Japanese studio FORM/Kouichi Kimura Architects has completed Landscape House, a stack of intersecting cuboid forms in Shiga that combines the client's home with their hair salon business.
The cluster of concrete, white-rendered and metal-clad forms has been arranged symmetrically, oriented to allow a large window in the projecting living room to frame dramatic views of Mount Ibuki.
A stack of intersecting cuboid forms make up Landscape House
"The building is composed of symmetrical volumes for which the proportion, openings and materials have been carefully considered... the dynamic form creates a new facade in the streetscape," said FORM/Kouichi Kimura Architects.
On the north-facing front of the building a monolithic concrete wall stands apart from the ground floor, intersecting with the white volume of the living room above. It combines concrete, white-render and metal
Behind this wall, framed by a small opening, is a dedicated entrance to the ground-floor salon, which occupies an independent unit that is not connected to the home.
Two private routes wrap around the sides of the building, partially covered by the overhanging metal-clad blocks above. On the eastern edge this leads directly to the salon's storage space, while to the west it leads into an entrance hall for the home.
A silver curtain lines the entrance hall
Lined entirely on one side by a silver curtain, this hall steps upwards from a concrete area for shoes and coats towards a bathroom, utility ...