machiya housing typologies

Completed in collaboration with a partner during the Asian Architecture, Landscape, and Urbanism study abroad program, this project analyzes the spatial fundamentals of the Machiya housing typology — a form deeply rooted in Japanese urban tradition. Machiyas are defined by their programmatic duality: living quarters on the second floor and a shop on the ground floor. Interiors are flexible, minimally furnished, and structured around an extensive system of sliding doors.

A key spatial element is the engawa — the threshold space that wraps both the inner and outer perimeter of the house, dissolving the boundary between interior and exterior and extending the continuity of movement and light. The Machiya studied is located in Kanazawa’s Higashi-chaya district, a preserved geisha quarter known for its layered procession and cultural specificity.

Through plan and section analysis, we identified four core spatial strategies: flexibility, linear procession, threshold, and engawa circulation. A series of design tests then reoriented the Machiya toward each of these properties, revealing how subtle shifts in spatial emphasis could transform the typology’s behavior and atmosphere.