floor living room as the high-side light. The multi-purpose room is gently connected to the void of the living room.
