NAYA Architects / Manabu Naya

The property consists of three connected buildings: a main house believed to be about 80 years old, along with two later additions. The son and his wife moved back into the main house where their parents lived, and together with the adjacent building, they converted the property into a two-generation home. They completely renovated the main house, retaining only a single 8-tatami-mat Japanese-style room at its center.

The central axis of the design was to create a shared passageway between the two buildings, allowing the two households to remain connected while maintaining a comfortable sense of distance.

For the passageway, in accordance with the son’s wish to preserve as much of the main house’s character as possible, the ceiling of the previously partitioned room was retained, and the space was extended to connect to the newly planned entrance for the parents. As a result, a unique space was created that seems to cut across the history of the house.