Site
Location: Kyoto
Land area: 610m2

Building
Use: Residential Building
Structure: Concrete
Floor Area: 1,909m2

Published
2008	Nikkei Architecture 06
2008	Detail 07
2008	Shoten Kuenchiku 10
2010	Detail 01
2010	Selected Architectural Designs

Awards
2009	Kinki branch of the Japanese Institute of Architects "Architect of Kansai" 
		Encouragement Prize
        
Webapge
Archello

Located in the downtown of Kyoto, the complex consists of shop from the ground to the first floor, and flats for 
rental housing between the second and the fifth floor. Not far from the town market, the site is surrounded by 
lot of temples and traditional houses, called Machi-ya (“Machi” means town and “ya”means house). Kyoto, one 
of the few cities in Japan to escape bombardments during the last World War, is characterized by a typical 
Japanese ancient environment which recent regulations on new architectures are trying to preserve. 
This project had to manage this matter.

Gokomachi is the name of the street where the complex faces. The facade of the ground floor, divided in three 
parts, consists of shops, at the lateral sides. In the middle, an open passage brings to the internal court of 
the building which also gives access to the residences. The width of the each part on the ground floor, visible 
from Gokomachi Dori, is about 6 meters, as the Machi-ya facades, in order to ensure a comfortable space for 
people walking down the street. Also the new materials try to reproduce with modern forms the aspect of the 
typical Japanese houses.

The internal court cuts out its microcosm from the surroundings and imitates artificially a natural landscape. 
The square shaped void above the court, in the center of which there is a symbolic tree, permit to see the sky 
from ground. The floor of the internal passage is made by Cumaru wood, granite and brilliant glass 
reproducing the feeling of small water pools.

The main elevation is divided in four levels. A COR-TEN steel marquise, which emphasize Japanese-style 
image with its horizontal shape, frames the ground level. Above it, the front of the first floor is described by a
movable wooden lattice frame put behind the fireproof glass screen. The second floor makes contrast with an 
aluminium grid which preserve the privacy of the residents. Third floor`s volume is like a separated volume, 
moved back from the street front, and it is composed by a surface in COR-TEN steel.