Cadre

Niigata, Japan

Photo © Masao Nishikawa

Single Houses

Architects: APOLLO / Satoshi Kurosaki

Location: Niigata, Japan
Year: 2011

Muikamachi, Minamiuonuma City, Niigata Prefecture, where the building is located, is one of the heaviest snowfall areas in Japan, with 2 to 3 meters of snow in winter, and is also famous for its proximity to the area where the Chuetsu Earthquake occurred in 2007. In designing a house exclusively for a young couple in their 30s, we decided to use a RC structure that could withstand a major earthquake, as well as a house on stilts with the second floor suspended in the air to withstand the 3-meter heavy snowfall.

The large pilotis with parking space for four cars and an entrance and mechanical equipment storage area ensure that the house is not affected by heavy snowfall. The second floor is a single room flanked by a courtyard as the living floor, and although it receives little annual sunlight, sufficient light pours into the house. In addition to regulating sunlight, the breezeway on the south side of the house also serves as a "snow shelter" that drops snow accumulation onto the front road. The large insulated window in the living room also functions as a frame to cut off the landscape, and is intended to make the residents strongly aware of the importance of their connection with the natural environment, as opposed to a living environment where they are easily disconnected from the outside world.