This brutalist bunker-style house manages to feel bright and welcoming by using warm wood detailing and plenty of greeneries to offset the grey hues.
This extensive concrete structure formed the 9,439-square-foot abode using a system of concrete beams, freeing the ground floor plan from columns and poles, connecting different spaces using spatial partitions. By having the supporting pillars hung upside down on the terrace, this feature transmitted the weight of the house from being downward to now directed upward. The series of grouped concrete stem wall foundations and large momentum systems on the terrace serve as the anchor points for the structure of the house, known as the load-bearing construction method.
The bunker house brings the outdoors in by lowering the courtyard to the basement's level, allowing natural light to reach down and bathe the floor. With areas such as the garden on the first floor, the terrace on top and the outdoor dining area, the house takes full advantage of the surrounding nature to fashion the house with many sources of light and greenery.
The raw aesthetics and texture of the bunker-style abode is also shown through the waffle slabs from the common area’s ceiling lingered onto the concrete and metal passageway on the outside. As often seen in naturalist landscaping and brutalist architecture, the spacious concrete residence is filled with different trees and plants all around, giving the house not only ecological benefits but also exciting decorations in urban living.
Lastly, ironwood is used as the main material to create the wooden covers to provide privacy on the second floor. Imported from Africa, the team of designers and constructors made the width of these timber plates to be thin and covered them in a layer of high-quality oil to protect them from fissures.
Photo: Hiroyuki Oki
