Shigeru Ban - Villa works

Shigeru Ban
Villas, Experimental Houses, and Future Prototypes

Over the years, Shigeru Ban's works have showcased a distinct architectural philosophy that revolves around sustainability, innovation, and the integration of aesthetic and functional elements. His dedication to designing environmentally-friendly structures has earned him global recognition, including the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize. Among his various designs, the Villa type of architecture serves as an ideal setting for architectural practices and the conservation of "architectural inventions".

Ban's philosophy is deeply rooted in the belief that architecture should respond to the needs of people and the environment. He emphasizes the importance of sustainable design, using recycled materials, and minimizing waste production. Ban's experimental houses and Villa works exemplify his commitment to these principles, as they often utilize unconventional materials such as cardboard, paper, and bamboo. By exploring new possibilities and challenging traditional architectural norms, Ban demonstrates that sustainable design can be achieved without compromising aesthetics or functionality.
The Villa type of architecture perfectly embodies Ban's philosophy. Villas traditionally refer to luxurious and spacious residences located in scenic environments. Ban, however, redefines this concept by creating contemporary Villas that combine the elegance of traditional designs with modern interpretations. These Villas serve as innovative architectural laboratories where Ban experiments with new techniques, materials, and spatial configurations.
The Villa type of architecture, as exemplified by Ban's works, offers an ideal platform for architectural experimentation and conversation. The versatility and freedom provided by Villas allow architects to explore unconventional ideas and push the boundaries of technology and innovation; Villa Vista is a good example.

Here are some highly regarded Search Guide, focusing on Shigeru Ban's Villa projects:

1. "Shigeru Ban: The Architect Bringing Sustainable Design to Disaster Zones"; exploring Shigeru Ban's innovative use of materials and his approach to designing sustainable and disaster-resistant villas.

2. "Shigeru Ban’s Masterful Villas: Built Spaces That Reflect Nature"; delving into Shigeru Ban's villa projects that seamlessly blend with their natural surroundings, highlighting his use of natural materials and sustainable design principles.

3. "Shigeru Ban: A Starchitect Shaping the Future of Sustainable Villas"; focusing on Shigeru Ban's passion for sustainability and highlights some of his notable villa projects around the world.

4. "Shigeru Ban: The Pritzker Prize-Winning Architect's Remarkable Villa Designs"; exploring Shigeru Ban's unique approach to designing villas, with an emphasis on spatial efficiency, innovative structural systems, and his use of sustainable materials.

5. "Shigeru Ban's Villa Vista: An Architectural Masterpiece in Harmony with Nature"; showcasing Shigeru Ban's Villa Vista project, highlighting its contemporary design and its seamless integration with the surrounding landscape.

These guidelines lead to insightful information on Shigeru Ban's villa projects, his design philosophy, and his commitment to sustainability.

VILLA WORKS/ SOLO HOUSES

Shigeru Ban Architects

Paper House / 紙の家

Yamanakako Village, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan / 山梨県山中湖村
1995

An S-shape configuration comprised of 110 paper tubes (2.7m high, 275mm in diameter and 148mm thick) defines the interior and exterior areas of the paper house. This was the first project in which paper tubes were authorized for use as a structural basis in a permanent building. Ten paper tubes support the vertical load and the eighty interior tubes bear the lateral forces. The cruciform wooden joints in the bases of the columns are anchored to the foundation by lug screws and cantilevered from the floor. The large circle formed by the interior tubes forms a big area. A freestanding paper tubes column with a 1.2m diameter in the surrounding gallery contains a toilet. The exterior paper tubes surrounding the courtyard stand apart from the structure and serve as a screen. The living area in the large circle is without furnishing or detail other than an isolated kitchen counter, sliding doors, and movable closets. When the perimeter sashes are opened, the roof, supported by the colonnade of paper tubes, is visually emphasized and a spatial continuity is created between the surrounding gallery space and the outdoor terrace.

この計画において初めて紙管を恒久建築の構造材として使う認定を取得した。10mx10mの平面に紙管110本をS字状に並べ、正方形と円弧の内外にさまざまな空間を形成している。鉛直力は10本の紙管で支持され、水平力は80本の紙管で負担している。外周部のガラスの引き戸を開け放つと、紙管の列柱に支持された水平な屋根が強調され、回廊とテラスが連続する。

Paper House

This villa employs Ban’s signature recycled paper tubes for the primary structure, and is a recreation of a villa built in 1995 on Lake Yamanaka. A rhythmical S-shaped array of 110 paper tubes frames an airy space in which light spills through gaps between the columns. The S-shape of paper tubes also envelops an open-air bath.

VILLA TCG/ ヴィラTCG

Nagano, Japan
1986

This sloping site is divided in half by a stream, and at the center of the site sits a huge stone kiln. These elements were regarded as important contextual and regional characteristics, and the client wished to preserve them. The spatial composition also includes a stone wall with a small opening at its center on the north facade that provides a view of the kiln. The wall follows the curves in the stream and defined the interior spaces. Another wall, made of Canadian red cedar, extends and connects to the other side of the stream. All circulation routes such as stairs and corridors are placed along this wall. A third wall, forming a brick cylinder containing a kitchen, a bathroom, and a fireplace, is the functional core of the house.

「3枚の壁」というコンセプトを敷地の状況を読み解きながら展開している。既存の炭焼き窯のイメージを残した石積みの壁を前面道路に沿って立て、さらにそれを敷地を横切る小川に沿ってカーブさせ、これにより内部を規定している。レッドシダーを竪張りにした2枚目の壁には階段や外部通路などのサーキュレーションを配置し、煉瓦のシリンダーである第3の壁にはサービススペースを集めている。

VILLA K/ ヴィラ K

Nagano, Japan
1987

Photo Credit: Hiroyuki Hirai

「VILLA　TCG」と同様、「3枚の壁」によって構成されている。まず背後の山の力を分散させるような円弧状の壁によって空間を限定し、そこにサーキュレーションが配された直線の壁を挿入している。シリンダー状の3枚目の壁にはキッチンやパスルームが納められ、これがプラン上のすべての操作の中心になっている。

This villa is composed of three walls, similar to the villa TCG. One wall, circular, defines the interior space, to which the second-linear-wall is added, defining circulation routes (stairs and a bridge). The third wall is configured as a cylindrical core that forms the service, kitchen, and the bathroom spaces. The center of the cylinder is also the core of the design. The site is relatively flat, but the beautiful mountain scenery is partially blocked from view by the surrounding dense forest. For this reason, the entrance is built on views of the mountains. The three walls and the triangular roof are clearly articulated. The effect is emphasized by natural light streaming in through the glazed openings between the walls and roof. The large window of the living room is aligned with one side of the triangular roof, framing the view the mountain to the east.

M RESIDENCE / M 邸

Tokyo, Japan
1989

Photo Credit: Hiroyuki Hirai

これまでの「３枚の壁」による空間構成が、ここでは少々変形している。L字形の壁は内部空間を包み込み、それとは独立して敷地の角には階段室であるガラスブロックの三角形のコアが自立している。そして水周りを納めた円形のコアと暖炉を納めた正方形のコアによって屋根を支持している。L・○・△・□のコアと水平な屋根の間はガラスとし、これによりそれぞれの独立性を高めている。

Situated in a quiet residential area of Tokyo, the site is portioned from a triangular plot surrounded by two roads and a river. The spatial composition is based on the same concept seen in Three Walls House, but modified a little here. The walls are self-standing, including an L-shaped wall which defines the interior space, a circular core which houses the kitchen and bathroom functions, and a triangular glass-block enclosure at one corner of the site. A square-shaped core housing a fireplace and the circular core support the horizontal roof. On the second floor is an open living room with a high ceiling-as requested by the client. This attangement provides the living room with a level of privacy and a clear view across the river.

VILLA TORII/ ヴィラトリイ

Nagano, Japan
1990

Photo: Hiroyuki Hirai

東西に立てた２枚の壁が南北方向に開放的な風通しのよい空間をつくり、内部と外部の調和を図っている。2枚の壁の間に集成材の大梁を渡し、それらを一体として地面から引っ張りバランスをとる構造としている。この２枚の壁以外は石積の自由な曲線のエレメントとして独立して配置している。

This villa has walls on the east and west sides, leaving the north and south elevations entirely exposed to the landscape, resulting in a space that successfully harmonizes interior and exterior. The two parallel walls, conceived as blinds, are the chief structural elements here, and are designed to stand by themselves without any additional walls or braces. Laminated wood girders are fastened on top of these two walls at 875mm intervals. The unique structural method uses steel rods in a guy wire-like configuration to anchor the structure to the ground while tensioning the laminated wood beams and balancing the loads on the roof, wall and floor structure. Except for the two main walls, other elements are designed as free-form curved planes of mansonry which are arranged so as not to come in contact with the two linear walls.

I HOUSE/ I ハウス

Tokyo, Japan
1991

Photo: Hiroyuki Hirai

新興住宅街にある敷地において、将来周囲に住宅が建て込んでも居間からの視界がある程度保たれるよう、正方形の平面を敷地に対し４５度振って配置している。構法的には、1つのものに2つの意味を持たせ、材料と手間を省くよう工夫している。２枚の自立する外壁にのせた折板は屋根材と引張材の機能を持ち、2枚の壁自体の筋交いとして働く構造用合板は室内側ではOSBを使い、それをそのまま仕上げ材とすることで、ここでも1つのものに2つの機能を持たせている。

This square building is placed at a 45-degree angle to the property line to ensure a good view to the south. To make the second floor living room fully open to the landscape on the north and south sides and to private proper ventilation, two wooden walls are set parallel to each other on the east and west sides. In order to make these two walls stand by themselves and resist the lateral stresses without the need for bracing or supporting walls they, along with the steel folded plate roof structure, are tensioned by steel rods anchored to the ground outside. In this project, the folded plate roof is given a tensile function. The interior's structural plywood is used as a finishing material as well as bracing, providing that a single material can bear two functions at once to help promote low-cost construction.

VILLA KURU/ヴィラクル

Nagano, Japan
1991

Photo: Hiroyuki Hirai

敷地から一望できる周囲の景観をどのように見せるかということをテーマとしている。全体の構造は、水回りを収めた円形のコアと、寝室を収めた正方形のコアに依存しており、斜面に張り出したキャンティレバーの床からは開放的な眺望を得ることができる。道路と平行に配されたブロック積みの壁は、道路からの眺めを遮断し、居間に至ってはじめて視界が開けるという演出効果を持っている。

Located at 1570 meters above sea level, near Nagano, the site slopes down at a 20-degree angle to the southeast and has a sweeping view of the surrounding mountains; a primary goal of the design process was to find the best way of framing the magnificent panorama. The overall composition consists of a cylindrical core of 3.7 meters in diameter, containing a bathroom and the kitchen; a square core holding the bedrooms; and a wall running parallel to the adjacent road. The two core structures bear the perpendicular loads and resists the lateral stresses as a cantilever. The floor slab is cantilevered 4.5 meters from the centerline of the building. The single-pitch roof which follows the slope of the site is supported by two laminated-wood beams fixed on top of the cores. The linear wall, roughly finished in masonry, is separate from the roof structure. This wall symbolically expresses the idea that the house will take root into soil and into the natural setting. In addition, it also represents the dramatic effects of opening up the living room to the panoramic views of the mountains - in contrast to the effect at the road level, where the views are completely obstructed.

PC Pile House / PCパイルの家

Susono City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan / 静岡県裾野市
1992

This house doubles as a studio for a photographer, built on a steeply sloping site which rises up from the road at a 45-degree angle. The client desired the maximum degree of transparency within a limited budget. A structural system was devised that used 300mm posts of pre-cast concrete to directly support the roof and floor slabs. The floor slab, at 9 meters above the ground, is made from laminated I-shaped wooden structures (10 meters long, spaced at a pitch of 5.5 meters), which rest on the surface of pairs of girders which connect the front and the rear precast concrete piles. The piles penetrate through the building introducing a visual contrast to the white floors and ceiling, which frame the views of the landscape. The south and east sides are fully open to the views with the use of glazed doors, and the north and the west sides are fitted with a double layer of translucent poly-carbonated panels.
敷地は場所によっては45度以上にもなる急斜面であるが、特別基礎に予算をさく余裕がなくローコストを要求された。良好な周囲の景色とプライバシーを確保し、しかもそれをローコストで実現するため、杭として作られたPCパイルを独立基礎に差しこみ、それに床と屋根を支持させている。東南2面はガラスで眺望に対して開き、西北2面はポリカーボネートを2重に張り、間に発泡スチロールの粒を充填することで、断熱性の高い壁としている。

HOUSE OF DOUBLE-ROOF

Yamanashi, Japan, 1993

ダブル・ルーフの家

This is a private weekend retreat built on a sloping site overlooking Lake Yamanaka where snowfall often exceeds 900mm in the winter. The house required a roof that could accommodate these heavy snow loads. The double-roof structure could be incorporated on a restricted budget since there was no need for an intensive structural framework. In this scheme the upper roof structure is separated from the ceiling, and its primary structural function is to bear the weight of the snow. To accomplish this, folded steel plates of the minimum allowable dimensions were used. Since the ceiling is not suspended from the roof, it is freed of the deflection margin, and thus the ceiling becomes a second roof with a minimal load. In addition, the upper roof provides shelter against direct sun during the summer. Square sectioned steel pipes are utilized as support beams for the corrugated metal roof. Other structural elements below the roof are made of wood. An exterior covered terrace connects the large living/dining/kitchen area to the bedroom and bathroom, the floor level of which is lowered to correspond the topography of the site. The rooftop level above the bedroom is a terrace with a view toward the lake.

積雪量の多いこの地域において、架構を大きくせずにこの積雪に備えるために、屋根と天井を切り離すダブルルーフを考案している。応力上積雪荷重を受けられる最小限のサイズの折板屋根が全体を覆い、それとは別に天井の架構が独立してある。つまり天井は屋根から吊られていないので、屋根のたわみが規定を超えても影響がなく、積載荷重がほぼゼロの屋根となっている。

HOUSE FOR A DENTIST/デンティストの家

Tokyo, Japan
1994

Photo: Hiroyuki Hirai

細長い長方形の敷地の短辺方向を2等分し、南側半分を外部空間、残り半分を内部空間としている。地盤が悪く、全体をRC造にすると杭工事が必要になるため、全体をできる限り軽量化すべく床を木造とし、RCのキャンティレバーの壁2枚で水平力を負担している。南側は、閉鎖的なコートヤードとするのではなく、必要なだけプライバシーを守り、必要なだけ風や木漏れ日を通すアイビー・スクリーンとしている。

This long rectangular site (9 meters by 19 meters), with its short side fronting on the road, has an elevated ground level of 2 meters. There is a large cherry tree which designated to be preserved at the south corner of the site. The work space for the dentist is located in the basement level and the living quarters are distributed on the first and the second floors. The rectangular floor plan (7.6 meters by 18 meters) is divided lengthwise into two parts-the southern half to be used as exterior space and the other half as interior space-and all the rooms are aligned in the longitudinal direction to share the view of cherry tree with every room. The client wanted reinforced concrete construction for his house, but since the poor ground condition would have required pile foundations, and in view of the resulting issues of cost and the limited construction period, this type of construction could not be used. The building was made as light as possible using the minimum amount of reinforced concrete construction and with the floors construction in wood. The concrete portions of the structure include the two parallel walls which define the front and rear sides of the house (18 meters apart) and the circular core structure-with laminated wood joints spanning between these concrete elements. With the minimum use of solid walls, the sense of spatial openness is optimized by the use of glazed walls. A 3-story-high ivy-covered screen which defines the southern boundary ensures the required privacy and allows ventilation and filtered natural light. On the north facade the glazed openings are fitted with hollow polycarbonate panels filled with granulated styrofoam.

CURTAIN WALL HOUSE

Tokyo, Japan, 1995

カーテンウォールの家

The house is intended to be a reflection of the owner's lifestyle. It is open to the outdoors and utilizes contemporary materials in new interpretations of traditional Japanese styles. Wide deck spaces are attached to the east and south sides of the second-floor living room and tent-like curtains are hung on the outer facade between the second and third floors. Interior conditons are controlled by opening and closing this Japanese-style "curtain wall". In winter, a set of glazed doors (in combination with the curtain) can completely enclose the house for insulation and privacy. This thin membrane takes the place of shoji and sudare screens, and fusuma doors that appear in the traditional Japanese house.

施主がこれまで続けてきた古い日本家屋の下町的でおおらかな生活を、現代的素材を用いて継承しようとしている。3階から2階にかけてテント地のカーテンは、視線を遮ったり、遮光するだけでなく、内側のガラス引戸を閉めてカーテンとの間を断熱スペースすることもできる。伝統的な日本家屋の障子、襖、雨戸、簾などにみられる開放性と室内環境のコントロールの仕方をこのカーテンウォールで再現している。

WALL-LESS HOUSE

Nagano, Japan, 1997

壁のない家

The house is built on a sloping site, and in order to minimize the excavation work the rear half of the house is dug into the ground, the excavated earth being used as fill for the front half, creating a level floor. The floor surface at the embedded rear part of the house curls up to meet the roof, naturally absorbing the imposed load of the earth. The roof is flat and is fixed rigidly to the upturned slab freeing the 3 columns at the front from any horizontal loads. As a result of bearing only vertical loads these columns could be reduced to a minimum 55 mm in diameter. In order to express the structural concept as purely as possible all the walls and mullions have been purged leaving only sliding panels. Spatially, the house consists of a ‘universal floor’ on which the kitchen, bathroom and toilet are all placed without enclosure, but which can be flexibly partitioned by the sliding doors.

斜面に位置するこの住宅は、後部山側の床スラブを曲線状に屋根までめくり上げることで背後の土圧を自然に受け、床スラブに流している。さらに水平な屋根面の後辺は床スラブの頂点と完全に固定することにより、すべての水平力を床スラブに流し、全面に唯一ある3本の柱は、全く水平力を負担せず、鉛直力のみ負担する。形態のアーティキュレートにとどまらず、構造システムも完全にアーティキュレートしている。

Hanegi Forest / 羽根木の森

Setagaya, Tokyo / 東京都世田谷区
1997

What was required was to build an apartment house without cutting down any of the existing trees in a quiet residential district in Tokyo, while at the same time staying within a restricted budget. A grid of regular triangles (4 meters to a side) was found as a system which can ensure structural stability while providing adequately-sized living areas even with the arbitrary cut-offs of columns, beams, and girders. This system also provides horizontal rigidity and a structure which allows free spatial composition with proper cantilevering of the floor slabs, even when the spaces around the trees are hollowed out in circular or oval shapes. Each apartment unit is built in a terrace-house style which occupies the floors from the first to the third. This style makes fireproof construction unnecessary between floor and makes it possible to expose real structural system. It also provides the inhabitants with views of the natural setting at various levels.

1階から3階で1住戸となる長屋形式の集合住宅である。既存の大木を1本も切らないという条件のなか、それらを避けるために梁や地中梁を抜いても構造が安定するジオメトリーとして、1辺4ｍの正三角形のグリットを見つけ出した。1階のピロティーでは、森の中を歩く感覚を保存するため天井高を３ｍとし、最小限に留めた個室は鏡とミラーガラスにより存在感をなくし森の木を増幅している。

Nine Grid Square House

9スクウェア・グリッドの家

Hadano City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan / 神奈川県秦野市
1997

The furniture units of the "furniture house" were made of steel studs. That system can be improved upon, however. For example, it makes possible a simpler and less noisy assembly process on site, avoids condensation by adding urethane-foam insulation during production process, and eliminates annoying vibration. The spatial composition combines the systems of two walls and a Universal Floor. A large square floor space, 10.4 meters to a side, can be partitioned by full-height sliding doors into nine square areas. These sliding doors allow a variety of spatial arrangements, adjustable to accommodate seasonal or functional needs.

これまで開発してきた「家具の家」のシステムを木製フレームに替わってスチール材で構成している。これまで家具の長手背面壁のみを構造にカウントしていたが、スチールは強度があるために側面壁もカウントすることができる。「2枚の壁」による構成で、そして、「2枚の壁」の間にできた空間に、キッチンやバス、トイレなどが散在している。この正方形の空間は9スクエア・グリッドに沿って引き戸で分割することができる。

IVY STRUCTURE 1

Tokyo, Japan, 1998

アイビー・ストラクチャー 1

The property is a long piece of land (9 meters wide and 24 meters deep) that stretches from the east to the west. Because its neighbors’ houses are built right next to the edges of the property, the land looks smaller than its actual size of 214.48 square meters. It is located in a residential area with no particular character (plain taste) but the closely-built neighbors’ houses create an environment that makes the residents conscious of the eyes of their neighbors. Thus, the themes of the design of this house are to make full use of the land and to provide the three-generation family of five members with an atmosphere of openness.
First, in order to use the land effectively, the property is divided into the southern half as an outside block and the northern half as an inside block. All the four individual rooms and the two bathrooms are placed on the second floor of the northern block, and the entire first floor is used as a large common space. I try to make this common space look as though it stretches into the outside space in the north by reducing the numbers of walls and posts, in order to create a “universal floor.”
Second, a new idea has been applied for the construction method. This involves having the interior structure depend on the exterior, like the usage of flying buttresses in Gothic architecture, to free the interior space and its edges as much as possible. But instead of merely putting the structure up externally we combined it with its original external functions. In order to prevent sight lines from the house on the southern side and from the interior of our house, a wall with two layers of ivy screen was created along the south border. For this, a strong structure was necessary as the ivy screen would be of great height, supporting two layers of ivy able to withstand large winds as had been experienced in the “House of a Dentist”. Solutions for these problems were thus found by imposing the vertical and lateral load of the main building on the ivy screen. To carry out this idea, I imposed the southern half of the second floor of the northern block on the ivy screen. Furthermore, by hanging the second floor, the need for the posts between the common room on the first floor and the outside space is eliminated, thus successfully creating a larger open space.
Another attempt was also made to create a semi-interior space externally by shielding external light with a mobile membrane. In the “House of a Curtain Wall”, curtains were hung on the outer edge of a terrace to control the sunlight, to protect the residents’ privacy, and to produce a semi-interior space. In the “Hanegi Forest,” outside blinds were used. With this house, the large beam that the second floor is hung from works as a rail for the membrane that covers the roof and the exterior space in the south. The membrane over the southern exterior space is an important device for shielding the sunlight from the southern glass as well as the semi-interiorization of the exterior space. In addition, the membrane over the roof has a double roof effect that prevents the sun from warming up the house in summer.
Iron frames are the basis of this building in materializing the ideas mentioned above. Walls that function as furniture (to which furniture is attached) are built on the east, north and west sides. These walls produce a closed feeling towards the neighbors, in contrast to the open feeling that the glass wall creates on the southern side.

敷地を長辺に沿って細長く半分に割り、南側半分を外部、北側半分を内部空間のブロックとしている。内部空間や内部と外部の境界面を自由にするために、たとえばフライング・バットレスのように、外部に内部の構造を負わせ、しかもただ構造を外に出すのではなく、もともと外部で必要な機能を併せ持たせている。ここでは、視線を遮るためのアイビー・スクリーンを構成する門型の鉄骨フレームから北側ブロックの2階部分を吊る構造とし、共用空間である1階を連続性の高い無柱空間としている。

FURNITURE HOUSE 3 / 家具の家 No.3

Tokyo, Japan
1998

Photo: Hiroyuki Hirai

「家具の家NO.3」では建方をいっそう単純化するため、1列の連続した壁ではせん断に効く部分が両端だけであることを考慮し、両端の壁のみをホールダウンの金物で土台や梁と緊結し、間の壁のラグスクリューを省略している。2階からの眺望がすばらしく、ここでは家具をL字型に並べて残りの2面をすべて開口部としている。2層の家具構造の上に独立した折板屋根を架けた、ダブルルーフとし、その水平ブレースにより、2階のL字に配置した家具の変形を押さえている。
Learning from our experience with the single file continuous wall that could only withstand shear forces on the edge, we attempted to abbreviate the usage of rug-screws by using them between the two edges of the wall and by replacing the edge rug-screws with hold-down joints that bind the beam with the ground. To increase the capacity of insulation, we used the fact that the furniture was manufactured in a factory as an advantage and inserted foam urethane between the studs of the furniture’s interior.

IVY STRUCTURE 2

Tokyo, Japan, 2000

アイビー・ストラクチャー 2

There are two meanings inherent in Ivy Structure 2. The first and direct meaning is that of the surrounding ivy wall, which functions both as an exterior screen and as an important structural unit for the main architecture itself. The second and very special characteristic of this architecture is that it is elicited by depending on the usage of an entirely different structure, that of the ivy plant itself.
As an introduction to previous steps leading to this work, there is “Ivy Structure 1”. The interior space on the first floor has no columns, freeing the whole of a lengthy yard to have a spacious feeling. Half of the two-layered, gate-shaped steel frame was composed to structure the frame for the ivy screen, while the second floor was thought to be structurally hung from that point.
The site for our plan for Ivy Structure 2 is adjacent to a large restaurant building on one side and a condominium block on the other. There is an embassy at the rear, and the road in front of the site runs along a slope at an angle that creates a special form for the site. At this location, a simple 13m equilateral glass cube structure (170 square meters) from the basement to the third floor was placed parallel to the road. By placing the ivy screens around the three sides in the line of sight, other buildings that are not meant to be seen are shut out, and privacy is thus secured to a certain degree.
As a simple four-layered cube, this structure can have various uses, such as a residential house, office, or gallery. This was intended because there was a demand for a plan that did not have structural regulations, thereby allowing for future changes. Hence, to equally distribute the space metal-framed circular columns were first placed in a grid pattern by dividing the 13m equilateral square into 9 smaller equilateral squares. In order to increase the freedom of the plan, the brace and the bearing walls were abolished. To avoid the usage of a thick rigid frame that would decide the grid, and to avoid as much stress on the round columns from lateral forces as possible, the four corners of the terrace and the frame from the 9-square-grid were connected by the ivy screen’s frame in a flying buttress fashion derived from Gothic architecture. Because of this, the radii of the round columns were minimized, becoming thinner as the column grew higher. Pair-glass was used as the standard on all surfaces, and an Italian cladding with a simple section was used for the glass cube. The southern and western side has exterior blinds to block sunlight, and water is stored in a shallow pool on the roof to create insulation during the summer.

建物の周囲のアイビーの壁が外構的スクリーンとしてだけでなく、本体の主体構造も担っており、このアイビーという植物自体の何か別の構造体に頼らないと自立できないという特色がこの建築の特性を表している。単純な正方形平面の4隅とテラス部分を周囲のアイビー・スクリーンのフレームと結び、水平力を負担させている。これにより正方形平面に９スクエア・グリッド状に配置した丸柱は水平力を負担せず、柱径が最小限となり、将来の変更に対するフレキシビリティーを確保している。

Veneer Grid Roof House / べニア三角格子の家

Isumi-gun, Chiba Prefecture, Japan / 千葉県夷隅郡
2001

A triangular-gird structure of paper honeycomb boards is currently being developed for the Japanese Pavilion at Hannover’s World Fair in year 2000. This house’s roof was made with triangular grids, not in paper honeycomb but in veneer for structural purpose, applying the same aluminium joint under development.
The site is comparatively vast, full of greenery: an ideal place to create a ‘universal’ space of a single-storied house. The lack of traffic facilities was a major problem, making it hard to travel between the site and the Metropolitan area in a frequent manner, nor had we an acquaintance of a good, reliable contractor in the vicinity. The system, which consists of manufacturing equilateral triangular units of 90 cm-module with a side of 2.7 m and assembling them on the spot, seemed to fit the kind of construction where distance was in question, as it was the case here. The structure supporting the roof was composed of closets, in line with the idea of ‘house of furniture', taking care of vertical and horizontal forces, and metal frames for sliding doors, to take care of vertical forces at points of importance.
The main building, an equilateral triangle with a side of 16.2m, was connected to the rhombic roof of 9.0 m a side accommodating the home office and the guestroom, by means of a triangular-gird roof. Glass sliding doors arranged on every side add flexibility to the size of space control to the environment according to the climate and the occupants’ needs.

「ねむの木美術館」では屋根、「ハノーバー国際博覧会日本館」では妻面で使用した三角格子構造のために開発したアルミのジョイントを利用し、ここでは紙のハニカム材の代わりに構造用合板を面材として利用している。この三角格子屋根は構造家具とサッシュのマリオンにより支持させ、屋根と下部構造体を視覚的にも施工的にも完全にアーティキュレートしている。

Picture Window House / ピクチャーウインドウの家

Ito, Shizuoka / 静岡県伊東市
2002

A gentle hill continues up from the ocean's edge, and near its peak isthe location of the site; a place that, amazingly in Japan, is uncluttered by any unsightly distractions. The first time I set foot on the site, my immediate response was to frame the wonderful view of the ocean stretching horizontally. That is to say that the building itself should become a picture window. Also, to prevent the architecture from becoming an obstacle disrupting the natural sense of flow from the ocean, I've thought of maintaining that continuity by passing it through the building up to the woods at the top of the hill. Thus, the whole upper storey became a truss spanning 20 meters, and below, a 20 meter by 2.5 meter picture window was created.
海から続く小高い丘のほぼ頂上に位置する敷地にはじめて立ったとき、建築自体をピクチャー・ウインドウとみなし、水平に広がる景色を切り取り、さらには海からの景色の流れを建築が仕切ってしまわずに、裏の雑木林に連続させていくことを考えた。そこで2階全体を梁せいとした20メートルスパンのトラスを構成し、1階を20mx2.5mのピクチャーウインドウとしている。

BAMBOO FURNITURE HOUSE / 竹の家具の家

Great Wall at Shui Guan, China
2002

The project site on the mountain overlooking the Great Wall of China was rather wild than sophisticated. When I first stood on this site, I envisioned a small one-story house surrounding a quite courtyard much like the vernacular style of Chinese houses.
On the way back from the site, I visited the town outside of Beijing where a number of material suppliers array their shops, in the hope of finding building materials for the project that are specific to China. Perhaps because hardly any wood structures are used for construction in China today, available lumber types were limited, and I could not even find any structural plywood. What caught my eyes instead was a kind of plywood in the color of blood. By having a closer look, I discovered that it was a lamination of thin strips of bamboo woven into sheets. I was told that this bamboo plywood was used typically for concrete framework. If bamboo could be made into plywood, I though, then it would be possible to laminate strips of bamboo into building lumber.
Until then, I had not been much interested in bamboo, which has been used for many years in Asia and South America as building material. The reason was that no architect has succeeded in using bamboo as primary building structure in contemporary architecture, other than a Columbian architect Simon Velez who has poured concrete inside of bamboo tubes to make structural element.
Other fact to consider into design was that the construction administration of the project would be handled by the client themselves due to the project’s remote site and its limited budget. To minimize the weight on construction administration, I decided to make my “furniture house” system which is a pre-fabricated modularized building system I have been developing for some years, out of the bamboo laminated lumber. The laminated bamboo was used for the unit framing system and beams as well as interior and exterior finish.

この万里の長城が見える山腹の敷地は、美しいというより荒々しい大自然に囲まれている。その敷地に立った時、まず伝統的な中国の民家にある静寂な中庭を囲んだ平屋のこじんまりした家を頭に思い描いた。
敷地を訪れた帰り、何か中国独自の材料を使いたいと考え、北京郊外で多くの建材店が軒を並べる場所を廻った。木造住宅は一般的でないからか、木材の種類は限られていて、構造用合板すら見つけることが出来なかった。そこで目に留まったものは、血の色をした合板で、よく見ると薄く裂いた竹が編んで接着してあった。聞くと、この竹の合板はコンクリートの型枠として使われているとの事であった。その時、合板が竹で出来るのであれば、竹の構造用集成材が作れるのではないかと考えた。
次に、現場が遠い上に中国のクライアントは十分な設計量が払えないので現場管理は自分たちでやるとの事であった。そこで、現場管理が比較的楽な、これまで開発してきたプレハブ住宅システム「家具の家」の家具を、竹の集成材のフレームを梁、そして編んだ竹の仕上げ材で構成した。　　

SHUTTER HOUSE FOR A PHOTOGRAPHER

Tokyo, Japan, 2003

写真家のシャッター・ハウス

This project is built for a photographer and his family as a residence and a photographer studio. It belongs to a series of buildings realized with shutters. The land is about three times as long as wide, extending from East to West and surrounded by a private house on the North, a three-storey building on the South, an embassy compound on the East and an apartment building across the street.
The house is organized on a tartan grid that creates a sequence of spaces alternating exterior and interior. The use of industrial shutters instead of usual glass partitions allows for a full physical as well as visual continuity between exterior and interior spaces, connecting them together in one instant. The sizes of spaces vary with the number of grid modules combined in correspondence to the program. The smallest module, besides acting as a structural core, is also a vertical circulation between the interior floors starting from the basement floor and leading to the roof terrace. This variety of sizes also exists in section: single height space (dining, kitchen, bedrooms), double height space (living room), existing either as interior space or as exterior space (courtyard, garden, roof terrace). The exterior greenery screen surrounding the house on all sides as well as the interior gardens and courtyards allow for some privacy from the neighboring homes.

敷地は東京の一等地にありながら、道の向かいには４階建のマンションと、そして接近した３階建ての隣家と大使館の高い塀に囲われ、奥行が深く、あまり外に向かって開放的になれないコンディションであった。ここに、本格的な写真スタジオを併設した住宅を挿入することは、非常にチャレンジングであった。施主は、建築写真を撮ることもあり、「もしミースが生きていたら彼に頼みたかったのだけど…。」と、僕に設計を依頼した理由を正直に話された。この閉鎖的にならざるをえない敷地に、一辺4mと2mのタータンチェック模様のグリット・モジュールを被せることにより、各部屋が連続しつつも、常にそれらの部屋の間にはコートヤードが配するような構成とした。各部屋の大きさは、タータンチェックの大小モジュールをそれぞれの部屋に適切な大きさになるよう組み合わせた。その中でも最小の正方形の単位は、横力を負担するコアとして、地下階から２階までを結ぶサーキュレーションとした。また屋根面での面合成の不足分は、細いルーバ状のキャノピー面も利用し、それを補っている。コートヤードに面する各部屋のエッジは、全てガラスを使うことにより、ビジュアルに内外を連絡させているが、そのガラス面をスタッキング式シャッターで構成することにより、それを開けると全面がコートヤードに開放しフィジカルにも内外の空間を連続させることを可能としている。それにより、平面的にも断面的にも、季節やオケージョンに合わせて空間の流動性をコントロールでき、ミースのユニバーサル・スペースに対しユニバーサル・フロアーを形成している。
敷地の境界に面するコートヤードの一面は、チェッカー状の緑化面となり、最小限プライバシーを守る程度に垂直ガーデンとなっている。

HANEGI FOREST ANNEX

Tokyo, Japan, 2004

羽根木の森アネックス

In order to guarantee sufficient parking space at the ground level, the one story high steel frame structure of the annex is lifted up over the ground. The four entry stairs extend out to all directions, simultaneously acting as bracing. The annex’s most prominent feature is its self-supporting arched roof made of folded plate structure.

グラウンド・レベルに駐車スペースを確保するために、ピロティーを設け、全体を持ち上げているが、メイン・フロアに上がる4つ階段を4方向に筋交いとして効くように配置し、構造的な役割をさせている。三角フレームのトンネルアーチを独立した鉄骨造のデッキに載せている。

DORMITORY H

Fukushima, Japan, 2006

社員寮 H

The site for the ‘Company Dormitory’ is located next to the ‘Residence in Iwaki in Fukushima Prefecture of Northeastern Honshu, Japan. The program is 23 single-room apartments and a guest room, a common area, and parking spaces for all residents. The parti is defined with parking spaces and the common area on the first floor, and all? residential spaces on the second floor. The structure is organized by two Vierendeel trusses arranged in parallel that support a series of secondary trusses that make up a rhythm of walls. The second floor volume floats above on only 8 columns and creates a very open atmosphere for the common area below. The common area consists of open living and dining areas, adjacent to a full-size kitchen and a private meeting space. The glass enclosed space is has a ten panel sliding glass door which opens out to a covered terrace and private gardenscape. The apartments are playfully arranged at the outer edge of the large rectangular volume to create a series of interior courtyards of varying sizes as private community spaces that are shared by the residents.

住宅街にある２３部屋のシングルルームアパート、ゲストルーム１部屋、共用スペース、と駐車場を含む社員寮である。１階は駐車場と共用スペース、テラス、２階は居住空間と分れている。連続するトラスが壁のリズムを生み、それらをベランダにもなっている平行な２面のトラスが支える構造です。２階部分を支えているのはわずか８本の柱であるため、1階の共用スペースには開放的な空間が広がっています。共用スペースにはキッチンと私用のミーティングルーム、それに隣接したリビング、ダイニングがあります。ガラスで囲まれたスペースから引戸を開けると、庇に覆われたテラスとプライベートガーデンが続いています。アパート部分は大きな長方形の外周が居住空間であり、内側には大きさの異なる中庭が続いていて、それを居住者が自由に共用するという遊び心に富んだ設計になっています。

MAISON E

Iwaki, Japan, 2006

メゾン E

This 1200 square meter private residence planned for a family of two generations is located on the high plane of a series of tiered properties, and overlooks the ‘Company Dormitory’ to the rolling mountain ranges spreading across the horizon. The house borders a busy thoroughfare and a quiet residential district so the residence is planned to be inward-looking and private with various internal gardens and courtyards while maintaining the extraordinary views from the second floor. The plan is based on a tartan grid of small and large squares which creates a natural pattern for living spaces and circulation spaces and interior and exterior spaces. The grid is comprised from a steel structure of cruciform-shaped columns.

延床面積が１２００㎡にもなるこの２世帯住宅は、一方を幹線道路に、もう一方を閑静な住宅地に面している。そのため諸室を内側に向け様々な中庭を配置しながらプライベートな空間を生み出すとともに、そこに美しい景観を作り出している。大小の矩形をチェッカー状に配するプランに基づき、そこに部屋や通路、内部、外部を生活に適するように配置している

SAGAPONAC HOUSE

Long Island, USA

2006

The Sagaponac House is based on the plan of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s unbuilt Brick Country House (1924), reinterpreted according to program, structure and site. An improved version of the prefabricated Furniture House system was employed. The corners are reinforced with triangular plywood pieces to bear horizontal and vertical loads and to prevent buckling.

ミース・ファン・デル・ローエの「ブリック・カントリー・ハウス」（1924年）を分析しながら、プログラムや構造をこの敷地にあわせて再構築したプランとなっている。これまでの「家具の家」のユニットを改良し、合板のコーナーを三角形のユニットで補強しており、これは水平力、鉛直力を負担するだけでなく、座屈防止にもなっている。

CRESCENT HOUSE

Shizuoka, 2008

三日月の家

This site is located on the slope in the north side of villa area in South Hakone. The scenery of the north side is rare because of its opening to look over Mt.Fuji without being almost distributed by any other houses in the fine day. On the other hand, looking at a variety of houses whose shapes and colors are unique in other sides of the site, we are instantly pulled back to Japanese reality by a sense of relief blessed with nature. Standing in the site, in order not to allow people to look at east, west and south sides, the idea that the crescent-shaped plan which opens up to north corresponding to the site and the cross section which looks like the "C" character( the "U" character which falls down) naturally comes up to mind right away.
In the crescent-shaped plan, two bedrooms and LDK(Living, Dining and Kitchen) are arranged by putting furniture and volumes of utility facilities as partitions.
The center of the crescent-shaped plan has a huge cantilevered roof since the cross section of that area is the deepest because of used as a living area. Although a column became necessary in order to prevent the roof from bending, a chimney of fireplace is used instead of it.

敷地は、南箱根の別荘地の北側斜面に位置する。北側の景色は、他の家にほとんど邪魔されることなく、晴れた日には富士山まで眺望がきくまれな土地である。しかし、他方向は様々な形や色をした隣家があり、それらを見ると自然に恵まれた開放感から一気に日本的な現実の世界へと引き戻されてしまう。敷地に立った時、東西南方向には出来るだけ視線が向かないよう、敷地に合わせて北側に開いた三日月形の平面と、“Ｃ”の字（というより倒れた“Ｕ”字）形をした断面形状が、自然に、そして即座に思い浮かんだ。
この三日月形の平面に、家具や水廻りのボリュームを間仕切りとして置くことにより、二つの寝室とＬＤＫの空間を形成した。
三日月の中央は、居間として最も奥行きが深い断面形状としたため、キャンティレバーの屋根が大きくなった。それによる屋根の”たわみ“を押さえるため、柱が必要となったが、柱を立てる代わりに暖炉の煙突でそれを代用した。

HOUSE OVERLOOKING THE PARK,

Tokyo, 2009

公園を臨む家

This was a design project for a wooden house in Tokyo. In response to conditions of the site, located next to a park and shrine with a big cherry tree, gently curved laminated lumber, to accommodate road setback restrictions, served as columns and beams for the main structure and created wide open space. The design of a spiral staircase, a movable door attached to the staircase, and a desk whose top boards were also used as partitions for open ceiling space were repeatedly studied. Students engaged in the design and construction process through the study of the movable door and desk from various perspectives such as materials and construction methods.

緑豊かな公園や、隣接する神社の桜の大木を臨むことのできる立地条件に呼応し、道路斜線制限からくる、ゆるやかな曲線を描く集成材が、柱・梁となって主要構造を担い、開放的な空間を演出している。設計においては、特に螺旋階段と、それに付随する落下防止の可動ドア、および、天板が吹き抜け空間の間仕切りともなる机のデザイン検討を繰り返した。空間を緩やかに仕切りながら、安全かつ容易に取り扱うことのできる可動ドア、机のシステムについては、材料、構法などあらゆる観点からのスタディを経て、実際の施工まで学生の手で行なった。

OVALESS HOUSE

Fukushima, Japan, 2009

楕円虚の家

The site for the house is on typical developed land, with an alleyway to the south and a highway to the north, just an ordinary rectangular plot of land. With no particularly special views outward to capture, the volume of the hipped roof is extended to the perimeter of the site, and an interior courtyard is created to enhance the connectivity between inside and outside. Rather than placing a rectangular courtyard within the rectangular volume and creating four distinct interior zones along each face, an elliptical courtyard is introduced to achieve a fluid continuity of interior spaces. Furthermore, by slightly rotating the elliptical courtyard, spaces with unique and different qualities emerge between the courtyard and rectangular volume.

敷地は典型的な造成地に、南側の宅地内道路と北側の交通量が多い幹線道路に挟まれた、何の変哲もない長方形の土地である。これといった特色も見るべき景色といったコンテクストもまったくない。そこにあえて寄せ棟屋根のヴォリュームを置き、中にコートヤードをつくることにより、内外の関連を積極的にもたせることにした。長方形の中に四角いコートヤードをつくると、四辺に四つの別々なゾーンができてしまう。それよりは全体の内部空間が流動的に連続するように、楕円のコートヤードを、少し角度を振って配置することにより、長方形と楕円の間に質の違う空間が生まれるようにした。

POST-HURRICANE RECONSTRUCTION HOUSING (MAKE IT RIGHT)

New Orleans, USA, 2009

ハリケーン復興住宅

Hurricane Katrina, which occurred in August 2005, caused enormous damage to the City of New Orleans. In December 2007, the Make It Right Foundation, founded by the actor Brad Pitt, approached a number of world renowned architects to design homes that would rebuild the Lower Nine Ward, an area most devastated by the flooding and whose inhabitance had no money to rebuild. This charitable project was aimed at creating low cost, mass producible, "safe houses". Homes were placed on piles and designed to withstand future storms and flooding. This building, Furniture House 6, integrated prefab Furniture Units with tradition vernacular of New Orleans' Shotgun House typology.

2005年8月に発生した大型ハリケーン「カトリーナ」がニューオリンズに甚大な被害をもたらした。2007年12月に俳優ブラッド・ピットらが財団を設立し、進めてたハリケーン被災者用エコ住宅建設プロジェクトの1つが「Make It Right」である。このプロジェクトは、低コストで大量生産可能な「安全な家」をつくることを目的とし、今後の嵐や洪水に耐えるように設計された。

Quinta Botanica

Algarve, Portugal, 2009

生物学者の紙の家

Owned by an art and plant collector, Quinta Botanica overlooks the ocean from a cliff in Algarve, the southernmost region of Portugal. The structure acts as an artistic installation and temporary residence for visiting artists and botanists on the premises. Quinta Botanica is structurally identical to the Paper House (1995), the first permanent paper structure that was granted approval under Article 38 of the Japanese Building Standards Act. Wooden joints and paper tubes fixed with lag bolts comprise the foundation, creating a system capable of withstanding vertical loads and lateral force. To avoid cutting down already-existing trees, its plan was designed to weave through them in an S-shape.

1999年にデザインしたポルトガルの小さな家がやっと完成した．南ポルトガルの小さな村まるまるアルガーブに隣接する，海に面した崖の上の4ヘクタールの敷地には，美術品収集家であり植物収集家であるオーナーが，世界中から集めた400点ほどの美術作品と5,000種ほどの植物，そして約1万冊の関係図書がコレクションされている．ここに，アーティス
ティック・インスタレーションとして，たまに訪れる植物学者とアーティストのための仮の宿を設計した．構造的には，1995年に38条認定を取得して建てられた，初の恒久的紙管構造物「紙の家」と同じく，基礎は固定された木製ジョイントと紙管をラグスクリューで固定し，鉛直荷重と横力を負担させるシステムである．Sの字を描くプランは，重要な木を切らず，それらの隙間をすり抜けるように決められた．設計と施工に10年近くかかったのは，現地の建築家，構造家，そして工務店が，紙の構造の安全性を信用できず，しまいには引き受け手が見つからなかったためである．そのため施主が自ら部分発注をしながら長い歳月をかけて完成させた

VILLA VISTA

Weligama,

Sri Lanka, 2010

2004年のスマトラ沖地震による津波によって破壊された、スリランカ南部の漁村キリンダに、45棟の復興住宅を建設した。その縁で、タイヤ会社を経営するベルギー人の施主と知り合い、住宅の設計を依頼された。
海に面する高台の敷地を訪れた時、その素晴らしい景色に圧倒されたながらも、3つの違った景色を切り取るスポットを見つけた。まずは、少し内地に入った既存の住宅から敷地に向かって谷沿いに歩き、海が見えた瞬間を切り取った景色で、ココナッツの木、海、対岸の陸、そして空と雲を垂直に細長く切り取った景色。次に、高台の頂上に登った瞬間に見える水平に海を切り取った景色。そして最後に、水平な景色から右に見ると、海岸が湾状に入り込み、陸が海をU字型に切り取った、正方形のフレームに入れるとバランスがいい景色である。
この3つの景色を、まず長いアプローチの先に垂直のフレーム、そこから居間に入り水平のフレーム、メインベッドルームから正方形のフレームを、建築全体の床、壁、天井で構成した。
今回、新たに工夫したのは屋根の葺き方である。22メートルのスパンの水平な窓を構成する鉄骨の大きな切妻屋根を出来る限り安い素材で葺き、更にその大きな存在感のある屋根をいかに土地に馴染ませるかが重要であると考えた。そこで、防水層としては軽くて安いセメント系の波板で葺き、その上に道端で売っていて、庶民が塀などに使っているココナッツの葉を編んだ材を、波板の上に事務用のダブルクリップで留めて屋根全体を被った。それにより、土地に馴染むだけでなく、波板面を遮光し、メンテナンスとしてココナッツの葉の交換もクリップを使っているので簡単である。

After designing and building post-tsunami reconstruction houses in Sri Lanka, Shigeru Ban was commissioned to design a residence for an owner of a local tire company. Located on a hilltop site facing the ocean, the floor, walls and ceiling of this building frame three different views. The first is the view of the ocean seen from the jungle in the valley, framed perpendicularly by the external corridor from the existing house to this house and the roof. The next is the horizontal scenery of the ocean from the hilltop framed by the large roof supported by poles of 22 m span and the floor. The last is the view of the cliff which glows red during sunset; this is viewed through a square frame composed of 4 m solid wood in the main bedroom.
The large roof is first covered by light cement boards for water proofing and secondly covered by woven coconut leave material, which is often used for property fences not only to block the strong daylight but also to blend the building into the local ambience. The ceiling is composed of teak, 80mm wide and 3mm thick woven in a large wickerwork pattern.

HOUSE AT HANEGI PARK

VISTA - Tokyo, Japan, 2010

羽根木公園の家 - 景色の道

The site is at the top of a slight hill, on the corner of an L-shaped street. Looking back down at the hill from the site, an uncommonly long and linear passage seemed to characterize this place most. If the view of the forest of Hanegi Park could be an integral part of the home, it could evoke the feeling of living in the forest itself. The opposite view of the residential street, however, seemed to be at odds with the natural greenery of the forest. In order to distinguish the two picture windows, two completely different were needed for the opposite views. A curved frame was installed for the window to the east, facing the long and linear street, softening its stark contrast to the forest. By installing a long, horizontal window, the views framed on the eastern side were separated into the sky and the street. A sharper frame for the window facing west was intended to act as an abstract aperture, so that the forest would appear as if it had been collaged onto a wall of the house.

緩やかな坂道を上がると、L字に道が左折する正面の角に空き地になった敷地はあった。敷地に立って今来た坂道を見ると、普段見慣れない直線状のとても長い街並みがとても印象的に見える。また逆側、羽根木公園の森を見ても、この景色を家の中にうまく取り込めば、あたかも森の中に住んでいるような気持ちになれるのではないかと考えた。しかし、この2つの対極的な景色をピクチャーウィンドウにするにはまったく違う形のフレームを用意する必要があった。厳しい北側斜線によって切り取られるマキシマムに近いボリュームの東と西に建築の輪郭でピクチャーウィンドウを作る。東側の直線的な街並みはあえて曲線のフレームで柔らかく切り取り、さらに水平に完全にガラスがなくなる窓で、その上の空を切り取る窓と街を切り取る窓に分けた。西側の公園の森は窓を全開にできるようにすることにより、あえて抽象的な白いシャープな開口にし、森の写真を恰もコラージュしたような背景を作った。

Villa at Sengokubara

仙石原の住宅

Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan / 神奈川県箱根町
2013

The 2-storey wood structure residence is situated on a flag pole shaped site, 30m square in plan with a 15m diameter interior courtyard. With the main living room centered on the interior courtyard, all spaces are arranged in a radial manner from the entrance. The 8 sliding doors separating the main living room and interior courtyard can be opened at any time so that the space can be used as one. The structure is made up of wooden columns and beams, which are 75mm x 350mm L-shaped pieces, also arranged in a radial manner, creating a large one way sloped roof. The large roof varies in height, achieving ceiling heights between 2.4m to 7.5m.

旗竿敷地に建つ木造2階建ての住宅。敷地に対し、30m角の正方形の建物に直径15mの中庭を配置。その中庭を中心に居室が配され、玄関から居室が放射状に配置しているのが見える。リビングは8枚引き戸を開け放つことにより、内外部が一体となり、中庭とリビングが一体として使える。柱と梁は木75 x 350のL字に組まれており、L字が放射状に配置され、大きな一枚の片流れ屋根を構成している。この一枚の大きな屋根は天井高さが2.4～7.45mまで変化する。

Yakushima Takatsuka Lodge

屋久島高塚小屋

Kagoshima, Japan / 鹿児島県屋久島町
2013

Mountain hut built in the National park of Yakushima Island. The hut was rebuilt on the foundation of the old hut taken down of dilapidation. The Paper tube wall allows light to pour inside, by filling transparent tubes in-between. Paper tubes can be easily replaced if damaged overtime within the harsh environment of the mountains.

鹿児島県屋久島町、国立公園内の標高1300mにある避難小屋。老朽化した旧小屋の基礎を利用し、鉄骨3階建ての計画とした。壁面の紙管と紙管の間には隙間を設けて透明チューブを詰め、電気もない内部にも光が入るようにした。紙管は補修が必要な時に一本一本簡単に交換ができるようにした。

Solid Cedar House

無垢杉の家

Kobuchizawa, Hokuto, Yamanashi, Japan / 山梨県北杜市小淵沢町
2015

これまでいくつかの作品で、ミース・ファン・デル・ローエの作品をテーマにコンセプトを練り上げてきた。今回の「無垢杉の家」もそのスタディーの延長上のコンセプトで考えた。ミースがコンクリートそしてブリックを構造と、間仕切りとして使った壁を、内部空間からランドスケープへと空間のシークエンスを繋ぐ装置としたように、この作品では無垢の杉材の壁とスラブ（天井・屋根）によって部屋ごとに様々な景色を切り取った。壁は景色を切り取るだけでなくこの敷地では、隣家や道路を隠す役割も担っている。

HOUSE VISION 2016 TOKYO EXHIBITION / 凝縮と開放の家

LIXIL x SHIGERU BAN
Tokyo, Japan / 東京お台場
2016

Photo Credit: Hiroyuki Hirai

House of Light and Shadow/光と翳の家

2016
Tokyo, Japan/東京

Triangle House/三角の家

2017
東京

Bookshelf House
本棚の家
Yatsugatake, Japan / 八ヶ岳山麓
2020

A new living room is added to a cottage at the foot of Yatsugatake. On the gable side of the existing villa which has a sloped roof, a rafter with the same slope is installed and forms a gabled roof, harmonizing with the existing cottage. The shelves in the addition serve as the structure that supports the rafters, and the exterior sheathing acts as lateral bracing. Random glass inserts in the shelves brings light through the wall. In contrast to the existing part of the cottage, the extension is an open space that can be fully opened so that the surrounding nature can be seena nd experienced.

八ヶ岳山麓にある既存の別荘へ新たにリビングルームを増築する。片流れ屋根を持つ既存建物の平側へ同じ勾配の登り梁を架け、切妻屋根とし、既存との調和を取っている。増築部の本棚は、登り梁を受ける構造体であり、本棚と背板で耐力壁を構成している。閉鎖的な既存部とは対照的に増築部は周囲の自然を望めるよう全面開口可能な開放的な空間とした

REF: Shigeruban Website/ Editorial board of Villa Magazine

Renowned Japanese Architects and Artists to Participate in MA Exhibition in Iran

Tehran, Iran - SEP 1, 2023 - Villa Magazine is thrilled to announce the participation of a distinguished group of contemporary Japanese architects and artists in the upcoming third MA Exhibition, set to take place in Iran in 2023-2024. This exhibition serves as a tribute to the visionary architect Arata Isozaki, honoring his wish for this event before his passing.

The Villa Magazine's editorial board will be actively engaged in hosting insightful discourses, conducting interviews, and producing captivating documentaries featuring esteemed Japanese architects, artists, and professors. Renowned figures such as Ruye Sejima, Shigeru Ban, Jun Aoki, Watanabe, Riichi Miyake, and more will share their perspectives on the profound impact of the In-betweenness (MA) concept pioneered by Arata Isozaki. They will explore how this concept has fostered architectural innovations and stimulated meaningful conversations and cultural exchanges.

This collaboration between Villa Magazine, Archi-Depot Tokyo, and the Japan Foundation aims to delve into the transformative power of the MA concept and its role in shaping architectural landscapes and artistic expressions. By showcasing the works and ideas of these contemporary Japanese architects and artists, the MA Exhibition seeks to ignite dialogue, inspire creativity, and foster cultural exchange.

The MA Exhibition promises to be a landmark event, providing a platform for architects, artists, design enthusiasts, and the general public to immerse themselves in the visionary creations and insights of these esteemed Japanese participants. Villa Magazine invites everyone to mark their calendars and join this immersive architectural and artistic experience in Iran in 2023-2024.

For media inquiries, please contact:

info@villamagazine.ir

About Villa Magazine:
Focusing on Experimental Villa projects, Iconic/Solo houses, and Hidden/Lost/Forgotten single-family treasures, Villa Magazine is a leading publication dedicated to exploring and celebrating the world of architecture, design, and innovation. With a global audience of architects, artists, designers, and enthusiasts, Villa Magazine provides a platform for thought-provoking discussions, insightful interviews, and captivating visual content that inspires and informs.