When architects Kyoto Ikuta and Katsuyuki Ozeki surveyed the flat site for the Forest Bath, there were no sweeping views to capture—but there was a towering Japanese larch tree.
The summer house in Nagano, Japan, is bathed in filtered light that reflects through broad windows set into the triangular frame. The 768-square-foot home is divided into three sections: a living room at the point of the triangle, a bedroom to the west, and a bathroom to the east. Ikuta and Ozeki designed the symmetrically pitched home to create a spatial experience that would ultimately extend the eye upward toward the forest ceiling. Captured perfectly in the open skylight is the looming 30-foot-tall larch tree; whose angular shape and extending height inspired the project itself.
Photography by Tomohiro Sakashita for Kyoto Ikuta and Ozeki Architects & Associates.
Above: An oak table, bench, and Wegner wishbone chairs sit indoors.
Above: The flat site in Nagano with overarching larch tree.
Above: The central courtyard is the opening for the expansive angular frame.
Above: Filtered sunlight beams down into the concrete courtyard.
Above: Windows in the east wing bath open onto the surrounding forest.
Above: The small-space bedroom comprises the west wing of the house.