Architects: Yuko Nagayama & Associates
Area: 178.5 m²
Year: 2013
Photography: Daici Ano
Lead Architects: Yuko Nagayama, Yohei Kawashima
City: Yachiyo
Country: Japan
Katsutadai House residential building with a shop designed by Yuko Nagayama & Associates in Chiba prefecture, Japan, merges a patisserie with a floating family dwelling. Completed in 2013, the design creates an inter-observing relationship between the shop and living spaces, transforming their interaction with the surroundings.
Katsutadai House, located in Chiba prefecture, Japan, includes a shop on the first floor and a family dwelling on the second and third floors. The first floor comprises a patisserie in the front and a kitchen in the back, while the upper floors house a family of four. An aerial wedge between the first and third floors makes the upper part of the dwelling appear to float above the patisserie. This wedge acts as a light-well during the day and emits light at night, giving the impression of a treasure box. The transparent glass roof of the patisserie reveals the underside of the dwelling above. The wall along the street is 1.8 meters high and gradually increases in height towards the interior, creating an open, familiar space reminiscent of an empty lot surrounded by a low wall.
The house establishes an inter-observing relationship between the shop and the floating dwelling, allowing them to coexist independently within a single building. Each space maintains a particular distance from the surrounding environment. The shop space blends with the exterior streetscape, surrounded only by a low wall, while the dwelling space floats above the street with no openings facing it, preventing direct views into neighboring houses and vice versa. A wind-path in the dwelling brings external wind and sounds inside, allowing residents to feel the street’s atmosphere. The design addresses issues observed in the family’s previous home, where a closed curtain blocked street views, and noise from children’s footsteps disturbed the patisserie below. The new design mitigates these problems.
The approach to the building features a long, attractive pathway that transitions between the shop and the dwelling. This transition changes the perceived distance to the surroundings, creating a sense of high public space in the patisserie and a more private dwelling space, altering the flow of time between the two areas.
Project Gallery
Project Location
Address: Katsutadai, Yachiyo, Chiba Prefecture 276-0023, Japan
Location is for general reference and may represent a city or country, not necessarily a precise address.
