Iron Interior · 2026
Between Forest and Light Residential Interior
by Daisuke Nagatomo and Minnie Jan
- A' Design Award 2026 in Interior
- CLIENT: MisoSoupDesign
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 7,376
- Verification code A859BD7822 · Verify this award
Colors
About Between Forest and Light Residential Interior
Between Forest and Light is the interior design of a four-story private residence organized to connect domestic functions with the surrounding landscape. The layout arranges communal and private spaces vertically, allowing each floor to align with specific views and daylight conditions. Stone, wood, and glass define transitions between areas and regulate transparency. Indirect lighting and concealed systems keep surfaces clear. The design emphasizes spatial sequencing, visual framing, and light control to bring the forest setting into everyday living.
About the A' Design Award
Between Forest and Light Residential Interior is an Iron A' Design Award winner, a prestigious recognition granted to good designs that meet the professional and industrial requirements expected from well-designed creations. Iron winners demonstrate great skill, high specialization, expert understanding, and creative capacity of their creators. Between Forest and Light Residential Interior is expected to be a highly regarded, admired, and cherished creation that is practical and innovative. This Iron A' Design Award-winning design integrates industry best practices and has competent technical characteristics linked with know-how and talent. Between Forest and Light Residential Interior is respected for its thoroughness and is designed to provide quality of life improvements that help make the world a better place.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Between Forest and Light reinterprets vertical residential living as a layered landscape. Each floor offers a distinct relationship with nature through controlled transparency, framed views, and material variation. Curved stone walls, filtered glazing, and integrated lighting soften spatial transitions, creating a continuous yet diverse living experience that evolves from ground to top floor.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Project Type: Private Residence
Location: Xindian District, New Taipei City, Taiwan
Building Height: 4 stories
Scope: Interior Design
Completion Year: 2021 - Tags
- Residential interior, Vertical living, Natural light, Forest view, Material layering
- Production Technology
- The project integrates custom stone cladding, wood panel systems, and precision glass partitions to achieve seamless transitions between spaces. Indirect lighting, concealed mechanical systems, and bespoke furniture elements are carefully coordinated to maintain visual clarity. Natural materials were selected for durability, aging quality, and their ability to enhance light reflection and spatial depth.
- Design Challenge
- The primary challenge was designing a vertical residence that maintains spatial coherence while responding to varied programmatic needs across four levels. Another key challenge was balancing openness to the surrounding forest with privacy, environmental comfort, and structural constraints, while ensuring daylight penetration throughout the deep interior spaces.
- Research
- This project investigates how vertical residential interiors can mediate the relationship between dense natural environments and contemporary domestic living. Through a four-story private residence, the design explores spatial sequencing, material articulation, and daylight modulation as tools to integrate forest landscapes into everyday life. The research focuses on how framed views, controlled transparency, and layered material systems influence occupants’ perception of space, privacy, and environmental continuity. By organizing programs vertically and calibrating light conditions on each level, the project proposes a residential model that balances openness and enclosure while enhancing long-term spatial comfort and sensory engagement with nature.
- Inspiration
- The project is inspired by the site’s hillside setting and dense greenery. Rather than treating nature as a backdrop, the design frames forest views as an integral spatial element. Light, shadow, and seasonal changes are incorporated into daily life, allowing residents to experience nature from multiple perspectives across different floors.
- Project Duration
- Design 2020 - 2021
Construction 2021 - 2022
Completion 2022 - Operation Flow
- Daily movement unfolds vertically from public to private spaces. The ground floor connects communal living areas to the garden, while upper levels gradually shift toward more intimate functions. Visual connections between floors and outdoor views guide circulation, allowing residents to experience changing light conditions and forest scenery as part of everyday routines.
