SLOWP

This is an experiential showroom and workshop space located at the foot of Mt. Kannon in Takasaki, Gunma, where visitors can experience “life with a hut.” In this project, we ourselves have been involved in everything from site development to ongoing operation. We began by preparing the land—mowing, surveying, and planning a sloping lot that had once been wooded. The site was developed in accordance with regulations for scenic areas, landslide warning zones, and the Act on Regulation of Residential Land Development, with careful calculations of the soil volume. The huts were placed at intervals across the site and connected by paths. Although the entire grounds cannot be seen from the entrance, visitors can take in the full site and the Takasaki cityscape by moving in and around each hut. Normally, architectural firms design buildings based on given site conditions, but in this project, we designed the site itself. Thinking while making, and making while thinking. By working with our own hands, we aim to open up new possibilities for huts as tools for daily life.
Hut exhibition site @ Takasaki, Gunma
Project design, Management: Natsuko Inoue, Yuki Ochiai
Concept making: Tetsuro Yasunaga
Design: Sunao Koase, Ayaka Seki, Takeo Arika /SNARK Inc.
Landscape design: Sunao Koase, Ayaka Seki, Takeo Arika /SNARK Inc.
Landscape construction, Planting plan: SNARK D.I.Y., AYANAS
Art direction, Logo/Sign/Web design: Yuma Tobishima, Eri Sato /ampersands
Construction: トージロー建築工匠, Roccadia design and works
Steel products: gambit
Total area: 34.78㎡, 22.62㎡ (1F/11.31㎡ 2F/11.31㎡), 11.87㎡
Completion: Jun. 2023
Photo: Yoichi Onoda

House in Ishiharamachi

Except for specialized plumbing work, the majority of the construction is being carried out by the owner as a DIY project. To accommodate the owner as an amateur builder, the plan incorporates a high degree of flexibility and room for intervention. From the demolition phase onward, we held repeated meetings between the owner (as the builder), the designer, and the contractor to share and refine the vision for the finished space. We look forward to seeing how the owner’s DIY originality will shape the environment in ways that transcend our original expectations as designers.A renovation of a 30-year-old, two-story wooden house in Ishihara-cho, Takasaki City. We transformed both the first and second floors into open-plan layouts and added an extension that serves as both an entrance and a cloakroom. To draw natural light deep into the interior, we also enlarged the south-facing windows on each floor.
Residence @ Takasaki, Gunma
Design: Sunao Koase, Noriko Koba /SNARK Inc.
Construction: Roccadia design and works
Total area: 80.30㎡
Completion: Nov. 2021
Photo: Ippei Shinzawa