Row House in Sumiyoshi: A Stronghold for the Independent Urban Dweller
The house that marked Ando’s debut as an architect. Inserted into a down-to-earth Osakan neighborhood, the reticent concrete box made a striking impression on all who beheld it.
1: Blocking Out the City
Row House Sumiyoshi (1976) by Tadao AndoOriginal Source: Tadao Ando Architect & Associates
At a time when urban environmental deterioration was growing more severe, Ando arrived at the solution of using concrete walls to block out the city while creating a self-contained domestic environment within.
Proposed as a base for the contemporary urbanite, the Row House in Sumiyoshi was built by demolishing the middle home of a trio of wooden row houses and inserting a hermetic box made of exposed site-cast concrete in its place.
The concrete wall appears prepared to reject any intrusion from the outside world. Though seemingly rough in texture, the wall’s unembellished surface expresses a subtlety and tranquility that have since become defining traits of Ando’s exposed concrete aesthetic.
2: Living with Nature
Row House Sumiyoshi (1976) by Tadao AndoOriginal Source: Tadao Ando Architect & Associates
A courtyard occupies the center of the narrow lot, which has been divided into three segments. The living room sits across from the dining room and bathroom on the first floor, and the master bedroom and children’s room are on the second floors connected by the bridge.
Designed with the intent of bringing an awareness of nature back into the urban domestic realm, the house’s rooms shut out the surrounding city while opening up to the inner courtyard that takes in the elements such as sunlight, wind, and rain.
In addition to serving as a light court for bringing daylight into the rooms, the courtyard also gives the intimate private spaces an added sense of depth.
A tranquil air permeates the snug minimal interiors that contain only what is truly essential.
All of the furniture has been made using the same kind of wood that Ando grew up with. The spaces are imbued with a sense of temporal depth as the material ages over time.
The architecture composed of the bare minimum embraces the way of life of its residents and cultivates a rich domestic landscape.
Row House Sumiyoshi (1976) by Tadao AndoOriginal Source: Tadao Ando Architect & Associates
“The simple composition with its varied spaces, its impervious character, and its living spaces that are brought alive by light—this house can be described as the archetype of what I imagine architecture to be.” (Tadao Ando)
text：Shinichi Kawakatsu
Editor：Ryusuke Wada
Direction：neucitora
Supervision：Tadao Ando Architect & Associates
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