Shuhei Goto's Floating House in Ogasa features two-tone cladding and a 360-degree window
A sliver of glass separates the two volumes of this bottom-heavy residence in Japan's Shizuoka Prefecture, which is made up of a bulky rectilinear base with a house-shaped block on top (+ slideshow).
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_14.jpg)
Japanese firm Shuhei Goto Architects based the bottom-heavy design on a photograph of a traditional Japanese warehouse featuring a raised floor, which was built in 300 BC.
The aim was to create the illusion of a floating house-shaped block on top.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_02.jpg)
The 120-square-metre residence has a wood and steel frame. It is clad in two-tone grey cladding that lends the house an industrial appearance, and emphasises the distinction between the ground and first floors.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_3.jpg)
The project is named Floating House in Ogasa after both its formation and its location in Ogasa, a town in the west of Shizuoka Prefecture.
Goto set out with two converse intentions – to create a feeling of openness, but also privacy within the densely built-up residential area.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_7.jpg)
"The site is surrounded by the houses of neighbours, so the main theme of the design was to form a space with excellent privacy and an open space with brightness," he said.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_5.jpg)
The strip of glass sandwiched between the first and second floor is supported by steel struts, and gives a 360-degree view of the neighbourhood from the wooden staircase.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_10.jpg)
It also acts as a clerestory window for the open-plan living area at ground level, which has only a few windows. A broad set of glass doors boarders a raised tatami mat-covered space, and faces into the property's back garden and rockery.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_6.jpg)
The interior is finished with white walls and pale wooden fittings throughout to add to the illusion of space.
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_8.jpg)
"A living room is surrounded by the sky on every side, so the resident doesn't have to care about neighbours," explained Goto. "This house can bring him or her a bright and healthful life."
![Floating House in Ogasa by Shuhei Goto Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2016/01/floating-house-ogasa-shuhei-goto-architects-japan_dezeen_936_4.jpg)
The structure takes on the same traditional gabled form and metallic cladding as another project Shuhei Goto Architects designed for a family in the nearby city, Kosai.
Photography is by Takumi Ota.
Project credits:
Architecture: Shuhei Goto Architects
Structural design: Takeshi Kaneko
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