「ha」 hosaka hironobu architect associate

Minimalist Design Residences｜Custom Home Examples by Architectural Offices11Picks｜A Richer Home Through Restraint

Author: Qurasuki Editorial Department

Minimal-design residences are not merely houses with fewer possessions; they arise from an architectural attitude that carefully selects every element to elicit the essential beauty of space. By eliminating superfluous ornament, a dwelling in which materials, light and space themselves communicate requires both exacting design precision and a deep understanding of materials. The architectural practice refines detail resolution, the material palette, and the composition of openings while concurrently developing plans that reliably satisfy everyday functional needs. The attention paid to what remains unseen inhabits the space as a quiet richness. We present examples of homes designed for living in calm, removed from the bustle of daily life.

Minimalist Design Residences

Moriguchi-Dainichi Residence

Coo Planning

This is a two-story timber house in Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture. Located at the end of a dead-end road, the site conditions prompted a plan that emphasizes privacy from surrounding sightlines. The exterior is a minimalist design with minimized openings, while a skylight above the double-height void brings natural light into a bright, open LDK. The project also incorporates attention to equipment and systems—24-hour ventilation and photovoltaic power generation among them—achieving both comfort and energy efficiency. The dwelling provides the functions and livability required of contemporary urban housing.

House in Saito Aominami

ARCHIXXX Satoru Shinno Architectural Design

This home is located in a newly developed new town. To protect privacy from the surrounding houses, the second-floor living/dining/kitchen area, bathroom, and terrace are enclosed by exterior walls, creating an inward-facing configuration reminiscent of a courtyard house. While limiting views from outside, natural light and ventilation are brought in from above, creating a comfortable living environment without a sense of enclosure. The first floor is designed as a pilotis-like driveway, allowing cars to pass through the parking area. Making the most of the site conditions, the home balances ease of living with privacy.

House in Tateyama

Tada Architectural Design Office

This secondary residence is built within a Quasi‑National Park in Tateyama City, Chiba Prefecture, for enjoying the sea and nature. Taking advantage of a fortunate setting with views to the horizon beyond a windbreak forest, the design adopts a disciplined composition with large openings oriented toward the sea and a restrained treatment on the side facing the neighboring house. A generous earthen‑floored space for fishing and a deep‑eaved engawa gently mediate between interior and exterior. Joinery allows flexible changes in the way spaces are used, and a distinctive roof structure gives the expansive interior its character. The pared‑down, minimal dwelling nurtures rich moments together with the sea breeze.

Flat with Raised Seating Area and Through-Passage | Tranquil House

Yoshihiro Yamamoto Architects Associates

te to te — House in Ryugasaki

e do design architects

A residence for a family of three located in a quiet residential neighborhood in Ryugasaki City, Ibaraki Prefecture. The design is characterized by a composition that combines three distinct volumes—the entrance volume, the private-room volume, and the living-dining-kitchen (LDK) volume—while embracing the rich surrounding environment. The spatial relationship to the exterior is carefully calibrated to protect privacy while nurturing connections with nature and family. Through a double-height stairwell, the individual spaces are gently linked. True to its name, “te to te (手と手),” it is a warm vessel for living that weaves bonds between the family and its surroundings.

House in Higashiyukigaya

Takayoshi Nakamura Architects & Associates

This tiny house stands on an approximately 9-tsubo site along the Nomigawa River and comprises four levels, including a basement, with a total floor area of 21 tsubo. Inheriting the client’s attachment to the land where their parents once lived, the project sought to create a home in which its compactness could be enjoyed. The stringent slant-line restrictions are addressed through skip floors divided according to function. Changes in level and a spiral staircase bring rich variation to the space, while the distinctive roof form creates a serene and dignified presence.

Residence in Moriguchi

In-Ex Design Co., Ltd.

Situated close to a shopping arcade, this is a “windowless house” built on a mere 19-tsubo hexagonal site. The building wraps around the full perimeter of the lot, creating a quiet interior world cut off from the street’s bustle. Exterior spaces are inserted at both ends of the two-storey volume, and living areas are arranged along the circulation that connects them. Without distinct room partitions, the spaces are loosely zoned by use and activity, accommodating the occupants’ flexible patterns of living. An inventive urban dwelling, it feels closed yet conveys a rich sense of spatial expansiveness.

Smallest

Hirotaka Sato Architects

Smallest is a five-story urban compact house built on an extremely small site measuring 37.7 square meters, with a building footprint of 7.8 tsubo. The rooms are vertically stacked, while the stairwell and elevator are consolidated to make efficient use of the limited area. The fully glazed stairwell connects east- and west-facing sightlines, while the floating kitchen and counter reduce the sense of confinement. Exposed concrete and minimal detailing highlight the beauty of the materials and the sculptural form of the staircase.

House Behind the School Building

an Archi-Lab. First-Class Architect Office

This is a reconstruction plan of the long-occupied family home so that a mother and her daughter can live there. Under the severe condition of a narrow 19-tsubo site with an elementary school building pressing on the south side, a small garden and a nure-en (verandah) were provided on the southern side of the site to bring light, wind, and a sense of depth into the residence. Internally, multiple living areas were arranged according to degrees of privacy and openness, realizing a composition in which light moves throughout the entire house. While engaging carefully with the surrounding environment, the design cultivates a rich residential quality within a limited footprint. The phrase "a house you want to come home to" testifies to that comfort.

yakh

「ha」 hosaka hironobu architect associate

This residence, realized through meticulous deliberation, is imbued with a quiet dignity. Strategically placed picture windows gently link spaces, blurring the boundaries between interior and exterior and between near and distant views, thereby generating a rich sense of depth. At the heart of the home is a three‑story atrium, creating an impressive volume in which light and shadow shift over time. Details refined with care down to the smallest elements shape the very atmosphere, delivering a refreshing living environment where light and breezes circulate comfortably.

vida

*studioLOOP Architects

This suburban compact house stands in a densely built-up residential neighborhood. While neighboring houses surround it to the east and north and shops face it to the south, richly undulating tea fields extend to the west. In response to the stringent floor-area ratio and north-side setback plane restrictions, the second floor accommodates an LDK with large openings fitted with Low-E glass. Full-height storage and a dry area are incorporated into the single-room space, while the first floor compactly accommodates the bedroom and wet areas. The design brings in borrowed scenery while maintaining privacy, adding a bright accent to the streetscape.