The walk to the shower is the most considered route in this house. It crosses a glazed passage between two separate volumes, with a sightline toward the lake. The residence, a shiga prefecture hillside house designed by FORM/Kouichi Kimura Architects for one person, was completed in 2026 on a hill above a lakeside town in Shiga Prefecture.
The house sits on a 271.10-square-meter site and covers about 71.56 square meters of floor area. It has two parts: a two-story main building and a single-story annex. The annex holds the washroom and shower room, and a glazed corridor links it to the main building.
The gap between the two volumes does more than connect them. It opens a continuous sightline from the road, through the property, to the lake. It also creates an in-between space where the house meets the landscape, so that moving from bed to bath means passing through light, breeze and view.
Separating the wet areas into their own building was a clear decision. Bathing and washing sit apart from the living space, and the routine itself becomes a short architectural experience.
If the washroom-as-separate-building idea appeals to you, this Osaka home with transformable sports and family space shows another Japanese approach to flexible room layouts within a compact residence.
Inside the shiga prefecture hillside house
The main building puts the kitchen and dining area on the ground floor. The living room and bedroom sit above. Both levels run as open plans, linked by a double-height space that lets the two floors read as one volume.
The architects define each zone through changes in floor and ceiling height rather than walls. A step up or a drop in ceiling height signals a different activity, but no room is shut off. The result keeps the interior spacious while still giving each use its own character.
The windows in this home follow the same logic. Instead of one wide opening that shows the whole lake, the design frames separate views from different points inside the house. Each opening reveals only part of the landscape, so the viewer notices individual scenes rather than a single backdrop.
The upper living space also serves for listening to music. According to the project description, the double-height volume allows sound to spread and reflect off walls and ceilings. That describes the architects’ intention. The project materials do not include independent acoustic measurements.
High side windows admit daylight that shifts across the walls and floor through the day. The light makes time visible in an otherwise plain interior, and the shadows change with the hour.
The house begins from a simple premise. Instead of shrinking a conventional family house to fit one person, the studio designed around how a single occupant actually lives. Separated volumes, open floors and framed views all follow from that starting point.
Compact plans often lose variety, but this hillside home uses its limited size to create contrast in height, direction and distance. Each shift between the annex, the corridor and the main rooms gives the route a different feel.
Minimalism here, as in much japanese house design, is a matter of choosing where to separate and where not to. The architects built walls only where they mattered, the washroom and shower, and left daily living open. That restraint is what makes the glass passage the house’s most memorable space.
Source: yankodesign.com
Frequently asked questions
Who designed the Shiga Prefecture hillside house?
FORM/Kouichi Kimura Architects designed the house, which was completed in 2026 on a hill above a lakeside town in Shiga Prefecture. It was built for one person.
How is the house divided into separate parts?
The house has a two-story main building and a single-story annex, and the annex holds the washroom and shower room. A glazed corridor links the annex to the main building.
Why is the washroom and shower placed in a separate building?
Separating the wet areas into their own building was a deliberate decision, keeping bathing and washing apart from the living space. This turns the walk to the shower into a short architectural experience.
How does the house separate rooms without using walls?
The architects define each zone through changes in floor and ceiling height rather than walls. A step up or a drop in ceiling height signals a different activity, though no room is shut off.
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