Four of us. One shaft of light.
京都の古い家に、あたらしい光を。
Kōji Nakagawa Architecture Studio renovates compact timber-frame machiya and designs small cafe interiors in Kyoto’s historic districts. Four of us, working slowly, one building at a time.
- 10–18 months, typically
- From ¥4.5M for feasibility & concept
Light is borrowed, never wasted.
光は借りるもの。ひとつも無駄にしない。
A narrow machiya has little street frontage, so we bring daylight inward through courtyards and let it travel from room to room. This “borrowed light” approach is the heart of our work. We build with reclaimed cedar from local demolitions, so timber from Kyoto’s past becomes part of its next chapter.
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Borrowed-light courtyards
Daylight enters through the courtyard and passes from room to room.
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Reclaimed local cedar
Timber from Kyoto’s demolitions, given a second life in the frame.
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Compact timber-frame townhouses
Machiya renovated for owners in the historic districts.
Selected work, drawn and photographed.
Each project is shown the way we think about it: plans, section drawings and large photographs side by side. Machiya renovations and small cafe interiors are presented in the same quiet format, so the buildings speak for themselves.
Showing 6 of 6 placeholder tiles
- Image to come01Machiya
Machiya renovation
Plan, section and photographs.
- Image to come02Cafe
Cafe interior
Plan, section and photographs.
- Image to come03Machiya
Machiya renovation
Plan, section and photographs.
- Image to come04Machiya
Machiya renovation
Plan, section and photographs.
- Image to come05Cafe
Cafe interior
Plan, section and photographs.
- Image to come06Machiya
Machiya renovation
Plan, section and photographs.
Read the building in plan and section.
Every project page opens with a large photograph, then moves to the plan and section drawings that explain how light and timber work together. Short notes describe the site, the materials and the role of the courtyard.
- The siteA short note
- The materialsA short note
- The courtyardA short note
Four people, one city, many old houses.
四人の小さな事務所。京都の古い家と、長く付き合う。
We are a four-person studio in Kyoto, working for owners of machiya and small cafes in the historic districts. A small team means the people you meet at the start are the people who draw your building.
- Four-person studioThe people you meet at the start are the people who draw.
- Kyoto historic districtsOwners of machiya and small cafes, on streets we know.
- Residential and cafe interiorsCompact timber-frame townhouses and small cafe rooms.
Tell us about your house. お問い合わせはこちら。
Share a few lines about your building or cafe space and where it stands. You are welcome to write in Japanese or English.
日本語でも英語でもご連絡いただけます。
- Projects typically run 10–18 months.
- Fees start around ¥4.5M for a feasibility study and concept design.