The Bundled Column House

Design description

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machiya renovation, double story entryway interior

Entryway view

The wall on the right side accommodates an electrical panel, telecom equipment etc.

compact house design, machiya renovation, kyoto

Downstairs space view

The retrofitted bundled posts and rounded plywood gusset plates create a new aesthetic character.

compact house design, machiya renovation interior, kyoto

Downstairs space view looking towards the kitchen & entryway

The original log beams, earthen-plastered walls & wood windows (on the right side) are incorporated in the interior space.

Stairs side view

machiya renovation, 2nd floor interior, kyoto

Upstairs space view

Upstairs tatami space view

Bundled column detail

Double storey entryway

Previous window-less dark storage was renovated into part of the double story entryway space. Daylight from the revived original slit openings permeates the space, illuminating the original walls covered by posters & newspapers from Taisho era. In the tatami space, new sliding shoji screens were added.

machiya facade design, roji alleyway, kyoto

Facade view

The original brown tiles were preserved. Wooden lattice screen panels were retrofitted in the old wooden windows. On the upstairs, slit windows (mushiko-mado) were revived and a window box-like mini wooden balcony was added to revert back to the original facade design.

Facade view

roji alleyway row house, kyoto, machiya renovation,

Site location

This 100+ years old wooden row house is located on a narrow (1.6m wide) alleyway. It is a “small island” of traditional housing that did not give way to large building developments.

Floor plans

The Bundled Column House

Description

束ね柱の家

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An old row house renovated into a simple modern low-cost vacation home.

The existing 100+ year-old row house had apparent structural issues; leaning columns and buckled exterior earthen walls, just to list a few. Apparently some structural retrofitting was necessary. Also, higher ceilings were required throughout the new interiors.

In response to those requirements besides the tight construction budget, Yamada Architecture devised a simple design that features bundled columns.

On the interior side of the existing buckled exterior walls, new furred walls were added to provide structural support and also to accommodate thermal insulation and electrical system. The existing leaning columns were bundled with new posts. The bundled columns in conjunction with their arched plywood gusset plates provide rigid column-to-beam connections that are designed to prevent structural collapse in the event of rare severe earthquakes damage, while giving the new taller interior space a distinctive aesthetic character.

(All photos by Yohei Sasakura, unless otherwise noted)

PROJECT INFO

Full renovation of a row house

LOCATION

Kyoto, Japan

SIZE

89 sqm

(1F+2F)

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