Perched on a mountainside with Kanagawa unfolding at its feet, this modern mountain cabin home has two things in its favor – a breathtaking view outside, and even more so inside. Designed by Japanese architecture firm Shun Hirayama Architecture, this wood clad slope cabin takes its place on a hillside – a fine vantage point for the endless view of city and country. On first setting foot on site, architect likens the experience to walking in a forest, and he wanted to maintain that sense of country in this design. Hirayama took on the design task by planning four main living areas and how they relate to the slope – a kitchen and dining area were placed near the main entrance for easy public access; a living room that frames the best views; bedrooms overlooking the hill; and a bathroom that enjoys privacy and a bright, airy feel. These four volumes, although separate, were overlapped to form a single, connected home. While the wood clad exterior is certainly a country-chic style, the “forest” feel also prevails indoors, where straight sightlines evoke the sense of walking between trees. “The interior of the building was shaped to fit the landform; walls set in diverse angles, various ceiling heights and 10 different floor levels exist and in the each space dissimilar shades live. The wind that enters inside the one-room interior space feels like they came between trees, and it feels like sitting on a natural stump, when sitting on a slight level difference,” describes the architect. Shun Hirayama Architecture.
Photos by Daici Ano, Katsuhisa Kida and Naoomi Kurozumi
