grid of operable windows fronts slender residence by okuwada architects in osaka

"The two-story feels open and connected to the city through its grid of full-height windows and terraces. Given the site's width of only 2.73 meters, the architects avoid enclosing the home with solid walls that would make it feel smaller; instead, they prioritize large windows with a facade composed of stacked aluminum-framed openings that capture fragments of the surrounding houses, the street across the road."

"The living room on the second floor features a wall of glass that opens the home to the sounds and atmosphere of the neighborhood: the calls of the greengrocer and the background music of the arcade. The Osaka-based Okuwada Architects draws on Osaka's tradition of community-run shopping arcades, which are collectively maintained and cleaned by local residents. Positioned beside one such arcade, House in Abeno enables its owners to take part in this collaborative upkeep."

"If similar houses were to multiply, the arcade roof could evolve into a continuous pedestrian 'aerial road' that extends the city's social fabric above ground level. The first-floor approach is paved in the same asphalt as the road, creating a welcoming threshold and suggesting that the home belongs as much to its surroundings as it does to its inhabitants."

House in Abeno occupies a 45.2-square-meter, 2.73-meter-wide site beside a lively Osaka shopping arcade. The two-story plan emphasizes openness through full-height windows, stacked aluminum-framed openings, and terraces that capture views and fragments of adjacent houses, the street, and the arcade. The second-floor living room features a glass wall that admits the sounds and atmosphere of the neighborhood. Two upper terraces connect directly to the arcade roof so residents can join its communal maintenance. The first-floor approach uses the same asphalt as the road to create a welcoming threshold. Openness is achieved structurally by placing two load-bearing walls along the 45-degree corners.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine