For sale, a secluded gallery-like retreat by Kengo Kuma in Nagakura, Japan

Wild Bird Forest Lodge is a luxuriously minimalist house in Japan’s Nagano Prefecture, shaped by Kengo Kuma & Associates and now for sale, contents included

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Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma
Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma
(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Completed ten years ago by Kengo Kuma & Associates, the Wild Bird Forest Lodge is now for sale through Sotheby’s International Realty Japan. Minimalist in detail but rich in scale and materiality, the 240 sq m villa is arranged as a series of structures on a 0.6-acre site in Nagakura, close to Karuizawa Town in Nagano Prefecture in Honshu.

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Explore Kengo Kuma's Wild Bird Forest Lodge

Set in a managed resort close to a nature preserve, the design of the vacation home was designed by Kuma with inspiration taken from the flight paths of wild birds. Dramatic oversailing galvanised steel roofs extend outwards above the living spaces, with exposed timber joists blended with the steel frame.

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

The main bedroom terrace

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Kengo Kuma

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

The enclosed spaces are made from reinforced concrete and steel, with timber clad walls and flooring paired with traditional tatami mats. The accommodation consists of four pavilions, with a two-storey main building housing the main, living and kitchen on the upper level, surrounded by covered terraces.

The dining room at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

The dining room at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

The dining room at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

The dining room at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Below this is a sauna and traditional Japanese bath, the latter with large windows overlooking the surrounding vegetation. The primary bedroom is located in a pavilion adjoining the main building but sharing the same roof structure. From an entrance hall, steps lead down to an expansive bedroom area with its own secluded private terrace.

The main bedroom at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

The main bedroom at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

The main bedroom at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

The main bedroom at Wild Bird Forest Lodge

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Two other pavilions are arranged as Japanese style rooms with tatami mat floors, adjoining bathrooms and terraces covered by a substantial mono-pitch roof. The original brief called for a house that was part gallery, part residence and throughout the various spaces, furnishings and artworks were chosen especially for the house – all are included in the sale.

Two of the pavilions are arranged as traditional Japanese style rooms

Two of the pavilions are arranged as traditional Japanese style rooms

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Two of the pavilions are arranged as traditional Japanese style rooms

Two of the pavilions are arranged as traditional Japanese style rooms

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

The lower level includes a Japanese bath and sauna

The lower level includes a Japanese bath and sauna

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

The property is located around 6.5 km from Karuizawa Station on JR’s Hokuriku Shinkansen, around an hour’s journey from Tokyo.

Views of Wild Bird Forest Lodge

Views of Wild Bird Forest Lodge

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Views of Wild Bird Forest Lodge

Views of Wild Bird Forest Lodge

(Image credit: Sotheby’s International Realty, Japan)

Wild Bird Forest Lodge, Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, designed by Kengo Kuma & Associates, $10,033,046, SothebysRealty.com

kkaa.co.jp

Jonathan Bell

Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House, and co-edits the long-running things magazine weblog.