Yamazaki Kentaro’s House in a Garden

This simple and elegant house can be found in Sakura-shi, Japan. The house has been designed by the architecture studio Yamazaki Kentaro Design Workshop on the behalf of a family. Throughout the design process a lot of importance was placed on the garden space as well as the actual home, resulting in a space that blend the two together.

The family home is made up of five “cubes”, each of which serves a different living space. There’s also clear floor-to-ceiling windows throughout that draw in lots of natural light. They also help to reduce the distinction between exterior and interior, bringing the garden space inwards.

On the inside, the living spaces flow into one another – none of the rooms have doors to divide up the space (not even the bathroom). The windows not only provide views of the garden outside, but also to other rooms in the home. The house’s “openness” has led the architects to call it the House in a Garden.

To define the different areas of the house, each of the five blocks is offset from the next. While I haven’t seen a floor plan, there seems to be a dining area, kitchen, bathroom, living room and a bedroom. There’s a high standard of finish throughout, but simplicity and minimalism have been maintained so as not to overcome and distract from the garden.

On the outside the idea of simplicity is reinforced by the actual form of the building – a series of white boxes with rectangular openings for windows and the odd door or two. Being built in Japan, the house also had to be sturdy enough to withstand the tremors of an earthquake.

The House in a Garden is a beautifully simple home that focuses on garden space as well as the connectivity between different living spaces. However, some might say there’s a little too much connectivity, and it needs a little more privacy (particularly when it comes to the bathroom), but there’s no denying that it’s a superb light infused, “green” home.

For more Japanese houses check out this house that’s been set onto a 12-foot-high retaining wall. Or, this set of 8 apartments by Be-Fun Design. See all Japanese houses.

Via Inhabitat
Photos: Yamazaki Kentaro Design Workshop