Ex-House

From "House" to "Street"
This is the architect's house. The large lot that my wife's grandfather inherited from his great-grandfather after the war was divided into east and west in the 1970s, and her grandparents built a large two-family house on the east side of the lot and lived there. After they passed away, our family lived in that house for about seven years. The lot was located at the end of two roads on the north and east sides, and the house was built leaving the south side open, so even though it was private property, the neighbors used the garden under the eaves as a walkway. After that, as a measure against inheritance, the lot was divided a second time and a house was built. I designed the line of the division so that the lot would continue to be the end of the two roads, and the house was placed with the image of a frame covering the road so that the former walkway would remain as it was.
The first floor is a dirt floor that continues from the porch and connects the two roads. The opening, which is almost 4m wide, was based on the width of the road. The interior ceiling height, including the atrium, is as high as possible to allow light to fall on the first floor from multiple directions, creating an external environment reminiscent of the street. In addition, in order to lower the eaves height on the north side, where the slope is, the first floor bathroom area was dug down to create a mezzanine floor, and the second floor floors are arranged east and west from there facing the atrium, creating a configuration that is almost a one-room. On the second floor, windows are opened directly facing the ends of each road, so that despite being in a densely built low-rise residential area, you can see all the way to the other side. Through these windows, the wind blowing along the road also passes through the interior. Various insects also fly through.

Although the neighbors no longer pass through the property, my wife's friends gather here and chat. After school, the three sons' friends use it freely as a hangout spot, which is probably because this large, open-air "house" has become a "street."