Studly: A Surprising Gut Remodel—with Interior Curves—By No. 555 of Tokyo

by Grandy Home Desingn


The exterior of this very traditional wood-framed house in Utsunomiya, in the northern Kanto region of Japan, belies its daredevil interior. For a modern-minded young family of three who requested bright, open quarters, the architects at No. 555 in Tokyo took down all nonessential walls. And then they tossed in some curves.

There are now bare studs, translucent and curtained partitions, exposed conduit, and very few doors. Remember the industrial High Tech look of the 1970s also known as structural expressionism? Consider this an artful Japanese update of the movement.

Photography by Masatoshi Mori courtesy of No.555.

Ground Floor with Curved Partitions

formerly divided into nine rooms, the first floor is now two curved swaths with 9
Above: Formerly divided into nine rooms, the first floor is now two curved swaths with a cement board “polku,” which the architects translate as “alley,” winding between them. There’s a large kitchen-living area on one side and an “atelier” on the other. Scroll to the end to see the floor plans and the exterior of this otherwise very conventional house, which dates to the 1980s. “Basically, the existing structure was left untouched,” explains No. 555 founding architect Takuya Tsuchida. “We dismantled non-structural walls and constructed new walls to change the space. As it was, parts of the interior were unused, we wanted to enable it all.”

&#8\2\20;the design is based on the motif of the narrow path of the fields 10
Above: “The design is based on the motif of the narrow path of the fields around the house, and connects the interior to the outside” says Tsuchida. His clients are a couple, both 28, with a toddler previously lived in Tokyo and liked Tsuchida’s idea of “flexible living.”



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