A Wavy Wall Mellows Out the Strict Grid of This ’70s Tokyo Apartment

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Project Details:

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Architect: YNAS / @ynas_architecture

Footprint: 1,033 square feet

Builder: TH-1

From the Architect: "In the heart of Shibuya, stepping off the main avenue of Jingu and into a side street, the hum of cars and the bustling thoroughfare fade away. Landmarks disappear, and your sense of direction becomes unclear. At the same time, small shops and homes hidden behind towering trees reveal themselves. You notice the fruits of old garden trees and the vibrant colors of small birds. Villa Serena emerges just around the bend of such a narrow path. Painted in a yellow hue reflective of its half-century-old architecture, you ascend a few steps and find yourself, as if by chance, arriving at Room 204.

"Room 204 is both a studio and home, shared by an architect and a casting director couple. For these two, whose work and personal lives often blur, it was essential to create a space that embraced this ambiguity while also allowing for moments of intense focus and immersion in their respective worlds. The existing structure features exposed beams on both the ceiling and the floor, with thick columns forming a grid-like space. To highlight the beauty of this grid, the ceiling and floor were left bare, and the finished floor level was aligned with the top surface of the floor beams. Within this grid and its irregular floor plan, a single curved wall was introduced to define activity area. This wall, intentionally offset from the rigidity of the grid, subtly connects spaces, manipulating the line of sight while maintaining a sense of continuity toward the depths of the space. Each area flows along the curve without corridors or doors, creating an organic sequence of spaces.

"Yellow fruit- and flower-bearing plants echo Villa Serenaʼs signature yellow. On the southern side, plantings were chosen to visually connect with the neighboring Castanopsis and Fatsia plants. Openings on three outer walls foster a connection to the outdoors from every area of the room. Beyond these openings, the varying terrain levels naturally control privacy. Correspondingly, the internal planning is designed so that the gradient of privacy deepens as one circulates through the space. The curved wall draws the eye toward these openings, where trees from the neighboring apartment or greenery on the terrace serve as borrowed scenery. The curved wall reflects light from each opening, softly illuminating the entire space. In the early morning, sunlight reflecting off the buildingʼs yellow exterior bathes the room in a warm, yellow glow. The material palette incorporates distinctively Japanese finishes, such as tiles fired with a pine ash glaze and woodwork treated with Kakishibu (persimmon tannin). The curved wall is finished with a stone-powder coating applied with a steel trowel, retaining the visible traces of the craftsmen's handiwork. These elements add a layer of warmth to the inorganic concrete structure."