Stories inspired by a Sense of Place and a Sense of Season
The Hiramatsu Kyoto is on Muromachi-dori Sanjo-Agaru, one of Kyoto’s most exclusive addresses. Part Two of this article continues our guided tour of its architectural highlights with two architects, Koji Nakamura, grandson of Nakamura Sotoji Komuten’s founder, and Hiroshi Yoshida.
We learn how the old machiya townhouse was repurposed as a hotel, building in comfort along the way, and discover how the hotel embodies a refined spirit of hospitality as well as practical wisdom that feels almost like a secret code.
The Hiramatsu Kyoto occupies a converted machiya townhouse built over 120 years ago.
Dating from the Meiji period, it was formerly the home and shop of a draper and kimono merchant whose business was founded in the Edo period, and even now it embodies the serenity and hospitality of Kyoto. The restoration and remodelling of the interior and gardens were overseen by Nakamura Sotoji Komuten, one of Japan’s leading design and construction companies specialising in sukiya-zukuri.
With The Hiramatsu Kyoto’s two chefs, I visited Nakamura Sotoji Komuten’s workshops to learn more about the craftsmanship and practical wisdom embodied in sukiya-zukuri, and the aesthetic that underlies this style of architecture.