The Hidden Fortress
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Architect Miwa Mori
When 33-year-old Japanese architect Miwa Mori was a student in Germany, she learned a lot about architecture by observing fashion. “In winter in Germany, people wear t-shirts inside and put…
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Secret Identity Eyeglass Kit
For those who dream big that a super-secret superhero can exist beneath a pair of black-rimmed glasses, these special frames are especially for you. Designed by Project Selima & Matt (alter…
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The Wabi House
Go behind the scenes of the photo shoot for "The Hidden Fortress," a feature story in our September 2011 issue that covers the Wabi House, a Japanese-inspired design in Carlsbad, California, by…
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Find Furniture that's Easy to Conceal
For a 500-square-foot loft in downtown Los Angeles, Tag Front designed a rectangular mahogany table with four ottomans that nestle underneath, creating a simple brown block when not in use. When…
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The Secret Life of Plants
San Francisco–based artist and photographer presents his latest collection of photograms. Each piece is made without a camera by placing objects directly onto the surface of a photographic…
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Secret Identity Eyeglass Kit
by Project Selima & MattFor those who dream big that a super-secret…
Disappointing to see an article on a project where the landscape seems so critical to the success of the design not give mention to the name of the landscape architect. Dwell should have taken it upon themselves to give proper credit to the landscape architect, Marcie Harris for her contribution to the project.
WOW! I received my September 2011 issue of Dwell "Japan Style" today. The Wabi House (The Hidden Fortress, pg. 94) is one of my favorites and is a great display of East (Japan) meets West (California). My Japanese wife and I plan on taking a similar approach in the redesign of our house. It was a pleasant surprise to see that you gave a short lesson in Japanese home design terms via "It's the Joint" (pg. 82) and "The House Deconstructed" (pg. 81). However, I am somewhat confused as to why you used "Garden" (term number 10) instead of "niwa (garden) or "uraniwa" (rear yard or backyard). BTW, nice "Finishing Touch" with the Kiuchi Tatsuro piece, "Fields of Old." I look forward to receiving my next issue of Dwell.
Considering myself more of a "cottage" person as well as more traditionalist than modern, your magazine has certainly captured my attention in a big way. The Town House in Sweden is hands-down my all time favorite, I absolutely love its openness and airiness, however, The Hidden Fortress is amazing and comes in at a close second in my opinion. While I don't care for that much use of the black color, I am fascinated by the charred wood appearance and the lack of any lacquered pieces. The entrance of the property with the koi pond gives the impression of entering a magical place. The Zen garden is a wonderful touch and appears so serene. The soaking tub has blown me away. Is that a pond behind the soaking tub or is that another, larger, bathtub? I am not at all familiar with Japenese home design, but very much enjoyed your explanatory article, it was very enlightening and educational. Can you feature any houses that have more traditional cabinetry/furnishings with the open/modern/airy/space saving look you are so wonderful at designing? Keep up the awesome work, I always look forward to the next issue of your magazine. In the meantime, I will re-read this one a few more times, this one's a keeper!
Who builds that bed?!?
The Wabi House is one of the most facinating houses ever featured by Dwell. Can you provide info on the frosted glass doors?
The construction of the house is documented starting with this blog post: http://pursuingwabi.com/2007/05/06/why-a-makeover/
Is there any company that pre-builds homes that has something like this? I love the layout, materials, feeling of the home.
I am a little late to the party of comments but I did see this reposted on twitter and took the time to read the wabi story. Very enjoyable and interesting to read about the difficulty of translating the calligraphy. Well done overall Doug Wittnebel
"No Maintenance" No maintenance yard..... Impossible and another way of saying I'm not realistic, and I'm profoundly lazy.
Pure Privacy. But feels like very much isolated in this space. Majority restricted from the surrounding... Great materials and colors used.
How can Dwell neglect to include a floor plan diagram so we can understand the houses layes and relationship to the landscape. Maybe I would not expect this in House Beautiful but Dwell was supposed to be more informative. They are acting like a decorating magazine.
I am as disappointed as "Sam" above by the missing floor plan of the Wabi house. Actually by any architectural articles in any magazine without a floor plan.
Image 3: When that tree grows it's going to lay waste to the fence. I'm sure Mariscal's team considered this fact, but still decided to go ahead with it. If the "spirit of wabi-sabi" is beauty through imperfection, shouldn't they plan for imperfections in the design that won't lead to one side of the yard being torn and falling to the ground. So that's the first criticism, of the concept (which could be dealt with in a different way) And secondly; I think the detailing on those two fence holes could have been done more cleanly. Alas, it is already passed...
Overall, a beautiful design though. Interiors and deck-spaces look very attractive. There's a subtle touch of informality along with the contemporary design in the photography.
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