House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto is a raw concrete home facing out to sea
Japanese architect Kazunori Fujimoto used the golden ratio to generate the proportions of this raw concrete house on the seafront of Fukuyama, Japan (+ slideshow).
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_8.jpg)
Named House in Tajiri, the 98-square-metre property is made up of two overlapping volumes that are both square-shaped in plan – one single-storey and one two-storey.
The building replaces a simple old farmhouse, so Kazunori Fujimoto based his new design on the original geometry.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_0.jpg)
"Before rebuilding, there was the most common farmhouse that had four squarely arranged rooms," said Fujimoto, whose past projects include a concrete house with a walled courtyard and another resembling a half-submerged submarine.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_1.jpg)
"The principal objective of the design was to develop a concrete house from the traditional farmhouse form."
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
The architect arranged the two built volumes in a way that allowed load-bearing external walls to continue through the interior as partitions between rooms.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_4.jpg)
Storage is built into the walls, lining up with the base of windows that extend around all four sides of the house.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_5.jpg)
"The charm of the old farmhouse is a simplicity, a layout of rooms regarded as a structure together, and the components such as eaves and windows controlling the house's environment," said the architect.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_3.jpg)
"Because I was going to replace this characteristic with concrete, I thought about a bearing-wall structure that can be open to all directions," he added.
Externally, the concrete wall surfaces are recessed back from the frame to give the building a skeletal appearance.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_6.jpg)
The entrance is positioned on the northern facade and leads into a long narrow hallway with a staircase winding up through its centre.
A large room to the left accommodates living, dining and kitchen spaces. The bathroom and WC are tucked away at the back, alongside a pair of smaller rooms. Bedrooms can be found upstairs.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_468_7.jpg)
Residents can also climb out onto the roof of the single-storey volume, which forms a terrace with views out across the Seto Inland Sea.
Photography is by the architect.
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_3.gif)
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_0.gif)
![House in Tajiri by Kazunori Fujimoto](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/09/House_in_Tajiri_by_Kazunori_Fujimoto_dezeen_1.gif)