Slideshow: Japanese architects Future Studio conceived the rooftop terrace of this Hiroshima house as a stage, with its audience in the living room and kitchen.
A ladder leads up from the first floor rooms to the sun deck, which is visible behind a plane of clear glass and two glazed doors.
The walls of the house are rounded, and a second staircase follows these curves to connect the living room with ground floor rooms below.
Brush strokes are visible on the dark-rendered exterior walls and all the windows are square.
The project was completed in 2011, around the same time as the architects also finished a series of colourful public toilets - see them here.
Photography is by Toshiyuki Yano.
Here's some text from Future Studio:
Light stage house
The concept of this house, "sunlight stage" is a proposal of the way of taking sunlight on the site where the condition of sunlight is severe.
The taking point of sunlight is set to a high position of the north side of the house, and all plans arise there.
It becomes the plan of the curved surface because running on of the sun is analyzed, and the angle of incidence is calculated, and brightness is brought to the residence space by the reflection of sunlight.
The sunlight stage changes by making it to a curved and edgeless surface according to the change in the solar position in the difference and the weather, and the space changes.
In the large space of the curved space that changes with the sunlight stage where it keeps changing the expression, we feel the sense wrapped in light from the sunlight stage gently.
Name of the project: Light stage house
Architect: Bunzo Ogawa
Location: Hiroshima, Japan
Use: Private house
Building area: 52.14sqm
Gross area: 104.28sqm
Building scale: 2 stories
Structure system: Timber
Period of design: 2009.11-2010.11
Period of construction: 2010.12-2011.6