Article source: Naoi Architecture & Design Office

This house was built for a husband-and-wife couple and their two children. Overlooking a field of sweet potatoes, the quiet and tranquil site lies adjacent to a house occupied by the client’s parents. The space that lies between these two houses is used by local residents as a path, and retains a sense of easygoing, neighborly charm. In order to preserve a rich sense of these connections between nature and people, we decided to install a large sliding door in the front of the house.

Image Courtesy © Hiroshi Ueda

• Architects: Naoi Architecture & Design Office
• Project: Sliding Door House
• Location: Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan
• Photography: Hiroshi Ueda
• Date of Completion: 2012.5
• Principal Use: Private House
• Structure: Wooden + Steel
• Building area: 592.41m2
• Total Floor Area: 121.32m2
• Design Period: 2011.3 – 2011.11
• Construction Period: 2011.11- 2012.5
• Structural Engineer: Nawaken-gym
• Interior Design: Naoi Architecture & Design Office
• Landscape Design: Naoi Architecture & Design Office

Article source: Naoi Architecture

This project was a residential building for a husband-and-wife couple in rural Ibaraki prefecture. The area surrounding the generously-sized plot was not heavily built up, giving the site a calm sense of privacy without too much of the noise, threat of crime and other stresses associated with the city. The adjacent areas consisted of a mix of fields and houses, many of which were located on plots of land whose boundaries were not clearly demarcated from each other. With these conditions in mind, we decided to create a home that would consist of “an open space with ambiguous borders and boundaries.”

Image Courtesy Hiroshi Ueda

• Architects: Naoi Architecture & Design Office
• Project: Doughnut House
• Location: Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan
• Date of Completion: 2010.8
• Principal Use: Private House
• Structure: Wooden

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