Translucent glazing and concrete encase compact family home

Japan’s IGArchitects have used a series of large translucent windows to bring a lantern-like quality to Check Patterned House, a concrete home in Saitama, Japan.

Designed for a small family with a limited budget, the home occupies just 70 square metres and is planned around two large concrete blocks.

The blocks provide structural support and contain service spaces that allow the remaining walls to be finished with full-height glazing, creating a gridded facade that informs the project's name – Check Patterned House.

With costs an issue, IGArchitects two concrete blocks were erected like columns, with slabs cantilevered from these concrete blocks without foundations.

The wall pillars enclose private functions that don’t require big windows, including the entrance, bathroom, toilet, storage, and service space. 

Located at the northeastern and southwestern corners of the site, the concrete volumes are bridged by open living areas and bedrooms across the home's two storeys.

These living spaces are wrapped by translucent glazing to provide light while maintaining privacy. At night, the glow from the glass creates a lantern-like effect. 

Check Patterned House's entrance leads through into an open plan living, dining, and kitchen space opposite a bedroom, with a concrete stair leading up to a second bedroom and a workspace.

Wood-framed, sliding windows in the translucent facade allow both floors to be partially opened to the exterior. Outside, a small, paved route and area of planting wrap the perimeter of the site. 

The concrete corner blocks and floor plate are left exposed and teamed with wooden floors, timber partition walls, and sliding doors allowing the interiors to be easily modifiable in the future.