BIG's NOT A HOTEL Setouchi weds Danish and Japanese design

2024-05-17T12:59:00-04:00

BIG has designed a new remote hotel concept on Sagi Island, Japan, for the NOT A HOTEL brand, its sixth property overall. The new Setouchi project follows other hospitality designs from the firm, including the new Hôtel des Horlogers in Switzerland and Vollebak Island in Canada.

Rendering: MIR

Rendering: LIT design

A ribbon-like footpath stitches together the mossy archipelago’s natural landscape with the residential portion of the design. Three villas (‘360,’ ‘270,’ and ‘180’) form a sequence staggered at different elevations on the approximately 323,000-square-foot site overlooking the southwestern cape of Sagi Island. Each features its own unique characteristics and corresponding panoramic views of the sea and inner harbor area, with accommodations that vary between three and four bedrooms.

Rendering: MIR

BIG’s founder, Bjarke Ingels, says: "Our design approach for NOT A HOTEL Setouchi wasn’t about imposing our ideas on the site; instead, it...

Interview with CASE-REAL, architects of "Restaurant on the Sea"

2013-11-13T17:54:00-05:00

Recently featured as part of our ShowCase series, "Restaurant on the Sea" by CASE-REAL is an elegant restaurant located smack on the coastline of Teshima, a tiny island in Japan's Seto Inland Sea. Opening for the Setouchi Triennale, the restaurant continues to serve local Japanese fare to the island's 1,000 inhabitants, after the art-seeking tourists' exodus.

The modest project description left us wanting more, so we asked CASE-REAL to comment on a few of the restaurant's details.

Archinect: What kind of food will the restaurant serve?

CASE-REAL (Ritsu Shibata): You can eat Japanese food in this restaurant, using the local ingredients including seafood from Setouchi Ocean. The restaurant serves a lunch menu, along with a prix fixe dinner menu (only with reservation).

Archinect: What was the inspiration behind the public kitchen?

CASE-REAL: The idea of the "public kitchen" was originally requested by the owner, Ms. Mitsuko Fukutake, who is also a councilor of Fuku...

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BIG's NOT A HOTEL Setouchi weds Danish and Japanese design

Interview with CASE-REAL, architects of "Restaurant on the Sea"