A Famed Japanese Composer's Effortless Honolulu Hideout Asks $2.95M
Designed by award-winning architect Sid Snyder and owned by legendary Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, this modern refuge combines organic finishes with stellar views of the ocean.
Before indoor/outdoor living became a common catchphrase, architects Sid Snyder and Vladimir Ossipoff of the Honolulu–based firm Ossipoff Snyder Architects were designing dwellings in Hawaii that embodied the fluidity of the concept.
Take this real estate gem in Honolulu, for example. Designed and built by Snyder in 1969 and currently owned by the electronic music pioneer Ryuichi Sakamoto, the home is sited on a hillside in the Waialae Iki neighborhood in order to take advantage of extensive views of the Oahu shoreline.
A back view of the house reveals its glass facade and perch on the hillside overlooking East Honolulu.
Photo: Mariko Reed
Large picture windows in every room connect occupants to Pacific Ocean vistas.
Photo: Mariko Reed
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To further blur the boundaries between the interior and exterior, the upper level of the 2,996-square-foot home wraps a private courtyard. Floor-to-ceiling folding doors provide natural ventilation and easy circulation between indoors and outdoors, while a 197-square-foot covered lanai is a second, open-air living room. A natural finish palette, including exposed wood, bleached lumber, tile, and stucco-covered cinder block, complete the home's relaxed vibe.
Folding doors make it easy for breezes to blow through the house and cool it naturally.
Photo: Mariko Reed
The living room is a cozy spot nestled between the expansive picture window and open doors that lead to the courtyard.
Photo: Mariko Reed
Folding doors line the courtyard. Cinder block walls are coated in stucco made with sand from the community of Waimānalo, and mixed with concrete and water.
Photo: Mariko Reed
The lanai just off the living room is accessible to the kitchen.
Photo: Mariko Reed
A view of the lanai with the kitchen behind it.
Photo: Mariko Reed
In the kitchen, rough-cut wood was treated to give it a bleached look that contrasts with the dark ceiling.
Photo: Mariko Reed
The architect created multiple decorative wall cut-outs throughout the home to facilitate ventilation, composed of roof tiles laid in a wave pattern.
Photo: Mariko Reed
Light and air transmits through the wall cut-out in the dining room.
Photo: Mariko Reed
Exposed wood ceilings and tile floor outfit the dining room.
Photo: Mariko Reed
The principal bedroom also enjoys views of the water.
Photo: Mariko Reed
The view from another bedroom.
Photo: Mariko Reed
A shower with floor-to-ceiling glazing fosters indoor/outdoor flow.
Photo: Mariko Reed
Bleached wood lightens up a bathroom.
Photo: Mariko Reed
A dressing room boasts clever, built-in storage.
Photo: Mariko Reed
A children's room features a built-in bunk.
Mariko Reed
A wall of glass offers views to a flex room.
Mariko Reed
1525 Ehupua Place in Honolulu is now being listed for $2,950,000 by Diane Ito of Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties. See the full listing here.
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