NOTO

A steep, soaring roof with a deep eave and a central dormer above the entrance: at first glance, the building evokes the image of a primitive, archetypal thatched house. Only on closer inspection does it become clear that the wide, overhanging roof shelters not just one dwelling. The striking symmetry and the doubling of several fundamental elements reveal two separate homes, divided by a wall that runs along the ridge line.


The house stands slightly elevated in a wild meadow and is entered from all sides via a continuous wooden veranda. Through the central entrance, one steps directly into the living or dining area on the ground floor. A staircase leads up to the first-floor hall beneath the dormer, from which the bedrooms and the gallery are accessed.



The spatial character of each room—and its relationship to the surrounding landscape—is carefully calibrated according to its position within the building. The roof plays a defining architectural role. On the ground floor, the living spaces extend outward with a horizontal orientation. Floor-to-ceiling corner glazing opens them generously to the exterior, their depth capped only by the sweeping line of the eave. Large sliding doors expand the rooms onto the veranda in summer, from which three steps lead directly into the garden.



The rising spaces beneath the roof are vertically oriented. The bedrooms achieve their full sense of volume only through an upward gaze: lying down, one looks toward the sky through tall, slender windows. The small workspace beneath the round dormer offers a long view into the distance—but only when seated. At the very top of the house, the gallery is lit exclusively from above. The higher one moves through the building, the more introverted the spaces become, ultimately turning inward to focus solely on themselves.


NOTO Studio’s project is a study in duality—two homes sharing a single monumental roof, and two contrasting spatial temperaments shaped by their place within the structure. It is a house that shifts between openness and introspection, between landscape and retreat, choreographed by the quiet power of its roof.