Concrete jungle where dreams are made of It?s almost hard to believe that this M.C. Escher-like residential building in Tokyo is actually real. Designed by local architect Akihisa Hirata, ?Tree-ness House,? as it?s dubbed, rises on a narrow but deep site in the district of Otsuka, reaching upward and outward toward the sky by way of protruding volumes, staircases, and terraces.
The concrete apartment features a facade that is notched with asymmetrical window boxes that appear to be folded, whose pleats and voids create built-in planters and terraces for greenery. Other volumes establish outdoor staircases that provide access to another level or to the roof.
This program allows for a unique system of indoor-outdoor living, one that is ?tangled,? as the architect notes. Layered like the parts of a tree, the interiors are similarly dynamic, with staggered floors, a central atrium, glass walls, and planters. Tree-ness House calls to mind the Bosco Verticale, or ?Vertical Forest? in Milan, albeit in miniature. ?It is possible to create an architectural logic that creates a similar organically layered and ?tangled? structure,? the practice said. ?The design seeks to develop this new architectural principle, with the intention of creating a complex ecosystem connected to the city.? Have a look at these photos by Vincent Hecht.

Via: Designboom

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