INTERVIEW: Takaharu Tezuka Incorporates Nature and Function in Architecture

Inhabitat recently had the chance to interview architect Takaharu Tezuka about his unique project the Roof House which emphasizes comfort and functionality over opulence and grandiose design. Tezuka, of Japanese firm <a href="http://www.tezuka-arch.com/english/">Tezuka Architects</a>, operates on the importance of creating functional homes uniquely catered to the residents living within. Read on to see what this innovative thinker and thoughtful architect had to say about the Roof House and about architecture today.

Tezuka says that he was commissioned to design a home for a family that particularly enjoyed relaxing on their roof. Working from this simple starting point, he designed the home so that every room has a skylight through which one can access the roof by way of a ladder. Tezuka says this is perhaps the best and most basic example of his design philosophy – a design which appears so simple, but yet which contains many subtleties that one may not immediately notice.

Tezuka strives to incorporate the surrounding natural environment into the home experience as thoroughly as possible. “Wherever you find a human being,” Tezuka says, “we are supposed to be able to cope with the nature around us.

“We treat architecture the same way [as a fish], Tezuka says. “We don't put any extra sauce in it... and we try to slice nature with perfect precision to make the perfect condition for the human being to live in.”

To give an example of how he has instilled this concept into his design, he refers to one of his firm’s most famous projects – Roof House. Tezuka says that he was commissioned to design a home for a family that particularly enjoyed relaxing on their roof. Working from this simple starting point, he designed the home so that every room has a skylight through which one can access the roof by way of a ladder. Tezuka says this is perhaps the best and most basic example of his design philosophy – a design which appears so simple, but yet which contains many subtleties that one may not immediately notice. Read more: Interview: Takaharu Tezuka Incorporates Nature and Function in Architecture | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World