It is often times that when living in Japan, whether you're occupying a shared house or renting out your own apartment, you'll find yourself having a limited amount of space to work with. This primarily stems from land scarcity within the country, with 73% of the land available to us being considered mountainous, with another large percentage of the country's flat land serving as farmland and a means for agricultural purposes. There is also the issue surrounding overcrowding within Japan's urban areas. Due to these factors, inflation amongst properties is rife, thus, resulting in many residents turning to small dwellings.
The month of April typically marks new beginnings in Japan, welcoming the beginning of the financial and academic year, as well as being a time when new graduates commence employment. Leading up to this season, many are in the market looking to relocate as a prerequisite to their fresh start. In this article, we will showcase a handful of tiny living spaces in Japan, and how these spaces have been successful in optimizing space, without compromising comfort.
Compact House in Kuramae by Kawakubo Tomoyasu Architects & Associates located in Taito City faces the narrow alley of Kuramae-downtown, surrounded by many communities. The house encourages local exchange by the extension of the alley, as the first floor is connected to the street.
The design of the dwelling allows residents to efficiently move back and forth on the ladder-like stairs between the communal spaces and private rooms situated on the different floors, whilst ensuring privacy. The staircase acts as a light well allowing natural light into the home from the windows of the upper floors. To maximize floor area, the use of steel frames and finishing materials were made thin and lightweight.
Little House with a Big Terrace by Takuro Yamamoto Architects, located in Tokyo is a lucid example of a small urban residence equipped with large external space. The dwelling is connected to a large terrace as the client requested a place to freely do yoga under the sun, therefore, connecting the terrace to the living room and the bedroom with big windows was the ideal way to offer both fresh air and daylight to the internal spaces.
The home creates comfortable internal spaces by connecting them to the unlimited extension of external space. The most effective way to achieve the real spaciousness of urban housing in high-density residential areas is to incorporate unlimited external spaces into the design rather than trying to make internal spaces larger.
House in Nada by FujiwaraMuro Architects sits on a small smite measuring 36.95 sqm, located in a downtown residential area. The slatted, drainboard-like floors on the first through third floors are connected to the slatted tables, stairwell, and skylights, allowing sunlight to reach right to the bottom of the house. Three-dimensional gaps and holes in the visual field act to eliminate any sense of a two-dimensional spatial narrowness, to increase comfort within the dwelling.
Small House by UNEMORI ARCHITECTS is located in Meguro, a densely populated area in Tokyo. The inside is a simple structure separated by four floorboards, conjoined by a spiral stairway. The space around the house serves to bring light and ventilation inside the home. The walls of the room border the outside, so windows have been strategically positioned to best harmonize with its surroundings, with each view dramatically changing and broadening the image of the home.
Although the thought of living in tiny spaces may initially sound overwhelming and induce the feeling of claustrophobia, each of these projects has capitalized on the importance of a generous intake of natural light and ventilation to open up each of the residential spaces. When living with limited space, you eventually adapt and learn what it is that you value. Whether you're seeking to pursue a lifestyle of minimalism, or looking for an economically sustainable way of living, with a little ingenuity, anybody can make a small flat feel like a home.
