Located in the agricultural village of Tsurugasone, in the city of Nagaoka (Niigata Prefecture), the Hara house seeks to address the problems of rural decline and modern architecture where new, autonomous buildings are superimposed on the terrain, creating an ever-growing separation between inhabitants.
This house is thus designed as "incomplete," a building based on the necessity of other surrounding structures, rather than as an isolated dwelling into which one enters by cutting off from others. It's a large room for family gatherings, a dynamic and lively center, a space where neighbors, friends, and visiting children can easily stop by to chat under the entrance porch, a "powerful absorber," because the empty space invites people and village events to use it; the house thus becomes a part of the village's broader architecture.
The Hara house is a "small house" proposal that demonstrates a new "village management system"; a way to revitalize villages that were once a collection of strong interconnections.
https://www.takerushoji.jp/en/works/housing/hara-house/