A guesthouse for rent by the whole building located in Miyagawa-cho, one of the five geisha districts of Kyoto. Geisha districts are areas where teahouses line the streets and geisha and maiko, who have excelled in music and dance since the Edo period, have been performing their captivating arts. Despite being in Kyoto, this street, which retains the traditional atmosphere of “appreciating the beauty of shadows”, is also known as “Miyagawa-suji”, and still exudes an air of refinement. This guesthouse, which can be reached by walking along such a street, blends in with its surroundings without destroying the atmosphere, and its design emphasizes the cohesiveness of the entire area.

Once inside, guests are greeted by 2700mm-high fittings with a hammered finish said to have been favored by Sen no Rikyu, and beyond that lies an open space that seamlessly continues into the living room/dining room and the open-air bath on the balcony. I think that considering the needs of guests who will spend time there is the key to good design, but what is important is the part that cannot be seen in the plans or photos. That is why I try to create spaces that “design time”.

Staying in a machiya is a nostalgic and wonderful experience, and even in the hot summer months, the tiled floors keep you cool, while in the winter, the underfloor heating keeps you warm. There is a fully equipped kitchen, a dining table and living room where conversation flows easily, an indoor bath with plenty of hot water, a full-fledged sauna, and an open-air bath that can be either a hot bath or a cold bath after the sauna. This open-air bath can be separated from the living room by sliding glass doors, and in summer a large screen door is installed on the outside to keep out insects. There is also a laundry room with a custom-made counter that can be used as an ironing board for long-term guests, and a simple bar area on the second floor where you can enjoy a drink without having to go all the way to the kitchen. We believe that this kind of thoughtful attention to detail makes our guests’ stay more fulfilling.

In addition to these physical elements, we also paid attention to the design aspects such as the lighting plan, texture, and local production for local consumption. The space that guests see first when they step inside is lit with direct lighting rather than indirect lighting, so that the nostalgic atmosphere outside can be brought in as it is. For the design lighting such as the pendant lamps, we used products from the New Light Pottery Works in Nara, which is known for its attention to detail. In addition, many of the finishes on the walls of this facility are the work of Kyoto washi artist Wataru Hatano. The kitchen and bathroom countertops are also finished with persimmon tannin and hydrophobic paper, allowing guests to enjoy the changes in color over time. At first, they are a deep indigo color, but gradually they change to a color similar to iron rust. The large wall in the living room is a unique combination of Japanese paper and plaster. This texture cannot be achieved with plaster alone or with Japanese paper alone.

The two guest rooms on the second floor were designed to surprise guests. Although the rooms are different, they share the same emphasis on texture. In the first room, in order to make the most of the color and texture of persimmon tannin, Japanese paper was pasted using the “fukuro-bari” technique, which is also used for shoji screens, and a light was placed inside. When the light is turned on, lines of light appear, and when it is turned off, the entire wall becomes plain Japanese paper, expressing “stillness” and “movement”. In the other room, the floor, walls and ceiling are all covered in Japanese paper, but on one surface only, the technique of ‘koyori’ is used to create a pattern resembling willow leaves by pressing the paper with the fingers to create shadows. This creates a quiet space. The aim was to create a facility that would be suitable for hospitality, where the warmth of handicrafts can be felt in every detail, within a traditional townscape.