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    Funamachi Base cafe and sweet shop designed as “extension of the park”

    Timber pillars and PVC pipes were left bare to blur the boundaries between the interior and exterior of cafe and sweet shop in Funamachi, Japan, designed by Schemata Architects.

    Named Funamachi Base, the combined sweet store and cafe is located next to a park in the centre of Funamachi, a riverport town in central Japan.
    The cafe is located close to a riverThis location inspired the design of its three buildings, which house a restaurant, sweetshop and a structurewith an office, kitchen and workshop.
    “We envisioned the facility as an extension of the park, including the courtyard connected via flowerpots, so that the boundary between the inside and outside of the site would disappear and one would be gradually drawn inside,” the studio said.
    Part of the foundation of the building forms a counterSchemata Architects’ founder Jo Nagasaka told Dezeen that the aim was also for people to wander into the space as they walk along the river.

    “The main idea was to incorporate the greenway along the river into the facility,” he said. “The design is based on the expectation that people will find themselves entering into the shop as they walk along.”
    Schemata Architects designed the cafe and sweet shop with large overhanging roofsLarge roofs extend out from the buildings of the 326-square-metre Funamachi Base, creating sheltered spaces where visitors can sit and enjoy the cafe’s bean buns.
    “The distance between each building is taken and a roof is placed between them to create a semi-outdoor space, but to avoid clear boundaries between the inside and outside, the idea was to use the same materials inside and out,” Nagasaka said.
    The same materials were used for the interior and exterior of Funamachi BaseMade from concrete and Douglas fir wood, Funamachi Base also features visible PVC pipes, a design choice that Schemata Architects made to underline the interaction between the interior and the exterior.
    “The same materials were used inside and outside: calcium silicate board and putty coating, PVC pipes generally used for outdoor gutters were sandblasted and placed across the inside and outside of the building, and the eaves extended to create a space where the inside and outside are interchangeable,” the studio said.

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    The foundation of the building was designed to bulge out, forming a counter from which to sell the sweets.
    It was also used to create a bench for visitors to rest on and a well, as water is needed to create Japanese sweets.
    A light-brown pattern decorates the facadesThe facades of the buildings have a light-brown pattern, adding to their industrial feel.
    “White walls would make it look like a stylised Japanese building, so we dared to deviate from that,” Nagasaka explained. “We have chosen this so that the construction process is reduced and the finish is unusual.”
    Schemata Architects recently designed the Komaeyu bathhouse in Tokyo, which was shortlisted for a Dezeen Award 2024 in the interiors category.
    The photography is by Yurika Kono.
    Project credits:
    Architect: Jo Nagasaka / Schemata ArchitectsProject team: Yuko YamashitaConstruction: GikenCollaboration: Monochrome (solar panel integrated roof), Fukushima Galilei (kitchen)

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    Bindloss Dawes converts 18th-century pub into light-filled Michelin-starred restaurant

    Architecture studio Bindloss Dawes has renovated an 18th-century pub in Somerset, England, to create an “intimate” new home for the Osip farm-to-table restaurant.

    Helmed by chef Merlin Labron-Johnson, Michelin-starred Osip was located on Bruton High Street in Somerset until August of this year, when it was transferred to a nearby Georgian pub built in 1730.
    Bindloss Dawes has created a new home for OsipLocal architecture office Bindloss Dawes stripped the three-storey building back to its original shell by removing a series of recent additions. The studio also stabilised the pub’s existing stone walls and relayed its slate roofs.
    Rewashed in white lime, the textured facade is characterised by limestone door and window frames, which complement the surrounding planted garden that supports Osip’s seasonal menu.
    An open theatre kitchen features floor-to-ceiling glazingOn the interior, Bindloss Dawes sought to illuminate the ground-floor restaurant with natural light while retaining a sense of the pub’s former character.

    Low, beamed ceilings feature across the seating area, which overlooks an open kitchen framed by floor-to-ceiling glazing and crowned by a geometric skylight.
    Earthenware flooring was laid across the seating area”The original Osip had a road-facing window and a small serving hatch, giving diners a limited view of the kitchen,” studio co-founder Oliver Bindloss told Dezeen.
    “In the new restaurant, we have opened up new windows and the garden to create wide views of the surrounding landscape.”
    The kitchen includes chunky bar stoolsBindloss Dawes chose a palette of natural materials when dressing the interior spaces.
    A deep red, locally sourced earthenware floor was laid across the seating area in a nod to the pub’s original charred crimson clinker floors. The breathable material was also selected for its acoustically absorbent properties.
    Artist Max Bainbridge hand-carved a knobbly timber barArtist Max Bainbridge of Somerset studio Forest + Found hand-carved a knobbly central drinks bar out of local timber gathered from the neighbouring woods, while abstract artworks add subtle colour to the otherwise white-washed walls.
    The kitchen is defined by a mixture of stainless steel, timber accents and chunky bar stools upholstered in Somerset textiles. Dimmable lighting was fitted throughout the restaurant to enhance a setting where diners can “focus on the food”, according to Bindloss.

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    “The interior design is intimate, filled with natural light and open to the landscape,” said the studio co-founder.
    “Osip’s materials and makers represent the same things as its food – locally sourced and representing the best of Somerset and the south west,” he added.
    Osip includes a garden for growing seasonal produceBindloss Dawes also restored the building’s first and second floors, which extend into the original roof rafters and house four double guestrooms with en-suite bathrooms, furnished to reflect the downstairs restaurant.
    The studio opened its Bruton practice in 2018 and has completed Somerset projects ranging from the renovation of a Grade II-listed house in Pitcombe with a contemporary timber extension to a car barn for a classic Porsche collector.
    The photography is by Dave Watts.

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