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ByGilbert Mohtes-Chan, Inman News
J une 30, 2011
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House of Shel ves
687
The innovative 'Shelf-pod' house in Osaka, J apan can hold 10 tons of books.
Photo: Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio
Floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall shelving defines a compact, 557-square-foot home in Osaka
prefecture, J apan, designed by J apanese Architect Kazuya Morita.
Designed for a young historian with an extensive book collection in Islamic history, Morita designed
the house with interlocking laminated pine boards that slot together to forma lattice of towering
shelving units.
'Shelf-pod' Downsizes McMansion Trend
Every element -- fromthe stairs to the windows -- were scaled to the individual shelf unit, "with the
aim of achieving geometrical harmony which is comparable to Islamic architecture," Morita's
website notes.
The shelving had to be strong enough to support the entire house. "This is an unusual structure. I
never experienced this kind of architecture," said Morita, who declined to disclose the cost to build
the house. Numerous tests and experiments were run on models to ensure the structural integrity
and convince city planning officials to issue a building permit. The home's exterior features a
painted clay and bamboo wall, with cedar exterior wall plate. The interior is finished with plaster.
"It can support 10 tons of books," said Morita, who
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Exterior of the shelf-pod house in Osaka.
Photo: Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio
A good place for knick-knacks.
Photo: Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio
opened his architecture studio in 2000. And, he
added, "it can survive earthquakes."
The shelving even extends into the home's
bathroom, covering a wall above the toilet and
bathtub.
Construction of the shelving for the "Shelf-Pod"
home began in mid-2006, and the home was
completed in March 2007. Morita's website details
the many stages of construction, including the
preconstruction of the large shelving units, which
were assembled and structurally tested in a massive
laboratory at Kyoto University's Katsura Campus.
He commented in a blog post that the client "was not
entirely (sure) how to use this," when he saw the
design. Morita also commented that he was "rather
pleasantly surprised," during a visit to the home in 2008, to see how the client had furnished the
home and was using the space.
Considered part of a new generation of architects,
the 39-year-old Morita has wowed interior design
and architecture critics with the Shelf-Pod and some
other innovative and unique housing designs,
including the "Pentagonal House." He noted that the
Shelf-Pod was one of his most ambitious and
challenging projects.
For Morita, the Shelf-Pod embodies a movement
toward smaller, greener houses, and the increasing
need to build more compactly in crowded big cities
and retrenching suburban communities. He
describes his work as a harmonious marriage of
traditional and modern architecture, which
incorporates sustainable materials and eco-friendly
amenities. His homes blend indoor and outdoor
environments and demonstrate that comfortable
living can come in small spaces.
"J apanese architecture always has to be smaller. We
have to live more efficiently," he said in an interview
from his office in Kyoto, J apan. "Many big cities have
the same problems. They are sprawling and
sprawling. It's a very international situation." His
smaller home designs, he said, are "very useful in China, New York, London and other big cities."

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