House with Hooked Multi-Level Crossing by ihrmk – Innovative Residential Design in Miyoshi, Japan

The House with Hooked Multi-Level Crossing is a thoughtfully designed family residence for a couple and their children, situated on a corner plot in a residential zone of Miyoshi City. In a community where streets double as social spaces and playgrounds, the architects reimagined how a home could mediate visibility, privacy, and interaction.

Instead of retreating entirely indoors due to the proximity of neighbors, the design embraces openness through a hook-shaped layout that traverses laterally and vertically, forming both visible and invisible surfaces. This unique geometry fosters connection without intrusion, balancing privacy with engagement with the surroundings.

Architecture & Spatial Organization

To avoid overwhelming the corner plot—approximately twice the size of neighboring lots—the architects embedded a half-story underground, creating two distinct building masses under a single 1.5-story roof. This layout prevents the house from dominating the street while offering an elevated sense of openness.

Key spatial features include:

• Stepped Alley & Bridge: A diagonal arrangement of two building blocks connected by a bridge leading to the children’s playroom. The bridge crosses over the open hook-shaped alley, enhancing vertical circulation.
• Open Spaces: Dining-kitchen aligned with the front road Two-story atrium living space beneath grand stairs Roofed terraces on north and south sides These spaces transform what could have been leftover areas into a dynamic “stepped alley”, creating a balance of private and public zones within the home.
• Dining-kitchen aligned with the front road
• Two-story atrium living space beneath grand stairs
• Roofed terraces on north and south sides These spaces transform what could have been leftover areas into a dynamic “stepped alley”, creating a balance of private and public zones within the home.

Living Experience

The house’s hook-shaped circulation ensures comfortable transitions between the kitchen, living areas, and upper-level spaces, while maximizing natural light and ventilation from the terraces. The interplay of lateral and vertical layers turns interior corridors into active, semi-public areas. This “stepped alley” is simultaneously a private street within the house and a subtle, almost invisible extension of the city’s urban fabric.

The design encourages social interaction, relaxation, and play while maintaining spatial privacy, allowing the home to adapt fluidly to the family’s evolving needs.

Architectural Highlights

• Innovative multi-level hook-shaped circulation
• Integration of interior and exterior open spaces
• Creative use of terraces and atriums for light, ventilation, and visibility
• Stepped alley concept transforms leftover spaces into functional, social zones
• Diagonal building mass arrangement for privacy and spatial layering