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Architects: Shimpei Oda Architect's Office
- Area: 35 m²
- Year: 2016
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Photographs: Norihito Yamauchi
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Manufacturers: Lixil Corporation, NEW LIGHT POTTERY, Takara Standard
Text description provided by the architects. In the neighborhood of Nakazaki the remaining old homes and Nagaya (terraced houses) creates a nostalgic atmosphere. When you look down the narrow roads seeing the buildings, clothes drying and potted plants it makes you feel as if you have time slipped a few generations back.
Recently many old houses in this neighborhood are renovated into various kinds of shops, such as cafés, restaurants, secondhand stores and design offices.
This project is also a renovation. In a Nagaya located in the end of a narrow alley, one room was renovated into a Hair Salon.
Both an area for cutting hair and a japanese-style room for styling kimono were created in this limited space.
In general customers getting a haircut prefer privacy from the public. However considering the semi-private location of the salon, a glass store front was chosen.
The interior floor is finished in the same texture and material as the driveway; creating a continuous concrete surface that connects and blends the interior with the exterior. As the concrete rises, it becomes part of the interior by creating shelfs in the cutting area and a Tokonoma (alcove) in the japanese-style room.
The concretes dimensions only has value when it is accompanied by the other objects placed in the room, such as the wooden step that connects the floor, concrete and staircase.
It was a conscious choice to create a space that works by gathering several volumes, just like the surrounding Nagaya that are formed by several buildings.
I expect this hair salon to have a natural flow between the outside and inside, keeping it open and light to the street, while retaining a comfortable private atmosphere for the guest.
