Located on the northern edge of Tokyo’s popular Showa Kinen Koen National Park, the design vision for this continuing care retirement community was to embrace the beauty and presence of the site, and use it to create an environment of quiet elegance with an enhanced connection to nature; in short, we wanted the project – and, by extension, the residents – to become “one with the park.”

This goal became the driving force behind the overall master planning and also our layout and proportioning of public spaces. These wrap themselves around the landscape and act as the connective tissue between apartment blocks. Each major space enjoys its own unique garden outlook and is oriented with its long dimension along the windows, maximizing daylight and views for the residents.

The connection to nature is reinforced by our use of warm, natural colors and materials.  We mixed the Old World (non-industrial, vintage, hand-made) with the New World (machine-made, imported accents):  walnut and oak woodwork; natural stone; lacquer; custom Japanese washi and screens; wrought iron; hand-blown glass.  Virtually all the senior-friendly furnishings, light fixtures, carpets and window coverings were custom designed for the project.