A Japanese Manga Artist’s House

A building that floats a few centimeters above our daily lives. They designed a house and studio with a warped seismic wooden facade for an up-and-coming manga artist in Tokyo, Japan. The project is located on a narrow site with a rich artistic history and draws upon the storytelling aspect of manga – a type of Japanese comic book. The design tells a story of the earth, which has a deep connection with manga artists, welcoming an up-and-coming manga artist, and transforming into the architecture rising dynamically from the ground. In the interior, they designed a void with contrasts of high/low and light/dark to provide unenclosed yet defined areas, or what we call “ponds and banks,” that would allow for subtle and flexible use of space in a very compact dwelling. They strive to continue creating architecture that embraces open narratives connected with the locality while pursuing logical solutions.