I.house

Suginami, Japan

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I.house

Suginami, Japan

Firm

Type

Residential › Private House

YEAR

2007

SIZE

10,000 sqft - 25,000 sqft

On a site where setback regulation is severe, the comprehensive utilization
of both internal and external space is indispensable in the formation of an
excellent living environment. Our main focus in planning was to create a
new artificial topography that maximizes the amount of internal and external
space on the site.The
house is situated in a densely populated residential area of Tokyo.
Despite this, the site remains quiet, as it is surrounded by both a park
and a neighboring residential garden.By
raising the first floor volume by a half-story-- thereby reducing the ground
floor to a half-story at street level-- spaces (a generous basement and a
garden terrace) are created that would have otherwise been impossible due to
site restrictions.The
basement floor (a half-story below street level) contains the main entrance, a
multi-purpose room, and parking for one car. Fixed glazing and stainless
walls with a mirrored surface surround the basement floor. The
transparency of this glass construction allows the interior space to continue
outward through the exterior of the building, stopping finally at the white
retaining wall at the border of the site.The
second floor is comprised of a bathroom and a bedroom with a penthouse.
All rooms have access to a roof garden. This part of the building
lends the impression that a two-story residence in the form of a white box was
built on new ground.In
contrast to the transparency of the second floor, the cave-like first floor is
open only to the north and the south and extends to a terrace made of grating
on both of these sides. The terraces are enclosed with a stainless mesh
and are the only semi-transparent element on the street-side facade of this
floor. This degree of enclosure creates a calm and tranquil space that
gathers much of its openness by extending itself to the upper roof garden via a
large sky light.