Tsubasa Iwahashi completes Hyōgo house containing three types of staircase
Behind a simple concrete exterior, this house by Japanese architect Tsubasa Iwahashi contains a complex arrangement of rooms connected by three different kinds of staircase (+ slideshow).
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_21.jpg)
Named Relation, the house was designed by Osaka-based Iwahashi to create a series of separate spaces that are visually connected to one another.
The aim is for the resident family to feel connected to one another when occupying different rooms.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_9.jpg)
"Wherever they are in the house, they can feel a sign of the family," explained the architect, whose other house designs include one planned around a dining table and another with a stripped-back interior.
"[Residents] are connected to each other, but the house has a moderate sense of distance," he said. "They can spend time together or alone."
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_8.jpg)
The property is located in a suburban residential area in Hyōgo Prefecture. It is two storeys high, although its interiors spaces are arranged across multiple floors.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_12.jpg)
The ground floor is level with the street, and slightly sunken down from the area to the rear of the site. The upper storey is split into two levels, creating a hidden storage area under one of the floors, and there is also a loft room in one corner.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_3.jpg)
The first of the house's three staircases is a traditional set of wooden stairs that extend up from the reception to a piano room.
From here, a more minimal set of wooden treads extends up, supported by a diagonal wooden beam.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_22.jpg)
The final climb is provided by a ladder that leads up from a multi-purpose library room to the loft.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_27.jpg)
It is also wooden, but has been painted dark grey to allow it to stand out. One of its supports extends out to become the first piece in a series of angular struts, which frame one end of the loft.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_20.jpg)
The family's living, dining and kitchen areas are are located in one open-plan space on the ground floor. Glass doors allow residents to open the room out to a wooden terrace platform.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_16.jpg)
"On the terrace, the conversation with the neighbours begins, and they will build a relationship with the town," said Iwahashi. "Gradually, the house becomes part of the scenery of the town."
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_29.jpg)
A bathroom and laundry area are tucked away on one side of the living space behind a wall of bare plaster. A small niche shaped like a mouse hole creates a space for plug sockets.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_38.jpg)
Engineered wooden flooring runs throughout the house, apart from at the entrance, where a sunken tiled surface extends in from outside. Wooden ceiling beams are also exposed in every room.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_37.jpg)
Plywood was used to build several furniture elements, including a frame around the piano and a series of bookshelves that double up as screen walls. There are also golden details, both on lighting and windows.
![Relation house in Hyogo, Japan by Tsubasa Iwahashi architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2015/11/Relation_Hyogo-Japan_Tsubasa-Iwahashi_Yoshiro-Masuda_dezeen_936_35.jpg)
Relation was completed in September 2015, and has an overall floor area of 111 square metres.
Photography is by Yoshiro Masuda.
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