Works
old folk house
Title
old house in taishacho（ Izumo）
2022
Comment
This is a renovation of an old townhouse that has been expanded and remodeled many times since the Meiji and Showa periods. The desire was for a multi-purpose room that could be used not only for living but also for a cram school, etc.
The overall plan was centered on the Meiji-era storehouse, and a new entrance hall was created in the area where the dilapidated house was demolished. Although it is now the back entrance, it has a large front garden, making it a more imposing space.
The storehouse was brought back to life by removing a small room to create a large space and finishing it with plaster.
The chisel marks on the flat stones that cover the dirt floor, the holes left in the pillars where the earthen walls had been removed, the rusty iron bars of the storehouse windows…each of these traces gives a glimpse of the skills and lifestyle of our ancestors. When you realize that even the inconveniences are in fact irreplaceable memories, you also want to preserve those scenes. Some walls of the storehouse lack cornerstones or foundations, but the generosity that does not mind the shortcomings is reassuring.
In an effort to save money, they used dismantled ceiling panels to replace damaged materials in the slab walls, and repaired the Mairado door and repurposed it as an entrance door to the storehouse. At the request of the son, they tried to create a quiet nighttime atmosphere with a bar counter in the storehouse.
The authenticity was brought about by the low cost, but by preserving the original handiwork, it has become a one-of-a-kind sight. They hope that the children who come to the cram school can sense the time inherent in the architecture.
