Glass Wall 住宅 by Atsushi Hio is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 A' Design Award 银奖 in 建筑与结构设计 Competition Category.

银建筑· 2023

Glass Wall 住宅

by Atsushi Hio

Client: Arks Design Studio

A' Design Award 银奖 Winner in 建筑 Category

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The Design

About Glass Wall 住宅

玻璃墙是一栋于2022年建成于日本姫路市的住宅。房屋坐落在安静住宅区的一处坡地上，巧妙利用地形高差确保了私密性。设计采用钢筋混凝土结构，既营造出宽敞的室内空间，又具备优异的抗震性能。正立面由三个高度各异的方体组合而成，避免了单调呆板的外观。其中一个体块设有玻璃墙，为中庭空间引入充沛光线。混凝土墙面以杉木模板压印出天然木纹肌理，使质感温润而不显冷硬。

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award 银奖

Glass Wall 住宅是 A' Design Award 银奖得主，这是授予顶级、华美而令人印象深刻的设计的极为崇高的认可。银奖得主是极其卓越、极具创造力的作品，展现出其设计师杰出的专业技能、才华与敏锐。预计Glass Wall 住宅将成为一件出色的典范之作，兼具非凡的专业性与深刻的创新性。这件赢得 A' Design Award 银奖的设计是一项备受瞩目、令人钦佩的发明，造福并拓展艺术、科学、设计和技术的边界。Glass Wall 住宅是一件令人羡慕的创作，它唤起渴望，带来积极的情感，并激发惊叹与赞叹。

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: The client desired a space that secures privacy and makes good use of the difference in elevation of the land.
For this reason a reinforced concrete structure was adopted which allows to keep large interior space and is highly earthquake resistant in Japan, a country prone to frequent earthquakes.
The front of the building has three box shapes arranged at different heights to avoid a monotonous design.
A glass wall is placed in one section. The interior of the glass wall is an atrium space that emits a fantastic light.
The lighting fixtures are the icon of the building.
Dimensions & Packaging: Reinforced concrete construction land area 591 square meters building area 356 square meters
Tags: Glass, Design, Architect, Interior, House, Castle
Production Technology: To maximize interior space and ensure the strength against earthquakes which occur often in Japan, reinforced concrete structures are used. The front appearance of the house is separated into three box shapes to avoid a monotonous design. Part of it has a glass wall In addition the wood grain of the cedar board is transferred to the concrete wall so that it does not look cold.
Design Challenge: While designing building plans exteriors and interiors we are considering a space design with light and shadow using natural lighting and artificial illuminance. They are affected by the time of day and the weather but the expression also changes depending on the material and color of the space. In this design walnut natural wood boards for the walls are used in the rooms but the walnut walls absorb more light than expected so expected brightness is not obtained. But the problem was solved by increasing the illuminance and adding new lighting equipment.
Research: An important aspect of the design of this house is the use of large glass openings in the living room, which has a high atrium, because the house is located on a hill, which allows for privacy from the outside.
By researching how light enters each season in the planned site, the living room was designed to be lit with sunlight all year round, to achieve both design and ecology and to improve performance.
Inspiration: The planned site is a quiet luxury residential area. The surrounding housing complex is about 50 years old and has an old atmosphere. Uniquely designed houses will be odd in this area so harmonizing design with surrounding old houses and rich atmosphere is challenging and a priority. Also this location is on the hill where Himeji Castle World Heritage Site can be seen and the beautiful scenery is wide open in front of the site. So luxury but rustic appearance brings harmony and modern lifestyle but nature inspired inside design brings comfort.
Project Duration: Built in Himeji, Japan in 2022
Operation Flow: We examined how the difference in elevation of the land affected the design and everyday life including how to utilize effective space and ensure privacy.
We devised ideas to make the interior as comfortable as possible for the client by eliminating as many steps as possible.
Image Credits: Photographer　Senichiro Nogami