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Weekend House

kooo architects

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Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
House
7.00
8.00
7.64
7.36
7.5
Tina Norden
Tina Norden Partner at Conran and Partners
Understated and surprising in its c...
8
9
8
7
8
Justine Fox
Justine Fox Cofounder | Colour Specialist at Calzada Fox
6
8
7
6
6.75
Veronica Givone
Veronica Givone Managing Director Hospitality at IA Interior Architects
Great synergy between old and new....
6
8
8
6
7
Anne-Rachel Schiffmann
Anne-Rachel Schiffmann Director of Interior Architecture at Snøhetta
Beautiful dialogue between past and...
8
9
8
8
8.25
Stefan Weil
Stefan Weil CCO at Atelier Markgraph
This has an overall contemplative a...
8
8
8
8
8
Christiaan Fokkema
Christiaan Fokkema Partner at Hollandse Nieuwe
Lovely. I like the designers' very...
7
8
8
7
7.5
Omar Abdelghafour
Omar Abdelghafour Founder Principal at Light Space Design
Japanese serentiy and simplicity at...
9
9
9
9
9
Ruud Belmans
Ruud Belmans Creative Director at WeWantMore
Very conscious design choices. I fe...
6
8
7
8
7.25
Leni Popovici
Leni Popovici Founding Director and Partner at KAP Studios
A sensitive and modest upgrade to a...
6
9
6
8
7.25
Yifan Wu
Yifan Wu Cofounder at Sò Studio
6
7
7
8
7
Mengjie Liu
Mengjie Liu Cofounder at Sò Studio
7
6
8
7
7
Gudy Herder
Gudy Herder Trend Consultant at Eclectic Trends
Perfect little gem you don't expect...
7
9
8
7
7.75
Sonia Tomic
Sonia Tomic Senior Associate, Head of Furniture & Materials at Universal Design Studio
7
7
8
7
7.25
Liam Doyle
Liam Doyle Principal at Jump Studios
7
7
7
7
7
Client
Confidential
Floor area
55.1 ㎡
Completion
2020
Photographer
Lighting design

This is a renovation project of a long-house style machiya in Kyoto. A machiya is a type of traditional Japanese house where the two side walls do not have windows because they are shared by the neighbors, and the interior tends to be dark especially due to its long and narrow shape. A skylight was added according to the owner’s lifestyle, bringing new ways of illuminating and ventilating the space. We also removed the rotten and non-functioning building materials and upgraded sound and heat insulation quality. Selected beam, columns, and the backyard were preserved and repaired. In contrast with the modern interior design, the beauty of these historical elements stands out more. In terms of façade design, we chose to respect the historical style of the Kyoto streets and made minimum changes to the appearance. We invited traditional craftsmen to only touch-up the earth wall and re-sealed the decaying wooden window frame. We believe being respective to the historical values should not be blindly enduring a lifestyle that is no longer appropriate nowadays, but at the same time, we also should not abandon all traces that once existed. We hope that one can feel the memories of the past by increasing the presence of the existing components