This is a residence planned for a family of four.
In Hokkaido, there exists a wide range of both the quality and quantity of light. The colors range from richly vivid to monochrome; the brightness can be so intense that it makes it difficult to keep one’s eyes open, or conversely, dim even during daytime. The light varies from dry, transparent, high-contrast light to moist, murky, low-contrast light. What astonishes me most is the sheer breadth of this spectrum of light, and how—like a wind chime signaling the presence of a place through sound—the light at any given moment most eloquently conveys the totality of the environment: the scent of the air, the flow of the wind, the temperature, and the humidity.
When thinking about the climate of the north, what first comes to mind is the cold and heavy snowfall. However, in this age where technical solutions are highly developed, I feel ever more strongly that the varied light that unfolds throughout the year is a crucial and uniquely rich element in establishing architecture in the north—something not readily available elsewhere.
This house is conceived as a kind of device that can weave those impressions and surprises into daily life—not a “wind chime” that captures air, but rather a “house of light.” In other words, the theme of this residence is to filter or amplify the richness of environmental information expressed through light, using the architecture itself as a medium.