24/07/2026
Japanese modernism did not begin with the removal of tatami, shōji or timber.
At Chōchikukyō (聴竹居), completed near Kyoto in 1928, Kōji Fujii used them to create a new kind of modern home.
Swipe through the interiors and details.
— The Linie Archive
In 1920s Japan, chairs, electric lighting and Western-style rooms were becoming part of domestic life.
At Chōchikukyō, they were introduced alongside existing Japanese rooms and customs, rather than replacing them.
The curved opening makes that meeting visible.
Tatami and timber flooring, low Japanese rooms and Western furniture remain distinct, yet are held within one continuous view.
Fujii designed the furniture, lighting and storage as part of the house itself.
The seating, cabinetry and light fittings do not feel added afterwards. They belong to the structure of each room.
Chōchikukyō was also an environmental experiment.
Windows, vents, deep eaves and shaded rooms were planned around daylight, airflow and Japan’s humid climate — decades before “climate-responsive design” became standard language.
Chōchikukyō House — Kōji Fujii
Ōyamazaki, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, 1928
Images: Yuna Yagi for Window Research Institute; additional images from Adam Štěch’s feature for The World of Interiors.
