Wooden ceiling beams extend beyond the walls of this boxy black house in Japan by Apollo Architects & Associates, creating a canopy above a secluded entrance courtyard (+ slideshow). More
Small-scale fittings, blackboards walls and round toilet cubicles are incorporated into this kindergarten in Japan, designed by architecture studios Hibino Sekkei and Youji no Shiro around a garden playground (+ slideshow). More
The homes of three families are contained behind the smooth stone facade of this building in Kuwait by local architecture studio Massive Order. More
Eight glass-walled gardens offer views of greenery to the occupants of this minimally furnished house in Cuernavaca, Mexico, by architecture firm Goko (+ slideshow). More
A perforated brick wall encloses a series of internal courtyards and gardens at the latest Maggie's Centre for cancer care, designed by Edinburgh office Reiach and Hall Architects (+ slideshow). More
The brick exterior of this Sydney house by Matthew Gribben Architecture belies its light-filled interior, which features five secluded courtyards arranged around the perimeter (+ slideshow). More
Atelier Data has extended a 1980s home in the Algarve, Portugal, with whitewashed concrete structures and fenced-in courtyards (+ slideshow). More
A horseshoe-shaped courtyard with a matching first floor terrace forms the heart of this remodelled and extended house in Kuala Lumpur, designed by local architect Eleena Jamil (+ slideshow). More
The zigzagging profile of this courtyard bar in Liverpool, England, mimics the gabled roofline of the warehouses that provide its backdrop (+ slideshow). More
This house in Spain by Swiss architect Gus Wüstemann features a largely windowless exterior, but an internal courtyard surrounded by perforated walls ensures that light permeates the building all year round (+ slideshow). More
Tilting and folding timber screens cover sections of this house by Buenos Aires studio VDV ARQ, to provide privacy and shade for the occupants without blocking light and views (+ slideshow). More
A sheltered outdoor cooking area commonly found in traditional Japanese farmhouses is reinterpreted to form the open-air centre of this family house in Kanagawa by Japanese architect Yoshiyasu Mizuno (+ slideshow). More
A courtyard garden divides the two sides of this concrete house in Vienna, which has been squeezed onto a plot just five metres wide by local architecture studio Caramel (+ slideshow). More
Two light-filled courtyards and a private parking space are concealed behind the metal-clad facade of this small house in Osaka, Japan, by local firm Arbol Design (+ slideshow). More
An indoor courtyard with an earth floor and central tree is concealed behind the concrete walls of this bulky house in Hiroshima by Japanese studio Suppose Design Office (+ slideshow). More
Japanese architect Kazuhiko Kishimoto has combined a doctor's surgery and a courtyard house in a bulky building with tapered concrete feet (+ slideshow). More
This house for a surgeon in Chiba, Japan, by Apollo Architects & Associates contains courtyards with elevated wooden walkways and glass walls behind its thick concrete exterior (+ slideshow). More
A covered courtyard has been inserted into the side of this Kurashiki house by Japanese firm TT Architects (+ slideshow). More
Glazed walls slide back to connect the L-shaped living room to a corner courtyard in this Sydney house renovated by local firm Tribe Studio. More
Family members can see into all rooms across the central courtyard of this Japanese house by Sapporo studio Archi LAB. t+m. More