House in Yokohama, architect Michimasa Kawaguchi. Design follow sthe model of a central tsubo-niwa, but to make this work on all the floors. Kawaguchi specializes in domestic architecture and is in great demand for his knowledge of traditional construction and finishing techniques, which he applies in a modern style. .The tsubo-niwa, while central, opens out to the front of the house, which both allows more light into what is effectively a deep light well, and provides a garden view when entering. A single maple is planted in a bed of ryu-no-hige, or mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus), surrounded by white gravel. At each level, shoji screens in the design known as fukiyose slide back to reveal this central space. The house being deeper than its facade, the screens in the front and rear rooms align so that when open they provide a view all the way through to the back, where a small vertical garden space is planted with tall-growing mousou-chiku bamboo. On the first floor, decking and a parapet of cypress make maximum .use of this internal, central garden, surrounding the central space on three sides. The garden viewed from the .entrance. Leading up to it, the concrete flooring is set with scattered groups of black pebbles in a style known as .hifumi-ishi (ishi means stone; hi-fu-mi when written in Chinese spells “one- two-three”). The ground cover is mondo grass, known in Japanese as ryu-no-hige, .or “dragon’s beard.”