Black Box House is a family home with an spectacular exterior that we had to celebrate. Designed by the American studio Takatina, it is located in a suburban residential district about 15 miles from Tokyo, surrounded by light coloured stucco detached houses.
In the middle of this environment and inspired by Carl Andre?s minimalist art work, two majestic monolithic volumes emerge to create an astonishing geometric composition to organise a public first floor, a private second floor, a garden and parking space. These two volumes are covered with black industrial Galvalume panels, which are commonly used for factory and warehouse structures. The façade is without any ornamentation and uses maximum panel sizes to eliminate horizontal joints, emphasising the monolithic appearance. Clean polished concrete plinth and a freestanding wall completes the exterior composition. The white interiors were inspired by the client’s previous loft apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, so his desire was to live in an open space in the first floor loft with a 3.35m ceiling height complimented by dark stained exposed wood framing. The colour palette is completed with polished concrete to create a calm, subtle contrast. On the second floor we find the study, master bedroom, children?s bedrooms and bathroom, and it has a more domestic atmosphere with a modest ceiling height and covered in walnut hardwood flooring.
Photography by Mikiko Kikuyama.

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