■Background Located in a vibrant residential area in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan this architecture features a blend of residence and playground. We seek to tailor our architecture to the diverse needs of our clientele, and in this case the homeowner was a single woman who had roots in this neighbourhood from childhood, and desired to use part of her property to help the children of the adjacently located nursery school. After consulting with the homeowner and the nursery school officials, the resulting plan maximized the outside space of the property as a playground for the nursery school. The result is a private residence with a close relationship to the surrounding neighbourhood. ■The three pilotis The residence is composed of three volumes, with each volume being supported by a pile like support structure called a piloti. The first floor of the house opens to the outside with three differing heights rising above. Looking at the side of the house is like looking at a three stair staircase from the side. In this way, the pilotis area is not only an area used to support the house structure, but becomes a playground under the residence. By removing a part of the existing boundary wall located between the nursery school and the house property, kids can now safely go back and forth without using the road. The height of each pilotis gradually increases, increasing in height from the front of the house towards the rear. This variance in height diversifies the aesthetic of both the playground and the residence. During the day, from the main floor of the house, one can enjoy the scene of children at play, while in the evening after the nursery school is closed, the playground transforms into a quiet garden. Although the residence and the property, are in actual fact just one property, we have endeavoured to design a residential environment that goes beyond the property boundary.
■Structure (you may not want to use “domino construction” in the title, since the people often associate dominoes with falling over; I would simply title this section “Structure”)
The three sets of pilotis each have a different height. The higher piloti is more open and lighter, but at same time it is not enough to stick to the horizontal force by the earthquake and the wind. Then it leans to the lower one like pieces of domino game. So this architecture configured to stand in the whole three pilotis.
