Location: Hokkaido, Japan.

Architect: Architectus.

Skye Niseko is a premium-grade development in Japan’s Niseko Grand Hirafu Resort area with 105 apartments and five penthouses, a bespoke restaurant, ski-in and ski-out concierge facilities, and a contemporary interpretation of the traditional Japanese Onsen. The architecture is contemporary, timelessly refined and memorable with international appeal while maintaining a local feel. The building footprints have been sensitively located so that they don’t appear monumental on the landscape or interrupt views. Extensive 3D modelling of key locations in the landscape informed the positioning of the floorplates to ensure all apartments enjoy views of the broader landscape and Mount Yotei beyond. Koichi Ishiguro / ISA Architects designed a ski-in ski-out concierge system that responds to how people start their day and how they get onto the ski field.

The building is all about warmth and providing a cocoon that is sheltering and engaging, and local Hokkaido culture and character are experienced through the informed integration of contemporaneous artworks, textiles, furniture and crafts. Locally sourced and fabricated materials have been utilised throughout the interiors, and the surrounding landscape, trees and boulders have been respectfully preserved and integrated. The development articulates and expresses public access, and the public areas are essential to the ski-resort operation. Interiors were designed by Architectus, Pike Withers and Wilson Associates in collaboration.