When Kyoto-based Alphaville Architects were asked to create a home/studio space for a couple and their son on a small lot, they turned to geometry to create something that would maximize space and light. Since the city grid isn’t aligned north-south, they cut the home diagonally on the lot and created a parallelogram-shaped home.

This allowed the residence to open wide for the southern-exposure and the atelier to open wide for the northern light coveted by artists. “As the climate is harsh with strong wind and fallen snow, openings were made only at the south and the north sides.”

The rest of the home is window-less, leaving both the residential and the workshop each to act as a tunnel of light, or a “Skyhole” as the architects have dubbed the home. The home’s long walls are white and windowless so space can serve as a gallery for the work of owners Ryo Takahashi (a fine artist) and his wife Natsumi Sekibe (an accessories designer).