WORKS
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balena
This two-family house is located in a corner of a historic neighborhood, away from the bustle of the town’s subcenter.
Taking advantage of the sloping shape of the site, a split-level spatial composition was used to blend the structure with the land without going against the natural qi (life force).
The neighboring area is a town with hodge-podge of various scaled buildings. In order to integrate with the cityscape, a combination of textures and volumes was used, based on the image of a dancing whale (balena) that emerged during the first site visit. This composition resulted in an unified architectural expression.
The building has a basement and two stories above ground. Ascending to the upper levels, one acquires a gradual floating sensation that recalls the experience of being in the womb.
This was an attempt to create a house that is encompassed in a calm and yielding time and space like the whale slowly migrating in the sea.
English translation by Norie Lynn Fukuda (DMA)
October 3, 2021
photo：Jun Nakamichi
2009/tokyo