This project is a newly built residence with a hair salon on the ground floor, located in a rural area surrounded by expansive rice fields and a rich natural landscape. The site sits adjacent to the client’s family farmhouse—set among barns, storage sheds, and paddies—and was created by partially converting one of those paddies into residential land. The design of the house responds to the main house and the surrounding agricultural scenery, aiming to integrate gently into its context. Initially, the plan was to place the building toward the northern edge of the site to allow for a large south-facing garden, maximizing sunlight while taking into account that the adjacent southern lots are being developed as residential land. However, through a series of site studies conducted with the client, who is a landscape architect, the final layout was shifted to harmonize with the spatial sequence formed by the main house, the rice fields to the north, the planned garden, and the new residence. A large gabled roof opens toward the rice fields, with generous windows oriented to bring the view deep into both the living space and the salon, while still ensuring ample daylight. Inside, the salon is positioned along the street-facing side, unified under the same roof as the home. To separate the two functions in daily life, the design incorporates elements such as a double-height space and adjacent wet areas to buffer sound, allowing the salon to operate independently from the living quarters. The interior finishes are also carefully considered, with contrasting yet complementary tones and textures that create a sense of distinction between work and private life while maintaining overall coherence. The building is surrounded by new planting that blends with the existing rural landscape, allowing each space within the home to remain connected to nature. This integration not only offers a changing seasonal experience but also a sense of lasting familiarity—one that gently supports the comfort and well-being of those who live there.
Residence @ Kawagoe, Saitama Design: Rei Oshima, Mako Shimanuki /SNARK Inc. Construction: BEACON WORKS Total area: 125.24㎡ (1F/82.61㎡ 2F/42.63㎡) Completion: Feb. 2024 Photo: Makoto Yoshida
Situated in Kamogawa, Chiba, this condominium renovation serves as a secondary residence for a Tokyo-based client seeking a space for both recreation and a productive change of pace. To create a sense of expansive openness, the original interior—previously partitioned for a family household—was stripped of its walls to create a large, studio-like environment. The bedroom features full-height sliding doors, a design choice that balances privacy with an uninterrupted visual flow throughout the unit. By curating the entire furniture collection—ranging from the office desk and sofa to stools and the bed—we meticulously tailored every detail to harmonize the requirements of both work and relaxation.
Residence @ Kamogawa, Chiba Design : Rei Oshima, Mami Umayahara /SNARK Inc. Project Management / Design Direction: Masayuki Sakurai, Yohei Yamaguchi /TRAIL HEADS Construction: Total Project Floor area: 76.38㎡ Completion: July. 2022 Photo: Daisuke Shima /ad hoc
A renovation of a 50-year-old terrace house in Niiza, Saitama. The interior was simplified to preserve its original character while highlighting the client’s curated objects. Shaped through a collaboration between architectural guidance and the client’s DIY efforts, the space maintains a unique tension between professional design and the owner’s personal touch. This approach fosters a deep connection to the ongoing acts of living, maintaining, and customizing, extending the design process far beyond the project’s completion.
An art studio for a Japanese artist JUN OSON. We built up a white wall to the other side of a large window on the north. The floor is made of mortar and the ceiling is made of Japanese cypress plywood. By using different materials, we were able to balance a tense atmosphere for a place to create artworks and a cozy atmosphere for a place to spend a long time for work. We look forward to the new works that will be produced here.
We chose materials and finishes that reflect the clients’ generous and peaceful atmosphere. By working together with the them and their friend, a local builder, we were able to create a house that exudes warmth.On a site facing a national forest in Tochigi Prefecture, we created a house to spend time with the nature under the condition that the building coverage ratio was 20% and that the building site had to be 5 meters away from the neighboring land.The client couple wanted a house that blends in with the surrounding forest and environment, a functional storage for their hobby tools, a comfortable living and dining room that projects the atmosphere of the cafe where the husband works, and a spacious space that is not divided into too many rooms.In the center of the house, we created an earthen floor that connects the front door to the back door. Across the earthen floor, the bedroom and the bathroom are located on the west side, and the living and dining room on the east side. The earthen floor space and the hobby room are adjacent to each other and can be used as one room. The clients who like skiing and climbing mountains will use the earthen floor for maintenance of those tools, chopping wood and gardening.
Residence @ Nasu Tochigi Design: Sunao Koase, Megumi Yamazaki /SNARK Inc. Construction： Mokuso inc. Total area： 118.81㎡ (1F/87.77㎡ 2F/31.04㎡) Site area： 938.93㎡ Completion: Nov.2020 Photo: Takehiro Goto
This project involved renovating an annex on the client’s family estate to serve as a home for their own family. The building, located adjacent to the main house, previously functioned as a garage on the first floor and extra bedrooms on the second. While it was a simple structure without a bathroom, it possessed attractive features such as high ceilings in the garage and a distinctive bay window.
Residence @ Oyama Tochigi Design: Yu Yamada, Ryota Yamagishi /SNARK Inc. Construction: Yamaguchi Construction Total area: 167.45㎡ (1F/85.94㎡ 2F/81.51㎡) Completion: Oct. 2019 Photo: Ippei Shinzawa
An interior design project for an office within a station building at Kumagaya Station, Saitama. We incorporated unassigned seating and areas for stand-up meetings to encourage a more flexible and agile way of working. As a spatial accent, we developed original planters with integrated LEDs designed for indoor plant cultivation.
AZ Kumagaya Office Office @ Kumagaya, Saitama Design: Rei Oshima, Sunao Koase /SNARK Inc. Client: TAKASAKI TERMINAL BUILDING Execution: Sakura Construction Planting: ayanas Furniture: gambit Date: Mar.2019 Photo: Ippei Shinzawa
An interior design project for an apparel shop in the suburbs of Fukaya, Saitama. Leveraging the existing steel structure, we fabricated custom hardware for hanger racks using 12mm round steel bars suspended from the beams. The display tables and checkout counter also incorporated 12mm round bars to match the suspended fixtures. By applying a consistent design language throughout, we created a unified space that makes the most of the existing building.
Shop @ Fukaya, Saitama Design: Sunao koase, Tomohiro Okada, Kouta Miya /SNARK Inc. Logo sign Design: ampersands Inc. Furniture： gambit,SNARK D.I.Y. Electrical construction: MAR Completion: Feb.2019 Photo: Lo.cul.p
A renovation of a villa in Shichirigahama, Kanagawa, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. To provide a subtle backdrop for the furniture and art, we preserved the original layout while refining the details for a minimalist aesthetic. The extensive use of MORTEX on floors and walls creates a minimal yet tactile finish.
