House in Saidera / Akio Isshiki Architects

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Text description provided by the architects.The site is a flagpole-shaped lot located amid a mixture of traditional Japanese houses and contemporary developer-built homes. In designing a house for a family of five suited to this place, the image I had in mind was that of a traditional Japanese house. Timber framing is exposed throughshinkabeconstruction (shinkabe: a traditional Japanese method in which columns and beams are expressed), resulting in a stripped-down appearance free of excess. At a time when construction costs continue to rise, I believe that reconsidering the wisdom embedded in traditional Japanese houses was a rational approach.