A Polyphonic House
Nowness presents a short film on Japanese architect Suzuko Yamada’s own house in suburban Tokyo. Shrouded by trees, the six-year-old “steel-and-timber Tokyo home sits in dialogue with the trees that envelop it.”
Curiously, Yamada was inspired by something alien to Tokyo (outside of the Ueno Zoological Gardens): gorillas. Observing a family of gorillas in a forest, “she noticed they all lived harmoniously together by creating both personal and community space, while seeking natural resting points in the forest.” Not limited to this unconventional inspiration, Yamada describes the house completed in 2019 as “similar to a polyphony,” where “all kinds of melodies are welcomed.”
Watch the five-minute film that is part of Nowness's “In Residence” series below or on the Nowness website.