Articles by Miwa Negoro

As Japan’s regional communities face population decline and changing burial customs, temples are increasingly required to rethink how spaces for remembrance are built and used. Joren-ji Ossuary replaces an aging reinforced-concrete structure with a new timber building made from locally sourced cedar, proposing a contemporary model for sacred architecture rooted in continuity rather than nostalgia.

Starting from a desire to blend a unique, tropical, and private sanctuary for a house, comes a dwelling that welcomes the user to indulge in natural elements, both man-made and contextual. O16 is located in a gateless complex with a corner site that overlooks a basketball park and the complex perimeter boundary. The house has a secluded feeling with views and a row of eternal greenery that is provided by the surroundings, thus making the 2nd floor of the house basically undisturbed in terms of views.

Societal changes are influencing the composition of offices as well. Woowa Brothers, rapidly adapting to the times, is creating a new future by combining technology with the relationship between nature and people. This attitude is reflected in the office space, leading to a direction that pursues flexible and nature-friendly environments.

Located within the tree-lined streets of Colonel Light Gardens, NTH by Ply Architecture is a carefully resolved addition that responds to both context and family life. Set among a fabric of heritage bungalows, the project adopts a measured architectural language—balancing continuity with distinction—to ensure a respectful integration within its established streetscape.

The site has an area of 35m² with a frontage of 3.6m for a young family located on Tran Cung Street, which was established in 2005. This street is spread over villages (“Làng”) Hoang 1, Hoang 2, and Hoang 4 of “Xã Cổ Nhuế”, which is now Co Nhue 1 ward, Bac Tu Liem district, Hanoi City.

Active worldwide for more than 75 years, the Goethe-Institut commissioned a purpose-built space from concept to construction for the first time in its history. As one of its main hubs in West Africa, the choice of Kéré Architecture reflects Goethe-Institut Dakar’s ambition to define what cultural exchange looks like in the 21st century.

This project is for a new office and residence for a construction company with a 50-year history in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture. The client owned two large warehouses near the site, both overflowing with unused timber—mostly surplus wood ordered in bulk by the previous generation, who had been a carpenter, along with reclaimed lumber collected during demolition. Although there were no clear plans for its use, the material had continued to accumulate year after year, too valuable to discard. Many construction companies and lumberyards across Japan hold similar stockpiles of timber lying dormant in warehouses.

House 30 is designed on a precise 30 cm grid that guides both how the home is built and how it looks. The layout follows a clear rhythm: four light stripes followed by one dark stripe, with all walls placed specifically on those dark lines.