This single-family home is located in a snowy region of Yamagata Prefecture, and is home to a pediatrician and his family. The site is next to the husband's family home, and the plan began with the aim of creating a house that would make use of the rock garden at the back of the site as a backdrop.
This house features a massive façade and uses external insulation on the concrete, making it comfortable to live in even in the middle of winter. The use of brise soleil and wooden insulated sashes creates a space that is light and airy even in snowy areas.
The first floor is fitted out with an open-style communication kitchen, as well as a living room facing a dynamic atrium. Thanks to the continuous wall storage that runs from the kitchen to the living room, daily necessities do not overflow onto the surface. The rock garden beyond the symbolic wood stove can be viewed at any time through the large fixed glass. From the kitchen and living room, one can constantly sense the changing of the seasons and time, creating an extraordinary resort atmosphere. The deliberate use of ground-level windows is a creative way of incorporating the rich rock garden as scenery while at the same time blocking views from neighboring houses.
The second floor houses private rooms such as the children's room and the master bedroom. The living room and children's room are interactively connected through an open atrium, creating a comfortable sense of unity. In the future, adding a play area and a place to relax to the outer perimeter will foster fun relationships with family and relatives. The lifestyle of many people connected together while feeling the presence of family could be said to be a traditional housing style that is deeply rooted in rural Japan.