shuhei endo: rooftecture OT2, japan

‘rooftecture OT2’ by shuhei endo, osaka, japanimage © stirling elmendorfall images courtesy of shuhei endo

located in the dense urban context of osaka, the steel ‘rooftecture OT2’ house by japanese practice shuhei endo provides a rather different type of home for a couple and their three children. the dwelling is located in the heart of the city, surrounded by houses on three sides, only open to the north on a busy street. as such, the client asked for a facade that would allow light and ventilation, but would visually shut out the exterior. a perforated corrugated metal skin wraps the front elevation and wraps over to the roof, effectively keeping the interior private while flooding it with fresh air and diffused light. once having crossed the cold industrial exterior threshold, the inside begins to tell a different story. the walls and ceiling are covered in oriented strand board (OSB) panels accented with cedar steps and hardwood flooring, which offer a warm welcoming space in complete contrast to the shell. a central atrium with skylights brings natural light to the rear end of the house as well as services all floors and programmatic elements. as different parts of the house are in use, the lit zones glow through the permeable envelope creating a constantly changing patterns at night.

captionimage © stirling elmendorf

captionimage © stirling elmendorf

glowing from the interior lightimage © stirling elmendorf

door with chain push barimage © stirling elmendorf

view to the outside through perforated screenimage © stirling elmendorf

entrance vestibuleimage © stirling elmendorf

central stairsimage © stirling elmendorf

image © stirling elmendorf

kitchenimage © stirling elmendorf

all wood interior contrasts the cold steel exteriorimage © stirling elmendorf

stairs service all functions of the houseimage © stirling elmendorf

skylights illuminate the darker ends of the homeimage © stirling elmendorf

view from the top of the stair wellimage © stirling elmendorf

image © stirling elmendorf

site plan

floor plan / level 0

floor plan / level 1

floor plan / level 2

section

project info:

architects : shuhei endoproject staff : aya hourilocation : tenma, kita-ku, osaka. japancompletion : september 2012principal use : housestructure system : steelnumber of floors : 3 site area : 55.3 m2building area : 44.0m2total floor area : 127.7m