A couple retired to the countryside. As newcomers, they wished to be open and contribute to their new community. Following this idea, the house was planned to be open and public, centering on the retired preschool teacher wife’s picture book collection, a simple hall for the husband, a flute player, and a garden, without a wall, like a park. To support this open lifestyle in the long term, we also were careful to make private spaces for the couple.
The property itself features a quiet bamboo grove and a stream to the north, and a sunny path in the south. To bring a feeling of abundance to the beautiful piece of land, we created a multipurpose space that had a feeling of progression, of unfolding.
Animals are said to relax best in a space that provides both prospect and refuge. We tried to create such a space.
Firstly, we placed L-shaped walls that defined spaces simply and shifted them slightly to make crevices between the L walls and thus create views. The functions were placed along the ridge of the roof so that privacy increases in the back and openness increases in front.
Acoustic requirements specified the gable roof, and under that to the left and right along the axis of the ridge, L walls overlap and provide a natural refuge. Through the crevices between the L walls, light, wind, greenery and people come and go. This will support the couple’s new life, in tune with their surroundings.