A pursuit for harmony
between buildings and
gardens
What we do.
We inherit the traditions of Japanese architecture and garden engineering, yet we are not bound by them. While respecting the wisdom of our predecessors, we draw inspiration from contemporary environments, cultures, and worldviews, aiming to create a new style that blends the essence of Japan with vernacular traditions from around the globe.
To achieve this, we actively seek collaboration with local experts - carpenters, artisans, architects, landscape designers, and plant or biological specialists. We believe that the creative synergy born from different fields coming together is the driving force behind new styles and new possibilities.
We are ready to travel anywhere in the world. By carefully studying local climates, cultures, and vegetation, we seek to fuse our differences together to create a new style of space - whether for a residence, commercial facility, or medical environment - where people can connect with nature in their daily lives and find comfort in its presence.
Our design philosophy
Our philosophy is to develop living spaces that achieve balance and harmony among the three aspects of architecture, landscape, and lighting.
Architecture
Our architectural designs are founded upon the traditional Japanese concepts that have been used by Japanese architects for over 1000 years. However, we also seek to couple these ancient Japanese styles with the best modern architectural concepts from all over the world to create wooden buildings that are built from the very best locally sourced timber. We value the fragrance, texture, and warmth of timber, as well as the views of greenery, the sound of stream, birdsong, and leaves rustling in the wind. These elements of nature shape spaces that gently restore the human soul. In the noise of modern cities, we aim to create environments that quietly reawaken the senses that people often allow to become dormant.
庭屋一如
Landscape
In landscape design, the major design aesthetic of a Japanese garden is to be a minimalist natural setting designed to inspire reflection and meditation. When planning a Japanese garden, we aim to promote harmony with nature, even within an urban setting.
We consider both the architectural and landscape designs when planning a Japanese garden by asking two main questions: how can the garden be used as a living space and how can we bring harmony between the architecture and landscape.
The plants in a garden continue to grow and change long after the space is completed. We stay connected with the garden over time, offering pruning guidance and maintenance support from garden engineers so that nature can be nurtured with care to enhance the beauty.
市中山居
Lighting
"In Praise of Shadows" is an essay on Japanese aesthetics by the author and novelist Junichiro Tanizaki. He presents an appreciation of shadow and subtlety, which is closely related to the traditional Japanese concept of SABI. In addition to contrasting light and dark, Tanizaki further considers the layered tones of various kinds of shadows and their power when reflected by low-sheen materials such as gold embroidery, patina, and cloudy crystals. Our lighting designs follow his ideas from In Praise of Shadows.
陰翳礼讃
Our portfolio
