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Architects: NYAWA
- Area: 141 m²
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Photographs:Kenta Hasegawa
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Lead Architect: Wataru Maruyama
Text description provided by the architects. This is the renovation of the house in TOYAMA, a rural city in Hokuriku, JAPAN. The owner, who lives in Tokyo, decided to use this vacant house as a vacation home and vacation rental. In preserving the old houses, we focused on renewing them with as little energy as possible while incorporating the local climate and culture. By operating the house as a vacant rental, many people from outside of this region, such as Tokyo, will come and spend time in this local city. We believe these are necessary for the sustainability of the global environment and local cities. Plan with reference to Hokuriku tradition - In the traditional Hokuriku houses, there used to be a gathering space called “HIROMA.” This space was an indoor space where people could feel nature even in the cold winter season, and it functioned as a guest room.
We created a plan for the renovation with reference to this tradition. We arranged the HIROMA to adapt to the seasonal environment and placed it in the center of this house. HIROMA is not a room divided by walls but a space loosely shaped by the surrounding space. Around HIROMA, structural reinforcement, and thermal compartments for heating and cooling are placed, while the number of walls is reduced as much as possible to allow sight lines and daylight to pass through. The structural reinforcement is made by a brace inspired by the structure of the vast pear orchard in the surrounding area to create a bright and open HIROMA, even in this region where there are many cloudy days. In addition, HIROMA has the lowest floor level and highest ceiling height in the building. The space at various floor levels is enclosed like a landscape, starting from HIROMA, to create many small places for people to stay.
Design to create an irregularity of time and environment - We designed a space where one can feel the passage of time through the following ideas. We believed that by these ideas, the history of the house could be passed on to the next generation.
- Following the rules of scale in a traditional house.
- Upcycling old timber.
- Using materials that change over time, such as plywood, copper, silk, and textile.
Also, a major aspect of the renovation plan was to improve the indoor environment. While utilizing the existing design, we renovated it to be where people can feel daylight and natural ventilation. In addition, by installing sliding doors, the project was designed to allow people to choose the balance between natural and controlled environments. Through these methods, a zero-carbon renovation was achieved. We estimated that the amount of CO2 absorbed by the wood used was greater than the CO2 emitted by the renovation work. Also, a comfortable new space was created by blurring the boundary between natural and artificial.
