A House that Blends into the Surrounding Mountains

While Usuki on Kyushu Island is known for its stone buddhas, it could equally become famous for its façade-less house, whose gently sloping roof (24 degrees) meets the ground directly. The low degree of this slope makes it possible to climb onto the roof to sit there and admire the surroundings, which are filled with soaring reliefs and sloping plains. Its architecture, which stands out among the more traditional houses around it, was designed to allow its inhabitants to make the most of the landscape while respecting it.

The 98-square-metre house, created by architect Kenta Eto, was designed across two floors (the lower floor is reserved for the communal areas and the main bedroom, while the upper floor is home to a games room and a children’s bedroom). Where the floor and the base of the roof meet, there is a small interior garden, a feature that evokes a roof terrace and further blurs the boundaries between inside and outside.

More information on this house is available on architect Kenta Eto’s website.