Dezeen Magazine

W-Window House by Alphaville

This shimmering steel house in Kyoto by Japanese architects Alphaville towers above its vernacular neighbours.

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Triangular cut-aways create light wells on two opposite sides of the building, where all the windows are lined up on top of one another.

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Inside the house are three split-level storeys, connected by paper-like stairs with white surfaces and black undersides.

W-Window House by ALPHAville

"The sunlight shifts from east to west, the wind blows through from the first floor to the third floor and all the noise from outside, all the discontinuous context is transformed by simple architecture," explain architects Kentaro Takeguchi and Asako Yamamoto.

W-Window House by ALPHAville

See more projects by Alphaville here, including a house with slanted walls and square peepholes.

W-Window House by ALPHAville

See more Japanese houses on Dezeen »

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Photography is by Kei Sugino.

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Here's a few project details from the architects:


W-Window House

Use: residence
Site: Kyoto, Japan

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Site area: 47.6m2
Building area: 28.13m2
Total floor area: 72.42m2

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Building scale: 3 stories
Structure system: steel
Structural engineer: Kazuo Takeguchi (AOI Structural Engineering Office Co.Ltd)

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Isometric diagram

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Structural diagram

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Plans (1. Dining Room, 2. Storage, 3. Bathroom, 4. Living room, 5. Bedroom)

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Section (1. Dining Room, 2. Storage, 3. Bathroom, 4. Living room, 5. Bedroom)

W-Window House by ALPHAville

Elevation