Simple cabins make up this communal live-work space in Japan

Japanese architect Makoto Suzuki designed a house for himself and his wife—plus a weekend retreat for his father and a studio for sculptor Takenobu Igarashi—all as a single compound.

Located in Tokiwa, on the island of Hokkaido, the home is formed by a series of simple wood-framed cabins with sloping roofs offset from one another and arranged around a central communal space.

Large windows and clean-lined interiors with timber wall paneling call to mind midcentury modern design, and indeed, they are meant to frame views of the woodland site as well as allow residents to experience the surrounding landscape and be immersed in it.

Two wings roughly make up the property, and each one is characterized by two two-story or otherwise double-height volumes connected by a single-story common space like a kitchen. Connecting the two wings appears to be a bathroom. Work spaces—including a step-down double-height studio and a floor of desks—are located in one wing, while the private quarters seem to be congregated in the other.

Via: Designboom