tato architects wraps house in takatsuki, japan, in charred wood exterior

tato architects has wrapped this family house in takatsuki, japan, in a charred wood exterior while attempting to create a simple yet complex, geographical, and cave-like labyrinth inside. the small residence is designed with a continuous floor arrangement that extends gradually over a series of sixteen different stepped floors. rather than using walls and different floor levels to clearly divide the space into various functions, everything loosely connects and disconnects from each other through stepped floors.all images by shinkenchiku sha

 tato architects has built the house in wood, while the spaces between the floors were enclosed due to structural limitations. by overlaying a diagonal grid rotated at 45° on top of a rectangular shell, the japanese architecture studio attempted to create a simple yet complex, geographical, and cave-like labyrinth captured inside a small house. the floor rises from two different points in a spiral to meet on a floor that is the dining and kitchen, and separates to finally meet again on the rooftop.

‘the idea is to create a sense of expansion inside a small house, so that you would find yourself on top of a rooftop in one moment, and tucked beneath a floor in another, ‘ explains tato architects.

the roof is designed to meet the setback regulations, and when it was installed on top of the series of floors, the house, while reminiscent of a traditional home, became a rather curious polyhedron. the site is in a suburban residential neighborhood on a slope developed into terraced plots; the neighboring ground levels are also uneven. ‘in the beginning, we thought about using a split-level composition in response to the conditions of the location – this idea eventually inspired the design for this project,’ adds tato architects. ‘as a result, sixteen different floors were packed into this small house, expanding and moving around in different directions to create a functional, cave-like foundation to support the life of the residents.’