Wild Japanese home spreads over 16 different levels

Japanese studio Tato Architects is no stranger to unorthodox interior layouts. A couple of years ago, the firm designed House in Miyamoto. a bright residence spread over 13 separate platforms inside. Now the studio is besting itself with a new house in Osaka, Japan, designed to incorporate 16 platforms, each serving as its own tiny slice of living space.

In the House in Takatsuki, the angular platforms function almost like stairs; they spiral upwards, creating a pathway from the bottom to the top of the three-story house. In fact, there are no traditional stairs in the house at all—just wooden blocks that help the owners move from one platform to the next, where they can perch and read a book, have dinner, or do work.

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The unusual floorplan has become something of a calling card for the studio, which views platforms as a way to literally knock down walls and create an open, interconnected space.

This air of radical transparency carries through to the indoor-outdoor bathroom and a stepped outdoor terrace as well.

Shinkenchiku Sha

Shinkenchiku Sha

Shinkenchiku Sha

Shinkenchiku Sha