Introducing Higashiura House, a custom-built home example by Kota Goto Architectural Studio, a Architect / Design office in 1-17-1 Unuma-Haba-chō, Kakamigahara City, Gifu Prefecture, Japan

Higashiura House is located in a traditional residential district on the Chita Peninsula.

To the west lies the husband’s family home, to the south a parking area, and to the east remaining natural landscape. In response to the client’s wish to maintain ties with the neighborhood without enclosing the site with fences or walls, and to live with a sunken-kotatsu arrangement, the living-room floor was raised slightly and a partial sunken-kotatsu was incorporated. By offsetting sightlines from the south and from inside the house, the design admits external views while preserving privacy.

The building makes extensive use of solid cedar, allowing the architecture to accept and gain character through the passage of time. Situated in an established residential streetscape, the project is intended not to disrupt its surroundings but to age into a presence that feels as if it has always belonged there. Structure: Two-story wood construction
Primary use: Single-family detached house
Site area: 322.51 m² (97.7 tsubo)
Total floor area: 115.11 m² (34.9 tsubo)
First-floor area: 97.72 m² (29.61 tsubo)
Second-floor area: 17.39 m² (5.27 tsubo)
Building footprint: 108.39 m² (32.85 tsubo)