BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Living Room, Table, SofaBenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Bedroom, Windows, Beam, BedBenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Sofa, Windows, Table, ChairBenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Table, BeamBenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - More Images+ 11

東山区, Japan
  • Area Area of this architecture project Area:  1650
  • Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2015
  • Photographs
    Photographs:Tomomi Takano
  • Manufacturers Brands with products used in this architecture project
    Manufacturers:  Revigres
  • Lead Architect: ASAMI Toshiyuki
  • Client: Shimaya Stays
  • Construction: Tsuji Komuten
  • City: 東山区
  • Country: Japan
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BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Exterior Photography
© Tomomi Takano

Text description provided by the architects. In the ancient Japanese capital of Kyoto, the wrecking ball continues to swing. The wooden townhouses that give the city so much of its atmosphere are disappearing at a rate of about 800 machiya a year.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Image 15 of 16
BenTen East - 1st floor plan

These machiya are torn down to make way for apartment blocks, hotels and carparks; even designated heritage buildings have been lost.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Table, Beam
© Tomomi Takano

But Japanese and non-Japanese alike are trying to stop the wooden townscape from vanishing. In our own way, we at Shimaya Stays – a Singaporean-Malaysian venture formed in 2014 – are working to preserve a city where we have spent much time and which continues to give us so much.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography
© Tomomi Takano

We began by saving two machiya, both more than 100 years old, which were in danger of being demolished after the previous owner passed away. Shimaya Stays bought over the land and restored the houses, which had been cemented over, to a more traditional appearance. The BenTen Residences have many of the iconic characteristics of machiya including degoshi, wooden lattice bay windows that enable air to circulate while offering those inside a sense of privacy.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Image 13 of 16
BenTen West - 1st floor plan

Reinvented as luxury serviced accommodation, the houses, which began receiving guests in November 2015, stand as testimony to the skill of Kyoto artisans and their dedication to their craft.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Table
© Tomomi Takano

The keyword for this project was restoration rather than re-creation: to bring back and showcase the traditional beauty of the machiya but also to offer convenience and comfort to a modern traveller through such features as heated flooring and wi-fi.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Wood, Chair
© Tomomi Takano

By making extensive use of traditional building materials such as wood, paper and tatami, the team was able to create a space at once light, airy and modern yet unmistakably Japanese. 

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Glass
© Tomomi Takano

One thing, though, has not changed. Incense is lit to sweeten and purify the rooms just before check-in: a way of welcoming guests that Kyoto continues to hold dear to this day.

BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates - Interior Photography, Bedroom, Windows, Beam, Bed
© Tomomi Takano

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Project location

Address:Higashiyama-ku Kamibentencho 431-3, Kyoto City, Kyoto 605-0822, Japan

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Location to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.
About this office
Cite: "BenTen Residences / Asami Architect and Associates" 11 Feb 2020. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/933575/benten-residences-asami-architect-and-associates> ISSN 0719-8884

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