florian busch architects: house in takadanobaba

‘house in takadanobaba’ by florian busch architects, tokyo, japan image © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ all images courtesy of florian busch architects

tokyo-based firm florian busch architects has recently completed ‘house in takadanobaba’, a narrow dwelling positioned upon a remnant plot in tokyo, japan. emerging as a by-product of constant practice of subdivisioning larger sites, the 4.7 meter wide by 22 meter long strip of land is left between two existing building masses. stretching the entire length of the home, a concrete structural element rises and folds at 90 degree angles to form the wall, floor and roof planes, alternating the direction of views from each level.

when observed from the street, the exterior elevation is defined by the cross section, exposing its rigid and light composition enclosed with glass on the open sides, inhabitants enjoy a feeling of spaciousness even with its limited usable area by visually incorporating and utilizing the gaps surrounding the structure. neighbor to neighbor relationships are generated as well as creating a location to observe the changing seasons within the urban context. internal rooms are separated with delicate fabric curtains instead of permanent partitions, accentuating the elongated proportions of each storey.

(left) circular stair (right) corridor along glass images © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

dining area image © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

(left) corridor (right) study images © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

(left) living space (right) second level kitchen images © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

(left) library (right) bathroom images © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

bathroom image © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

(left) second floor kitchen (right) first floor living area images © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

upper level terrace image © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

at night image © hiroyasu sakaguchi – AtoZ

site plan image © florian busch architects

floor plan / level 0 image © florian busch architects

floor plan / level 1 image © florian busch architects

floor plan / level 2 image © florian busch architects

section image © florian busch architects

section image © florian busch architects

elevations images © florian busch architects

elevation image © florian busch architects

perspective image © florian busch architects

project info:

project: private residence, three storeys location: tokyo, japan site area: 104 m2 gross floor area: 153 m2 + 26 m2 roof terrace materials: reinforced concrete, steel

team: FBA: florian busch, sachiko miyazaki, momoyo yamawaki structural engineering: oak (masato araya, tomonori kawata) mechanical engineering: ymo (hiroyuki yamada, natsumi tsuchiya) textile design: yoko ando photography: hiroyasu sakaguchi (AtoZ) contractor: yabusaki corp.