Zen: garden as house

the-garden-house1

http://www.archtracker.com/the-garden-house-takeshi-hosaka-architects/2009/04/

Apart from what looks what looks unfortuneately like artifical turf on the roof – the Garden House by Takeshi Hosaka Architects with its tight triangular plan is a surprise and delight! Definitely a garden for my soul! The living spaces are designed around the edges of an enclosed garden courtyard, cleverly stacked and arranged to take advantage of every square mm of space, create privacy and capture views. In the photographs the garden is very young…it would be fantastic to revisit the house as the tree grows and the potted garden matures.

If you can’t resist viewing more  maybe a trip to Japan is in order…





6 thoughts on “Zen: garden as house

  1. Tom Turner

    It is a very appealing design, making me almost want to live there. But I am unsure wherein the appeal lies – is it in the unexpectedness of having such a calm space in such an unlikely location? There could in fact be some problems with the design: a triangle is less calm than a square, the rooms could overlook each other across the yard, it could be too overlooked from above. It would be useful to have a cover to protect the space from excess sun, wind or rain.

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  2. Christine

    Interesting isn’t it? Perhaps it is the simplicity. And the unexpectedness. And the poetic resolution of something that shouldn’t be possible….

    ….it shouldn’t be possible to design such an amazing space in such an unpromising envelope and…a totally enclosed tight triangle – in an urban location!

    Is a triangle really less calm than a square? What makes it so? It would be fantastic to live in this trianglar space and then a simple square enclosure to really experience the difference!

    Overlooking has been considered to some extent by placing the public rooms on the upper level with a view across the courtyard to the city and the perimetre balcony. The private rooms are located around the courtyard with the principle bedroom beneath the public spaces.

    I believe part of the charm or appeal of the design is the strong contrast between inclosure and exposure!

    In the event of unclement weather with the doors closed the occupants would be well protected. I would like to experience the shift of sun and shadow throughout the day in the courtyard before commenting on the solar aspects.

    I believe that tree will grow to provide the right amount of outdoor cover?

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  3. Tom Turner

    It is difficult even to think of any examples of triangular spaces, except those resulting from happenstance in urban areas, but yes: I think they are less calm and less comfortable than square or circular or oval spaces. With regard to roofing outdoor spaces, the retractable canvas ‘blinds’ they use in Spain seem to work very well. It is nice to see and experience the elements but if you want to USE the space in inclement weather then a demountable roof takes a lot of beating!

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  4. christine

    You are right! There is a surprising lack of all things triangular in plan… I did however, find

    1. An example of French topiary [ http://www.buzzle.com/articles/french-garden-style-and-design.html ]

    2. Colinton Triangle [ http://www.colinton-conservation.org.uk/triangle-1.htm ]

    However I think I have found you a post-post-modern roof garden made of triangles….It is Liza’s garden an garden which is seen but not experienced
    [ http://www.branchplant.com/landscape/romplans.html ] by PLANT.

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