Architect Kunihiko Matsuba from Tyrant Inc. renovated the guestroom of the old Yumoto Shimakan inn near the Shima River in Shima Onsen, one of the most popular hot-spring areas in the Gunma Prefecture, Japan.
Japanese guestroom
To renovate the guestroom of an old inn in the hot-spring areas of Shima Onsen, Japan, Kunihiko Matsuba reused the existing furniture and unified the Japanese elements.
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- 23 February 2017
- Nakanojyō
The guestroom consists of an eight-mat Japanese room with a tatami mat floor, a low table, and a a wooden-floored day-area, about the size of two tatami mats, with a sofa. Since the Japanese room and the wood-floored day-room were divided by sliding partitions, and there was a difference in height between the tatami room and the wooden day-room floors, it was difficult to use the guestroom as a whole. The designer had to create a space where guests could spend time more comfortably, and he also removed the sliding screens between the guestroom and the day-room, eliminating the difference in floor heights.
To create a wider space the ceiling was lowered, exposing the existing reinforced concrete building frames. A herringbone wooden floor was installed, together with a sink and a counter in the center of the day-room. Existing tatami mats were replaced with borderless tatamis. The designer added built-in furniture and restored the existing closets, shelves and paper sliding window screens so they could be reused.
Matsu no ma, Nakanojyō, Gunma, Japan
Program: guestroom renovation
Architect: Kunihiko Matsuba (Tyrant Inc.)
Area: 23 sqm
Completion: 2016