a viewing room protrudes from tetra works' rental villa in hiroshima

Setouchi Hidden Retreat Resort AMERI by tetra works

Japanese architecture practice Tetra Works completes a two-story rental villa, spanning about 160 square meters, on the remote island of Hyakushima, off the coast of Onomichi City in Hiroshima. Dubbed Setouchi Hidden Retreat Resort AMERI, the project hopes to revive the island’s once-thriving northwestern district, now plagued with a decreasing population (currently at 400), as well as abandoned lands and buildings that have been scattered and inactive for many years.

all images © Shotaro Kaide Photography

reviving and celebrating the island’s charm

To revitalize this area and, ultimately, Hyakushima island, local authorities set out initiatives to utilize and activate these lands and buildings, which led Tetra Works (see more here) to join these efforts and complete the Setouchi Hidden Retreat Resort AMERI. As the planned site sits about thirty meters from the sandy beach of the Seto Inland Sea, efforts were made to maximize the charm of the island through the building morphology and layout. A key feature is to maximize sea views for visitors in the guest rooms by providing an elevated viewing room from the ground level with panoramic framings of the opposite shore. This viewing room even protrudes from the outer perimeter, creating a playful wooden volume.

Setouchi Hidden Retreat Resort AMERI by Tetra Works

Complementing the viewing room is an outdoor space hosting a small jacuzzi deck and enclosed by a wooden fence on the west side of the AMERI resort, extending the functionality through connections with the interior space and large, horizontal openings. While wood and concrete interweave throughout the living spaces, a rocky covering takes over the terrace, recalling the island’s unique coastal morphology. ‘The architecture aims to leverage the island’s charm, contributing to its revitalization and hoping to pass down this contribution to future generations,’ concludes Tetra Works.

protruding viewing room