Located within a villa area adjacent to forest in Karuizawa, Living Above the Ground and Using nature as a borrowed scenery.

this residence was designed as a retreat that allows its occupants to experience the surrounding landscape while maintaining a stable and controlled living environment. The site offers relatively open views, with woodland in the foreground and distant mountain ranges beyond. At the same time, the design had to respond to the region’s humid climate, heavy snowfall, and weak ground conditions. Rather than extending daily life across the ground, the project concentrates the primary living spaces on the second floor to reduce the impact of moisture and insects while opening views toward the surrounding landscape.

The ground level is minimised to a compact base containing only the entrance and garage. The remaining area forms an open piloti, creating a large, semi-outdoor space protected from rain and snow. Wooden decks and exposed-aggregate surfaces are placed between the building and garden planting, providing external areas that remain open while encouraging everyday use.
Above this base, the main volume extends outward on all sides in a continuous cantilever. The second floor is structured as a reinforced-concrete rigid frame, allowing a large cantilevered slab and full-height glazing around the perimeter. Living and dining areas, four bedrooms, and a bathroom are arranged along the outer edge, so that everyday life remains continuously connected to the surrounding forest and distant mountains. The overall composition gives the impression of a volume hovering within the landscape.
The approach to nature is not as something to be directly immersed in, but as a presence to be carefully framed. By lifting the living spaces above the ground, the house maintains a measured distance from humidity, insects, and snow, while visually incorporating the surrounding environment as borrowed scenery.

On the west side, as main space, the living, dining, and kitchen areas form a single, continuous space designed to accommodate multiple places for staying.
Variations in ceiling height and overlapping wooden ceiling elements create subtle spatial differentiation, while concealed indirect lighting and integrated air-conditioning systems reduce visual noise and provide a calm and comfortable interior environment. The finishes are color-controlled, and elements such as doors and details are understated, creating a gallery-like tranquility that naturally draws the eye to the exterior scenery.
The large opening allows you to enjoy the unobstructed view of Karuizawa’s changing seasonal scenery, including autumn leaves, snow, and fresh greenery.

The underlying concept is, architecture avoids strong formal expression and instead acts as a quiet mediator between people and nature.
The project seeks to balance environmental control and visual openness, allowing the house to exist as a calm presence within its landscape while supporting the essential qualities of a retreat.

LOCATION | karuizawa,Nagano

SITE AREA | 1834m2

BUILT AREA| 264m2

FLOOR AREA| 220m2

STRUCTURE | RC+steel

COMPLETION| DECEMBER 2025

CONTRACTOR| Niitsu gumi