A 101 years House

2021.11

所在地 : 長野県上田市

用途 : 専用住宅

構造 : 木造

敷地面積 : 1,319.5m2

延床面積 : 101m2

施工 : 建築工房市川+有限会社白鳳社寺

photo / Kenta Hasegawa（OFP）

A 101 years house

Situated in the outskirts of Ueda in Nagano prefecture, this traditional wooden house was bought by the clients as a weekend house as well as a future retirement house. At first, the existing building was of no interest as the clients wanted to dismantle it and build a new house on the plot. However, after a first site visit, we began questioning this strategy as we discovered an interesting dwelling that was displaying a well made traditional craftsmanship. 

In the process of dismantling the walls, we discovered that the wooden structure was not only of a rare beauty and artisanship, but that they were marked by their date and that before long it would be their 100 th anniversary. 

This discovery made up our minds and we decided to restore, revisit, update and protect rather than destroy, so as to give an historical landmark to this ever changing context.

By carefully understanding the needed surface for the clients program, we verified the existing structure and restored it when needed while decreasing the footprint of the overall dwelling. Thanks to the knowledge of the local shrine carpenters we drew new plans that were maximizing the amount of openings without the need for too many load bearing walls. 

The house turns around a central wall where shelves and stairs are placed.That central focal point is not only of a structural importance as it holds the structural reinforcements, but also stresses the north/south partition of the overall layout. From that central point, we arranged the study on the north side looking up at a beautiful field in the foreground and at chains of mountains in the background. The south side spaces house the living room and dining room and open up to a wooden deck and peaceful adjacent garden. The attic space on the second floor was also rethough in order to not only house three bedrooms but also bring light to the whole house with a new atrium space. The ceilings of the ground floor’s study are made of acrylic panels so as to create a continuum of reflecting lights between the garden and the second floor atrium. 

Overall, the result is a flexible structure that maximizes openings so as to create large perspectives as well as creating very bright spaces. This structure enables the clients to transform their house into an exhibition space when needed, as well as a guesthouse when they are not around.