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Piso Piso

This is a project by Architects Atelier Ryo Abe and it is located at Chiba, Japan. Project's program: Single family house. There are fourteen images for Piso Piso.

: © Hiroshi Ueda

Project details

Project name: Piso Piso
Location: Chiba, Japan
Program: Single family house
Area: Site Area: 144.98 m2 • Built-up Area: 59.85 m2
Year: Completion: 2009
Project by: Architects Atelier Ryo Abe
Team: Principal Designer: Ryo Abe

Project images

Designer's statement

A house for a young couple with two small children. They requested a lot of shelf space to display their many collectibles.

Site Condition:

The entrance to the site faces a big park, but is narrow with a long approach, and is surrounded by neighboring houses. It is difficult to maintain privacy, and there is little scenery to enjoy.

Space Composition:

This project began by determining the maximum exterior form of the structure. Next, seven "boxes" were inserted into the space, each being dedicated to a specific function such as sleeping, studying, cooking, bathing, dining, and storage. Each box has its own character, and fits into the structure with its own uniquely angled volume. Some of the boxes have a very low ceiling (1.2m) while others are very high. The remaining space in the house, not occupied by the boxes, became the living space. This is the largest volume in the building with high ceiling, and was envisioned to cultivate a feeling of being outside, looking into the interior spaces of the boxes. With the varying floor levels, and composition of the rooms, the family has skewed viewing levels from their neighbors, helping to foster a feeling of privacy.

Lighting:

To optimize sunlight coming into the house on the small, crowded lot, the four corners of the structure were cut, and made into large windows, allowing direct natural light to flow through the living space at all times of the day. At nighttime the largest of the boxes, the study box, becomes alive from within with the play of shadows of the people moving against the surrounding display shelves.