Hasta La Ideas

Japanese architect Yoshichika Takagi has completed this house surrounded by car parks in Akita, Japan.

Called House I, the project involved enclosing the kitchen, bathrooms, bedrooms and storage in interconnected boxes.

The spaces between these volumes form courtyards, corridors and living spaces.

See also: House K by Yoshichika Takagi

More Japanese houses on Dezeen »

Photographs are by Toshiyuki Yano.

Here are some more details from the architect:

House I

This is a small residential house in Akita Prefecture.

The site is in the centre of Akita City where urban functions are situated. Despite its urban location, this is a special place as it is surrounded by car parks.

Considering that the space is exposed to public eyes in all four directions, it is essential to sustain the elements of privacy, but at the same time, our aim is to drop frontality from its façade.

In order to keep privacy, it is sensible to keep the rooms within the enclosure, and it also helps with the indoor environment in the northern climate.

However, enclosure would give a closed feeling, hence the task is to find a way to layout spaces that are closed enough to keep privacy and would also at the same time give an extensive feeling to the space outside.

First, we made a list of facilities that would require enclosure; kitchen, bathroom, toilet, bedroom and storage room, all of which would be enclosed in box-shaped spaces. A collection of these spaces are gathered like pleats, which create many gap areas in various sizes.

This complex structure of these gap spaces gives depth to the whole place as well as an illusion that there is more space beyond what is visible.

The frames installed in the walls of the boxes overlap with one another, and the whole place looks like a combination of facing mirrors depicting different sceneries.

We designed this house on simple rules based on 2 factors: rooms that need to be enclosed should be kept in boxes and rooms that do not need to be enclosed are in the gaps between boxes.

By applying these rules, the space is presented with a complex structure that gives a feeling of extensive space.

Design: Yoshichika Takagi
Location: Akita Japan
Structural design: Daisuke Hasegawa (Daisuke Hasegawa & Partners)
Gross useable floor space: 100.24 m2
Lot size: 476.99 m2
Start of work: July 2009
Completion of work: October 2010
Structure in: Wooden Structure
Floor: 2-Storey
Walls surfaces: Garvanised stealseat siding
Kitchen companies: Designed by Yoshichika Takagi

See also:

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House K by Yoshichika Takagi	House in Fukawa by Suppose Design Office	Gable House by FORM/Kouichi Kimura