Osaka-based architecture studio KimuraMatsumoto Architects has recently completed a single family house in Wakayama, south of Japan. The house is located in a mountainside, surrounded by rice paddies and crops, permeated by a narrow waterway. "On what was previously a rice paddy, we planned to build a one-story house to be lived in by our coworker's family of four," explain the architects.



Located in the middle of the site, a 14 x 6,4 metre steel structure determines a large single structure encompassing all living spaces, over which hangs a 17 x 10 metre roof. The walls are comprised of thin steel, wood and glass, and a series of curtains renders the space ethereal, allowing light to permeate through the volume. A few square tubular steel columns support the roof structure.

KimuraMatsumoto Architects: House in Shino

Location: Wakayama, Japan

Program: single family house

Site Area: 416,6 square metres

Building Area: 126,1 square metres

Total Floor Area: 118,5 square metres

Structure: Steel

Completion: October 2012

Structural Engineer: Eisuke Mitsuda

Fabric: fabricscape