A lone elegant structure sited between tall monolithic buildings, The Optical Glass House allows for space within the otherwise intimate city of Hiroshima. A project undertaken by Hiroshi Nakamura and his studio NAP, the Optical Glass House reinvents the way we look at modern urbane living and the usage of space.
“Although located downtown in a city, the house enables residents to enjoy the changing light and city moods, as the day passes, and live in awareness of the changing seasons.”
Central to the design is the wall of glass, a façade weighing around 13tonnes and constructed of 6,000 pure-glass blocks. Yet this is no ordinary glass, to achieve the complete clarity NAP required to create their illusion, the glass was produced from borosilicate – the raw material for optical glass also used in laboratory glassware. This glass is also resistant to thermal shock making for a more suitable building material. This transparency makes for a waterfall effect as the light dances over the expansive blank wall canvas.
The glass wall also exhibits a soundproofing effect leaving your eyes to enjoy while your ears relax, the voyeuristic walls providing a soothing backdrop visible from all floors.
The phrase ‘you can’t have your cake and eat it’ simply does not apply – you have your modern abode with nature surrounding you on both sides.
The colouring throughout the house is almost stark, letting nothing detract from the natural beauty and subtleties therein. Even the leather bound door handles add a tactile warmth to an otherwise minimal environment.
Urbane, yet natural and awash with contrasts, the building is a three floored paradox; private yet open, synthetic yet natural, complex yet simple. We’ll take it.
PHOTOS: Koji Fujii/Nacasa & Partners Inc.
