Iron Architecture, Building and Structure Design · 2024
Amar Bari Apartment
- A' Design Award 2024 Iron Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Awarded April 15, 2024
- CLIENT: Hiroaki Iwasa
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 15,755
- Verification code C2BE6AD6B4 · Verify this award
About Amar Bari Apartment
This architecture is a four-unit rental apartment for single person households in central Tokyo. It was designed based on the Japanese philosophy of Chisoku. And it was designed with bare concrete frame that maximize the limit of the site, and also with wooden booths where minimum living facilities and appliances were hidden inside. As a result, a freely space with a height of 3.5 meters was created. The residents use this blank space as an opportunity to enjoy their lives and to use it to collaborate with the local community. The project was designed to capture this blank space.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- This architecture is a four-unit rental apartment for single person households in a high-density residential area located in Central Tokyo. It was designed with bare concrete frame that maximize the limit of the site, and also with wooden booths where minimum living facilities and appliances are hidden inside. This creates a 3.5 meters high freely usable space, which enables each resident to enjoy creating a lifestyle they envision. The project was designed to capture this blank space.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Specification,
Total floor area: 63.4m2,
A unit with bathtub: 16.3m2,
A unit without bathtub: 15.4m2, - Tags
- chisoku, minimal philosophy, reinforced concrete, apartment, emptiness
- Production Technology
- The structure is very simple, using a Frame made of reinforced concrete to ensure high soundproofing and sound insulation as well as a solid space, the equipment booth is made of wood, so that it can store various equipments and its piping with very limited space. These are consistent with the selection of materials that are optimal for each part's function and lifespan, and also leads to simpler construction work.
- Design Challenge
- The challenge was not just minimizing space, but also seeking for a comfortable lifestyle. Residents can also cook simple course meals in the kitchen. The compact washroom which is the size of an airplane lavatory has storage and also some room to change. The bathroom also comes with a clothes dryer, and residents can either chose a bathroom with a bathtub or just a shower. Also as of research, Hiroaki Iwasa designed on the upper surface of the wooden booth, a space which can be used as a loft.
- Project Duration
- The project started in March 2009 and finished in January 2011 in central area of Tokyo.
- Operation Flow
- The residents use this blank space, which has no specific purpose, as an opportunity to enjoy their lives and to use it to collaborate with the local community. For example, the residents use the space as an art studio, music studio, office, gallery, etc.
- Research
- To maximize the blank space required a minimal and essential dimensional survey of equipment space and human movement. Based on the research, Hiroaki Iwasa could to expand residents' range of movement and capacity by designing spaces for daily living facilities such as kitchens, toilets, bathrooms, and laundry rooms as spaces with multiple functions rather than single functions.
- Inspiration
- Chisoku is one of the Japanese philosophy, a philosophy that infinitely expands other possibilities by not having excessive desires and valuing the bare essentials. Not only does it concern time and space, but also the relationship between objects and people's minds.The project was based on this philosophy.
- Image Credits
- Photographer Hiroshi Tabuse
Colors of Amar Bari Apartment
Design Interview about Amar Bari Apartment
The principle of my work is to honestly face the situation the project is facing.
It is essential for making appropriate judgments about the situation, such as what is necessary for the client's situation, what is necessary for the environment, and what should be done now within the time axis.
It is essential for making appropriate judgments about the situation, such as what is necessary for the client's situation, what is necessary for the environment, and what should be done now within the time axis.
I focus on creating blank spaces with potential for development,
I wanted to make it simple and sophisticated.
I wanted to make it simple and sophisticated.
I will examine how this architecture helps the lives of individual residents.
It took about a year to design this concept.
The client requested the rebuilding of a single apartment for four people.
Due to the limited space and budget given by the client, I decided to design this project by focusing on the blank space.
Due to the limited space and budget given by the client, I decided to design this project by focusing on the blank space.
The architecture and interiors are not mass-produced products, but are unique and original.
When I started this project, I thought it was necessary for this region and the future.
There is no specific design or designer approach.
By honestly facing the situation, I came up with the necessary design.
By honestly facing the situation, I came up with the necessary design.
This design is targeted at single people who are full of ideas.I hope that by having such people living in this area, this area will change and develop with diversity.
What makes this project different from other apartments is its unique design, which prioritizes free space without cramming too much space into it, and keeps other elements to a minimum.
Based on the philosophy of Chisoku.
Based on the philosophy of Chisoku.
AmarBari was named "My House" by a client with ties to Bangladesh in the hope that it would be a better home for the residents.
During the design process, we went back and forth between CAD and full-size mockups.
I don't think it's anything special, but I think what's distinctive is that we honestly face the situation of each project and proceed with it carefully.
We worked with structural and facilities engineers on this project.
The design technology is orthodox; I used CAD to improve efficiency and carefully considered mock-ups.
Research is about understanding the local situation. This was not a method of obtaining quantitative data, but rather a method of reading the hidden needs of the region and manifesting them in design.
In this project, the building was buried semi-underground, but the building was set at a depth where no drainage pumping was required. There were various uncertainties, so making that decision was the biggest challenge.
I was curious and confident about how my design would be evaluated internationally, so I applied for the pride of the people involved.
Through this project, I realized once again the importance of clearly designing by focusing on the essential elements.
Grand Interview about Amar Bari Apartment
The philosophy of Chisoku is a philosophy that can be applied to various phenomena such as modern daily life and outlook on life.Many modern people have become junkies, giving priority to temporary desires and eating more than they need, or exploiting others more than they need to make a profit. As a result of pursuing one's desires without having an overview and rational self-control, people are exhausted because there is no "blank space" in the limited time and space.Now, by turning Chisoku's philosophy into an architecture, I thought it was necessary to have a "blank space" in which to step out of that endless loop and rediscover what is truly necessary for one's life.We need the space of "φ empty set" in mathematics.That's why this project was inspired by the client's request for a living space for single people, and aimed to create an ``architecture with blank spaces'' that would provide an opportunity for people to genuinely reevaluate their lives.
For this project, it was important to include ``blank time and space'' in the private room other than daily functions.It is possible to fill a private room with daily functions and share the heteronomous "margin time and space" in the city, but this is not an autonomous space.In Japan's urban areas, there are restaurants, laundry facilities, stores where you can get everything from delicatessen items open 24 hours a day, and old-fashioned public baths in older areas.Since these heteronomous living functions can be used as appropriate, this apartment was intentionally designed to minimize the living functions in the private rooms. This is based on the belief that there is a need for an ``autonomous blank space with possibilities'' no matter what kind of constraints there are, be it mental, time, or space.
Since minimizing the number of equipment booths for daily life functions was an important step in this project, a dimensional investigation into human behavior patterns was necessary. First, I cleared the manufacturer's guaranteed construction dimensions for essential equipment such as the toilet bowl, washing machine, bath/shower booth, refrigerator, and heat source for cooking. Next, I set the dimensions of the unit space while checking the behavior patterns when using each device. After that, I set up a multifunctional space by combining several behavioral patterns into one space.As a result, the small and multifunctional design allows residents to save time without having to walk around, creating more free time.
This project organized the service life of each piece of equipment in stages and rationally matched the materials to it.First, in order to maximize the reliability of basic living space, I selected strong reinforced concrete, which is said to have a service life of 70 to 100 years.Next, I housed equipment such as air conditioners and electrical appliances with a useful life of around 10 to 15 years, as well as underfloor piping, in a compact booth. As the material for this booth, I selected wood, which can be made into panels and has good workability.The result is a visually organized and beautifully integrated architecture.
I believe that minimization, multi-functionality, and sharing will be the keywords for architectural solutions for crowded urban living spaces. People who live together in urban areas share things that can be shared publicly, and minimize personal elements. I believe that the blank space created as a result of such organization in an individual's living space is useful not only for that individual's living space, but also for the region or city.I also believe that each space must be multifunctional for a prosperous urban life. Recently, I think that if we can provide a variety of architectural options such as shared houses where individuals gather and live in groups, we can create a diverse and rich urban environment even if it is crowded.
This project was dedicated to compacting the equipment booth with the aim of creating the blank space full of possibilities. Therefore, it is up to each resident to decide how to use the blank space.Because it's close to a music college, one of the residents, a music college student, spends a lot of time practicing here, and an individual designer uses it as a creative space. Some people have movie nights and parties with their friends while projecting images on the screen, so the blank space is a true white canvas where they can pursue not only community-oriented activities but also self-pursuits.
Based on such research, we set the minimum dimensions to provide the necessary and sufficient functions.Rather than giving one space to a single function, I experimented with methods and arrangements that would allow one space to be used for multiple functions.In addition, when considering specific dimensions, I took into account the standard dimensions of building materials and designed a design to reduce waste materials.
This area had a large population of elderly people and was an area with a high concentration of old small wooden houses and apartments, so improving earthquake resistance, fire prevention, and crime prevention was an issue.In such an area, the client requested the rebuilding of an apartment for single-person households, and in order to increase profits, this project needed to improve the issues in this area and differentiate it from other facilities.At the beginning of the design, I set the height of this building to the maximum within the local height limit, and built a deep The depth is set to a depth within the ground that allows for natural drainage without the need for pumping up.The choice of a reinforced concrete frame was a logical choice to realize them.As a result, the soundproofing was improved and new generations, such as students from the nearby music college, moved in, leading to greater diversity in the local population.
The sense of territory and needs of single-person households vary from person to person and from time to time. There are ways to secure and share spaces in cities and regions to pursue one's own potential and community interaction, but this project aims to create blank spaces in which to pursue one's own potential and foster mutual relationships with the local community. It was an important attempt to keep it contained in one's personal space.
Considering the purpose and meaning of people gathering in urban areas, it is inevitable that communities will emerge.In that case, instead of designing urban housing that has all the functions, there may be a way for cities and urban housing to complement each other's functions. Although there are other styles such as shared houses where groups live together, this Amar bari's living space configuration is considered to be a one of the prototype for the challenge of urban housing.