Tatte hanjo nete ichijo,” which means that you only need half a tatami mat to stand and a full mat to sleep. The ideology that holds that we don’t need anything more than the fundamentals is derived from Zen. Japanese architecture is often thought to be simple and minimal.
Japanese Small homes are not a new phenomenon; due to the country’s large population and scarcity of land, the demand for small homes is much more economical and a preferred option. Japanese architects are pioneering innovative, eco-friendly living solutions such as small homes, passive solar temperature control, daylighting, and other green home features.
Here are 15 exquisitely designed Japanese small houses:
1. Love2House – by Takeshi Hosaka
Area: 19 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2019
Love2House, a detached concrete home with a complete frame and a spherical skylight, is a tiny Japanese home of 19 square meters inspired by Scandinavian roofing ideas and the concepts of old Roman villas to enable soothing sunlight into the dwelling.
Hosaka has provided adequate room and amenities for his and his wife’s habits—eating, reading, taking daily showers, and listening to vinyl records—within the little floor area and the two curved roofs exposed to the sky. The architect incorporated an outdoor bath and shower despite the limited space. This is done to integrate nature as part of a philosophy of pleasure through modesty. The connectivity provides a sense of interface between the space inside the building and the outdoors via skylights and a large sliding door lining the living space.
2. 6 Tsubo House – by Arte-1 Facts
Area: 21 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2020
This upwardly oriented structure in Tokyo was created to make the most of the available space and to maintain harmony between the interior and the cityscape outside the doors. The large main entryway serves as a welcoming aesthetic component.
The limited area creates a sensation of the enclosure and the double-height entryway. Each space has a purpose, yet none of the rooms is divided, and the finishing materials and colours indicate which space is being used where. In this small house, wood and iron are skillfully combined to produce a sense of brightness and space.
3. What Categorizes the City and Me – by ON Design Partner
Area: 37 sq. m.
Year of Completion:
This tiny but exquisite pitched home is situated on a T junction and is made of a mosaic of stacked chambers that are extruded to form shelf-like structures that are open to both ends of the house. The studio and foyer area of the home’s entrance, which is below grade, has a door leading to the rear. There is a bedroom, kitchen, and common area on the first level. The top level is a mezzanine level with access to the rooftop terrace that looks out over the double-height kitchen and the kids’ room.
The building is made of stacked concrete masonry blocks that are bevelled at the ends and covered with sizable glass panels that display the location of each room on the exterior. Smooth, neutral-toned plaster covers the inside, which is contrasted by dark wood furniture, wall panels, and flooring.
4. Shell House – by Tono Mirai Architects
Area: 38 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2018
A small Japanese earthy home built with natural local materials such as wood and clay using traditional Japanese techniques in a modern setting. An unusual, beautiful architectural space in the heart of Japan brings one closer to nature and its surroundings.
The interior spaces are designed with local earth and wood that spans the entire surface. Through the wooden deck and interiors, the wooden fittings blend in with the forest. Using a passive design strategy, this organic shape completely blends into the surrounding forest.
5. House N – by N.A.O
Area: 41 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2016
This narrow house, designed on a budget to provide a sense of distance and direction, is a two-story house divided into seven floors. Mezzanine floors are used to distribute levels. Each stairwell landing leads to a new individual space.
Small details like handrails and furnishings are considered for a house with three children. Nets are used instead of fancy handrails for children’s safety and affordability. Even with limited space, different spaces are provided for different activities, making it a multifunctional space.
6. The Open Cabin – by Royal House Co.
Area: 45 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2016
This Japanese home, which is small and open to the outside, incorporates nature and the surroundings. Energy efficiency has been improved by reducing the size of the home.
Every room in the house appears to be simple and minimal. The combination of metal grills on the façade, beautiful wooden furniture, and nature’s involvement blends in beautifully. Because social gatherings and interactions are important, a large deck connects both houses.
7. House in Toyonaka – by Tato Architects
Area: 50 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2019
This three-story but small Japanese house in Osaka has stepping walls, worktops that merge with staircases, and windows that wrap around all rooms. Architectural elements such as vertical circulation are designed to be independent of the main architectural composition.
The floors in this 50-square-meter home are divided into seven layers that step back and forth in line with window openings and furniture surfaces. Levels, both horizontal and vertical, are crucial in the design. The stepped form conceals certain interior spaces, while the setbacks separate living rooms from the street.
The steps are placed independently in the house to connect the three floors, followed by a smaller section with only two or three steps. It lands on top of a desk in one location and extends up behind a shelving unit in another.
8. House Tokyo – by UNEMORI Architects
Area: 51 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2019
House Tokyo is a small contemporary Japanese home constructed of several stacked boxes wrapped in corrugated steel on a 26 sq.m. plot in Tokyo’s densely populated area. Stacking and overlapping spatial volumes aid in the reduction of urban densification. Each level serves a different purpose in terms of usage and space, but they all blend.
This geometrically structured framework is encased in corrugated steel and features large window openings. The interiors, on the other hand, expose wooden structures in the framework, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere. In this contemporary Japanese home, the contact of wood with the raw metal of the façade blends beautifully.
9. Open Sky House – by Yosh*taka Suzuki And Associates
Area: 57 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2019
This is a small house for a family of five who chose to live without a roof over half of their home to escape the logic of such an urban economy. The house’s exterior is simple, with siding and residential bands found in the neighborhood. This Japanese open-air house is designed to grow and adapt over time.
The house has a small and simple floor plan, with the kitchen, dining, and living areas on the first floor and the bedrooms on the second. The exposed living room is the main feature of the ‘open sky house,’ which is built over two floors. “The house is like a small ark sailing through the city” in this double-height space, adjusting to the weather and needs.
10. O house by Hideyuki Nakayama
Area: 60 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2009
The narrow two-story, 60-square-meter small house has a fully glazed street facade that displays the house’s activity. Depending on the angle of view, the volume of the house resembles a tower or a castle wall. The house incorporates the outside into the interior.
A single sheer customized curtain beautifully hangs from the ceiling to the floor to create privacy while limiting the amount of natural daylight entering the interior space. The slight translucency of the fabric allows the house to glow from the inside out as the day progresses.
The design and spatial arrangement create the illusion of two long stacked corridors, similar to a passage garden, leading to a panoramic view of the neighborhood.
11. House in Ohasu – by Arbol
Area: 60 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2019
A Japanese home with arches and two courtyards in the process of blending cultures and influences. The Peranakan architectural pilotis element was incorporated with Japanese-style row houses in the mixed-influenced design. The landscape functions as an arcade by connecting the front spaces of building porches and sidewall arches in a row.
The arches, front yard, and courtyard define exotic architectural elements in the house. Light, wind, and the changing seasons can all be felt strongly, making this a comfortable home with a hint of simple but exotic elements.
12. The House for Moriyama – by Ecrit Architects
Area: 60 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2019
This concrete gable house is a stunning modern interpretation of traditional Japanese architectural principles. Architectural elements such as a slight elevation off the ground, a threshold articulation, pitched ceilings, sliding doors in place of walls, and an open floor plan all reflect Japanese design.
The gable roof looks like a tiny cottage in the woods, but the concrete construction feels urban. The use of wood in furniture and the ribbed ceiling complements the color scheme in all rooms. The lush greenery and the home are complemented by the red flooring and lavender wall. This home’s small details exude serenity.
13. Cliff House – by Planet Creations
Area: 72 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2015
A small home-cabin made of reinforced concrete in the shape of a simple six-meter-long tube. The design is straightforward, the interior is spacious, and the riverside deck faces the sky.
The tube’s roadside end is counterweighted and anchored deep in the ground, allowing it to extend horizontally from the bank and hang out over the water. The interior is divided longitudinally, with the master bedroom, living room, and deck area on one side and a bedroom, kitchen, laundry, and bathroom on the other. Views across the river from the building’s outward extension.
14. Minimum house in Toyota – by Nori Architects
Area: 88 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2022
A young family’s home on a long and narrow plot of land masses is a compact box with enough frontage spaces and open planning. The minimum house is built around two double-height spaces: a ground-floor dining room and kitchen in the front and a first-floor living room in the back. The structure is made up of a steel-braced plywood frame on steel support, while the interiors are made up of warm wood-filled spaces and exposed structures, allowing natural light to flood the space. A straight wooden stair connects the rooms. On a tight budget, well-thought-out energy-saving materials are reinforced.
15. House in Goshikiyama – by Tomohiro Hata Architects
Area: 90 sq. m.
Year of Completion: 2016
A minimal home located alongside a railroad track in Kobe, Japan, connects the city and sky by folding spaces. By combining calm and raw color schemes, the house achieves a perfect balance of interior and exterior space. The staircase serves as an individual entity in this small home’s architecture. It not only connects the upper and lower floors, but it is also an important element that adds multiple functions and meanings to the spiral staircase that spirals from the city to the sky. Every fourth step of this spiral staircase creates and utilizes a new horizontal space.
Small Japanese homes, but contemporary
Japan has mastered the art of blending modern technologies and lifestyles with traditions and cultures that date back thousands of years. The architecture of their homes is one way this culture is preserved; a strong connection to nature pervades Japanese design. These homes were a fusion of modern nature and materials, as well as Japanese architectural techniques.
References:
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