It is a building cooperative for nine families in a historic area in central Tokyo. We attempted to design the building itself and the organisation process of this project to make maximum use of each resident's imagination. It is challenging work to build one structure with a dozen of clients and several interior designers. In addition to setting design rules, we also held several workshops with the residents to consider what living together is compared to living alone. We also set out to achieve a variety of individual interior designs and create a sense of unity for the whole building.
The flat is composed of various shapes using a simple grid to obtain a different view from the inside. Nine configurations bring out interior identities, and the result is this collective has diverse characteristics. Each flat is tied by exterior staircases and an alley and connected gently to the street from the site. The sophisticated, handcrafted outer wall finishing gives a warm texture to the concrete and blends well with this historic city. We considered the richness of living together and how architecture should be in the future for life within a historic city.