Site size: 3,879 square feet

Project size: 1,470 square feet

Program:
A couple sought a home that could accommodate children or possibly elderly parents as well as their extensive collection of books.

Location:
The steeply sloping suburban site consists of a deep rocky substrate and two large hardwood trees.

Solution:
Shogo Aratani Architect & Associates determined that the site's extreme beauty represented an opportunity for the house to adapt and flourish.

The two-floor house is fundamentally two main rectilinear volumes angled away from a central triangular stair. Two parking spaces, just below the first floor, are cut directly from the hillside. The excess rock provided the materials for a stone pathway leading up the hill and to the main entrance. On the interior, this entrance is flanked by two living spaces but cuts across the first floor directly toward the main stairway. This stairway, whose steps match the grade of the hillside, was dubbed the 'library' for the numerous shelves that surround its steps.

The upper level features a continuous patio, living, dining, and kitchen space. These rooms offer extensive natural light and expansive views to the south thanks to two skylights and floor-to-ceiling glazing. Polished ash floors further accentuate the space's airiness. In one final gesture deferring to the landscape, the architects placed the kitchen skylight beneath the cherry and camphor hardwood trees so their branches are visible to the living spaces below.

Construction methods:
Reinforced concrete foundations below support a timber frame structure.

Architect:
Shogo Aratani Architect & Associates
Address: 662-0854 3-10-2F Hazetsuka-cho,
Nishinomiya Hyogo
Phone: +81-798-31-3484
Fax: +81-798-31-5508
E-mail: info@ararchitect.com
URL: www.ararchitect.com