An interest in experimental materials such as cork and recycled foodstuffs characterises the work of this Tokyo-based practiceTYFA was shortlisted for the AR Emerging awards 2024. Read about the full shortlist hereIn a densely packed neighbourhood outside Shibuya City on the periphery of Tokyo stands a cork-clad obelisk. Itis a house by TYFA, a Tokyo-based practice founded in 2019 by husband and wife Takaaki and Yuko Fuji. The structure ismade of stacked modules, each with a floor area of 20m2, and shaped to minimise wind loads and maximise daylight.The architects had to work around the restrictions of the site, carving the building to limit overlooking and obstruction of light to the neighbouring properties. The roads leading to the site were too narrow for delivery trucks, so all materials and fixtures were adapted to accommodate manual delivery from the main roads. The cork cladding acts as thermal insulation and encourages the growth of moss, which will over time soften the hard corners and give the building a rounded, weathered look.The roads were too narrow for delivery trucks, so all materials were adapted to accommodate manual deliveryCircularity and sustainability are the driving forces of TYFAs work; they see spatial overdeterminism as antithetical tosustainable practice, opting instead for designs that can be reproduced in a variety of contexts. Each floor of the house is designed with an open plan which, according to the architects, can accommodate future changes of use, from living to work spaces.This philosophy is central to their Circular Economy Laboratory (CEL) research project, which envisions a collection ofresearch hubs in a snowy mountainous village in the Nagano prefecture. As yet unrealised, the CEL is to be used by companies who manufacture products according to circular economy principles. Six trapezoidal units will combine to form ahexagonal cell, which can then be further combined with other cells and replicated adinfinitum. The structures will harness the abundant snow as a resource for insulation, power and water generation, and air conditioning depending on the season.Circularity and reuse were also explored in two tea house pavilions, one produced forthe 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale and the other for the Dubai Design Week of the same year. The pavilions had a modular, demountable structure inspired by the Miura-ori origami technique, with joints constructed from food waste. In Venice, the joints were made from waste pasta and floor tiles from coffee grounds, and in Dubai, tea was recycled into the joints, and dried fruits were used to make the flooring.Outside TYFA, Takaaki Fuji works as a project architect at Mitsubishi Jisho Design, the architectural arm of the real estate giant Mitsubishi Estate. Fuji hopes that through his work with Mitsubishi Jisho Design, he can test the ideas explored at TYFA on projects of a much larger scale, and fulfil his ambition for an architecture that gives back and creates a happier global environment.