Connects memories

This is a project for a single-family house along a magnificent river. My younger brother and his family, the owners of the house, chose the site where their grandparents lived and where they spent their childhood as a place to raise their children. The existing house was also filled with memories, but it had deteriorated, and it was foreseen to lose its shape in the not-too-distant future. Therefore, in this project, we did not make any changes to the existing house, but rather, we wanted to incorporate elements of the memories of time spent in this place into the new house to be built next door to pass on the memories to future generations.

The shape and scale of the roof of the new house are matched with those of the existing house, with an awareness of the “silhouette of the gable roof seen from afar,” which was a common memory. On the other hand, the width of the building was reduced to a two-story volume with a long length to avoid the regulation range of the cliff ordinance and to keep the distance from the road where large vehicles frequently pass by.

In addition, the roadside opening had to be closed to avoid strong winds and dust. Instead, the internal flow lines were concentrated on that side, and all the living rooms were placed on the riverside to reproduce the memorable “riverside view from the window.” Generally, openings to the west should be avoided in residential planning. Still, in this house, priority was given to bringing the rich environment of the riverside into the interior so that the residents could feel it in their daily lives.

Inside, the LDK is located in the center of the first floor, with the foundation rising as a hip wall, and the entire interior is tiled. The second floor has a sloping ceiling with a full range of heights. By lowering the starting point of the ceiling and the position of the openings, we were conscious of creating a favorable impression throughout while at the same time protecting from the sun in the west.

The existing house, where the family has gathered and grown accustomed to living in, is coming to the end of its usefulness. We hope that the house next door will take over this role and become a place of new memories. (Tatsuya Fuchigami)

Photograph: zeal architects

Photographs except as noted: abc pictures

Before (Photograph: zeal architects)