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Collection by Jo MacKay

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Tsuyoshi and Maya Ohama and their daughters, nine-year-old Nana and seven-year-olds Kano and Yuno, use the narrow strip leading up to their Hirano, Osaka, home as a driveway or, during summer, a spot for their inflatable pool.
Tsuyoshi and Maya Ohama and their daughters, nine-year-old Nana and seven-year-olds Kano and Yuno, use the narrow strip leading up to their Hirano, Osaka, home as a driveway or, during summer, a spot for their inflatable pool.
Local firm FujiwaraMuro Architects created numerous split levels stacked atop one another to accommodate the unconventional family home on a “flag” lot, a real estate term for an irregularly shaped parcel that resembles a flag on a pole, with a skinny path that gives the rectangular main plot access to the road.
Local firm FujiwaraMuro Architects created numerous split levels stacked atop one another to accommodate the unconventional family home on a “flag” lot, a real estate term for an irregularly shaped parcel that resembles a flag on a pole, with a skinny path that gives the rectangular main plot access to the road.
A built-in table and an assortment of chairs in the dining area are among the few pieces of furniture in the home. White paint was chosen to make the interiors brighter, along with matte-white appliances and light-toned woods like Lauan plywood and Japanese ash.
A built-in table and an assortment of chairs in the dining area are among the few pieces of furniture in the home. White paint was chosen to make the interiors brighter, along with matte-white appliances and light-toned woods like Lauan plywood and Japanese ash.
White paint was chosen to make the interiors brighter, along with matte-white appliances and light-toned woods like Lauan plywood and Japanese ash.
White paint was chosen to make the interiors brighter, along with matte-white appliances and light-toned woods like Lauan plywood and Japanese ash.
White paint was chosen to make the interiors brighter, along with matte-white appliances and light-toned woods like Lauan plywood and Japanese ash.
White paint was chosen to make the interiors brighter, along with matte-white appliances and light-toned woods like Lauan plywood and Japanese ash.
A corner on the ground level provides a venue for the girls to quietly color or practice piano.
A corner on the ground level provides a venue for the girls to quietly color or practice piano.
Concrete from the exterior path continues across the ground level, creating an extended genkan, a traditional Japanese entryway that serves as a place to take off and leave one’s shoes. “I think the entrance is my favorite part,” says Tsuyoshi. “It’s wide enough for the kids to put on their shoes comfortably.”
Concrete from the exterior path continues across the ground level, creating an extended genkan, a traditional Japanese entryway that serves as a place to take off and leave one’s shoes. “I think the entrance is my favorite part,” says Tsuyoshi. “It’s wide enough for the kids to put on their shoes comfortably.”
A peekaboo window from a room upstairs overlooks the central atrium with the open kitchen and dining and living areas.
A peekaboo window from a room upstairs overlooks the central atrium with the open kitchen and dining and living areas.
The toy-filled playroom is one of the more enclosed interior areas.
The toy-filled playroom is one of the more enclosed interior areas.
Just past the upstairs landing, there’s an open space with a tatami mat beneath the lofted office nook where Tsuyoshi, a systems engineer, works from home a few days a week. Both receive lots of light from the central skylight. A hallway below Tsuyoshi’s workspace leads to the family’s shared sleeping area, which has a small window.
Just past the upstairs landing, there’s an open space with a tatami mat beneath the lofted office nook where Tsuyoshi, a systems engineer, works from home a few days a week. Both receive lots of light from the central skylight. A hallway below Tsuyoshi’s workspace leads to the family’s shared sleeping area, which has a small window.
On the top level, a cozy cubby serves as yet another play nook for the girls, with a large closet above it that, in the future, can be converted into a bedroom with the addition of a curtain.
On the top level, a cozy cubby serves as yet another play nook for the girls, with a large closet above it that, in the future, can be converted into a bedroom with the addition of a curtain.
A closet above the children's play nook currently serves as a storage space for Tsuyoshi’s manga collection.
A closet above the children's play nook currently serves as a storage space for Tsuyoshi’s manga collection.
The girls play on the wide, terraced steps and sometimes use them as a desk. “It’s their favorite spot,” says Maya.
The girls play on the wide, terraced steps and sometimes use them as a desk. “It’s their favorite spot,” says Maya.
FujiwaraMuro Architects fine-tuned the design for certain elements, like the stairs, on-site. “We’d ask ourselves, ‘Is this right?’ and make adjustments,” says Muro. “Rather than just building rooms, it was like we were incorporating the slopes and natural formations of the land into the design.”
FujiwaraMuro Architects fine-tuned the design for certain elements, like the stairs, on-site. “We’d ask ourselves, ‘Is this right?’ and make adjustments,” says Muro. “Rather than just building rooms, it was like we were incorporating the slopes and natural formations of the land into the design.”
An upper-level front balcony accommodates a small garden.
An upper-level front balcony accommodates a small garden.
Floor plan of House in Hirano by FujiwaraMuro
Floor plan of House in Hirano by FujiwaraMuro