Bare Soul

Shishi-Iwa House is a small collection of intimately crafted boutique hotels in Karuizawa that marries architectural experiments with century-old Japanese tradition.

- CHANDREYEE RAY

The Japanese concept of ma is centred on the value of emptiness. It can be found in the silence between the notes which make music or the purposeful pauses in speech that make words stand out. You may even see it at the end of the respectful Japanese bow, when one deliberately holds at the deepest point of their bend to ensure there is enough ma to convey feeling.

In architecture and design, ma lives in the spaces where nothing is added, like the carefully positioned gaps between tatami mats in a traditional Japanese teahouse or alcoves left intentionally empty to display a single artwork or object. Engawa, a veranda-like space that surrounds a traditional Japanese house, exemplifies ma by offering a transitional zone. Instead of separating the inside and outside environments, it connects them—blending the manmade into nature.

Over time, the ubiquitous presence of engawa in Japanese architecture has quietly faded. With it, the traditions of ma have disappeared from modern Japanese buildings in pursuit of urban, mass-produced housing that prioritises privacy and security over openness and connection.

An hour’s shinkansen ride away from Tokyo is Karuizawa, a picturesque town nestled in the mountains near Nagano. Wrapped in lush forest, the small town is known for mild summers, a gorgeous natural landscape and easy access to activities such as hiking, golfing and skiing.

What many may not know is that Karuizawa is also home to a secretive collection of three intimately crafted boutique hotels, known together as Shishi-Iwa House. Located minutes away from one another by foot, the three interconnected properties offer under 13 guest rooms each, making the experience of taking up temporary residence in any one of them genuinely exclusive.