Homes

The sunken living room allows for delineation of space while keeping an open-plan environment

Protected by an overhang, and floating above ground level, this tertiary space is known in traditional homes as the "engawa." To sustain a unified look throughout, the floor and ceiling are clad in ipe wood.

The steel-framed platforms are largely open to the elements.

The timber used for the addition comes from sustainable, natural plantation oak.

The great room is anchored by a 25-foot-high granite, wood-burning fireplace with a reclaimed timber mantle located beneath Alumicor skylights.

Exterior view of main entry

The firm’s founder and principal architect Sumiou Mizumoto stripped away the house’s side extension.

To keep the original street-level exterior view, the second-floor addition was set back from the building’s existing façade.