The Suzuki House is a tower, five levels of close-packed domesticity. The spatial choreography is one of compression and expansion. A central 60 cm wide stair leads, after instructing visitors to abandon their shoes, up to a double-height living salon. Here the family of four (plus dog “Potato”) congregate. Here four windows mediate between the intimate interior and the matrix of Tokyo. A large central lens-like window floods the room with light, a horizontal slit window frames views from the table (western sitting height) and a floor level window (Japanese sitting height) allows deliveries of objects wider than 60 cm. A vertical light-slit separates a suspended 2.0 x 2.5 m box (daughter’s room) from the shielding facade. The back wall accommodates storage, cupboards on the sleeping balcony, kitchen and piano on the living level and bathroom equipment at ground level. The reduced ground level plan provides space to park an Austin Mini Cooper.
