四叶草之家，日本 / MAD-卓美

Clover house, ’s first project in Japan, had its ground-breaking ceremony in Okazaki, Aichi on May 13th.

四叶草之家是一座像家一样的幼儿园。由于用地紧张，幼儿园的经营者决心把自己的自用住宅改建，将原有的家庭私立保育所扩建为儿童教育机构。区别于传统的幼儿园，这是一个介于公共幼儿教育机构和住宅之间的庇护所，它采取全开放的授课方式，白天，孩子们和教师如同在家里一样，吃饭、学习、讨论、午休、游戏。晚上，这里又是经营者家庭和教师们居住的地方，在一个大家庭的环境中，建立起孩子们之间的情感和信任。

The Clover House is a kindergarten that feels like home. Due to limited land area the owner of a local kindergarten decided to renovate his own family house transforming the original private nursery into a fully developed education institution. Clover House differentiates itself from traditional kindergartens by fully embracing its role as a shelter—a haven for education during the day and a home in the evening. The kindergarten’s homelike environment supports Clover House’s fully open teaching methodology, through which the children can build emotional bonds and trust among one another. During the day, children and teachers can eat, study, communicate, rest and play as if they were at a home. At night, the house reverts back to be the living space for the owner’s family and the school teachers.

改造从如何处理这幢105平方米的二层小住宅开始。与周围的房屋一样，原建筑本是从房屋建设公司购买来的装配式成品，为全木结构。在勘察了实际情况以后，MAD决定保留并利用这座住宅的主体木结构，使它成为新建筑结构的一部分。被保留的坡屋顶木框架不但造就了有趣的室内空间，对房屋的主人，幼儿园的经营者来说，也是对家的一种纪念。

The transformation started with an investigation of the existing 105 sqm two-story house. Like the surrounding houses, this wood structure building was first constructed as standard mass-production housing. After on-site surveys, MAD decided to reutilize the existing wood structure, incorporating it into the new building’s design. One of the signature repurposed elements is the pitched roof, which not only creates dynamic interior spaces, but also brings the owner’s memories of the building as his home into this residence and the starting point of the clover house.

新的房子则像一块布一样，包裹着房屋老的木结构，并形成一种全新的混沌的空间。对孩子们来说，原本的木结构好像记录了四叶草之家的传统和故事，而对日常使用来说，这个木结构也是孩子们主要的学习空间，它既通透又有围合感，灵活地适应着不同的教学内容。从四周的窗户射进来的阳光，给它带来不断变幻的光影，追逐着孩子们好奇、天真的想象力。

The new house’s skin and structure wraps the old wood structure like a piece of cloth covering the building’s skeleton, creating a blurry space in between the new and the old. The original wood structure is present throughout the main learning area, integrating the history of the building with the educational lessons to tell the students Clover House’s traditions and stories. Its translucent and enclosed spaces easily adapt to different teaching activities. Sunlight sifts through the windows to create ever-changing shadows, chasing the students’ curiosity and innocent imaginations.

坐落在一片稻田边，四叶草之家既像一个神奇的山洞，又像一个临时的帐篷。和原来的工业化标准住宅体系相比，这个新的三维木结构有机而精巧，外墙和屋顶采用当地屋顶最常用的一种柔性防水材料，经过数控分块切片，像一张张白纸一样包裹着整个建筑体，建成之后，每一张白纸都成了孩子们创作的空间，让关于四叶草的记忆延续。

Located next to rice paddy fields, the Clover House’s form brings to mind a mystical cave and a pop-up fort. Compared to the original assembly-line residence, the new 3D wood structure presents a much more organic and dynamic form to host the kindergarten. The facade and roof utilize common soft roofing materials asphalt single to provide waterproofing, while wrapping up the whole structure in a sheath of paper-like pieces. After the building is completed, each piece of “paper” will become the canvas for children to draw and create on, extending their memories of the Clover House.