earticle

영어

Japanese architects have long used house architecture to explore radical ideas, producing some of the most influential works that shaped the trajectory of Japanese architecture. Examining the houses designed by some of Japan’s most celebrated architects in the past decades, a particular architectural inclination can be observed that suggests a change in how the architects see the home and its relationship with the city. They frequently explore the concept of pervious borders, integration of interstitial territory, and colonization of alleys as an extension of domestic space. The resulting architecture extends the domesticity out, blurring the boundary between private living and urban surroundings. Consequentially, such an approach redefines the traditional notion of home as a space not entirely in the private domain. It also reveals the architects’ ambivalence between a desire for an individual lifestyle and collective urban living. It is an inherently conflicting notion. This study examines the factors that may have shaped such an approach, the strategies behind the works, and its significance.