The construction of the Clover House in the small town of Okazaki, which began in May 2015, took not six months, as planned, but almost one and a half. Nevertheless, all the solutions stated in the project were fully implemented.
The typical prefabricated house of brother and sister Nara could not accommodate all the pupils of their private kindergarten and did not meet modern educational goals. Having preserved the wooden structures, which, incidentally, led to significant savings, Ma Yansong and his team "covered" them with a kind of hood trimmed with snow-white bituminous tiles - an obvious symbol of life started from a clean slate.
With its form, this new "clothing" nevertheless pays tribute to the neighboring gable roofs, but the intriguing slot-entrance in the corner and irregular slot-windows of various sizes turn the building into something mysterious and fantastic and diversify its perception both from the outside and from the inside. A flexible learning zone is located in the "old" core, and dynamic spaces are formed between it and the outer shell, constantly changing due to the whims of the cut-off game. Finally, there is an open playground in front of the house, which can be accessed even from the second floor by sliding down a special chute.
It has become a three-story building and has increased its area from the original 105 to almost 300 square meters. m the house is completely devoid of color accents. Nevertheless, it turned out to be very bright. But one cannot “get tired” of such an environment: it is diverse, complex, infinitely interesting for both the child and the adult, but calm, harmonious and not at all tiring. At the same time, the interior is neutral and versatile enough so that the child can easily imagine that he is not just at home, but in his own home.
