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Magritte’s, a Jail-like House in the Heart of Tokyo!

By Eric Meunier

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Japanese studio Atelier Tekuto has designed the Magritte’s project, a tiny home located in a densely populated neighborhood of Tokyo, Japan.

The plot of land is only 491 square feet, and the tiny four story house is all made of concrete.

Would you feel comfortable living in such a house?

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Magritte’s House by Atelier Tekuto:

“Magritte’s is situated in the middle of Tokyo, on a tiny 45.61 m2 of plot of land. The width of front road restricted the size of construction machinery. The conditions made it extremely difficult to build the residence. The client was a married couple in their thirties, and their simple request was the use of concrete for every part of the house including floor, wall, tables etc. They didn’t even care for storage space to satisfy this request.

Atelier Tekuto believes creating architecture is a fight against gravity. There are two ways to escape from the gravity: Use energy to push against gravity like a rocket, or create a structure that contains a volume lighter than air such as a helium balloon. Atelier Tekuto was inspired by Magritte’s work on surrealism and proposed the motif of a massive concrete block escaping from the gravity. For the structure, Atelier Tekuto chose precast concrete with pre-stressed steel bar, to separate the volume between ground floor and basement. Finally Atelier Tekuto found a new element of architecture by rediscovering the common things that were once for granted.”

Photos by: Makoto Yoshida
Source: ArchDaily

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About Eric Meunier

Currently the Owner and Chief Executive of HODYO Design, Eric Meunier's expertise in the design industry spreads over 20 years. He was the driving force behind HomeDSGN's early success, founding this website in 2011. Today, he loves to channel his passion for design into remodeling houses and transforming interior spaces with his keen eye for detail and architectural finesse. Learn more about HomeDSGN's Editorial Process.

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