BIG AND JAPANESE HOSPITALITY GROUP NOT A HOTEL PARTNER ON REMOTE ISLAND DESTINATION IN SETOUCHI, JAPAN

BIG unveils the design for NOT A HOTEL Setouchi, which will expand the luxury hospitality company’s existing six resort offerings across Japan. Located on a 30,000-square-metre site on the remote island of Sagishima, the resort brings three villas to the southwestern cape of the island with panoramic views of the Seto Inland Sea. The design for NOT A HOTEL Setouchi builds on the longstanding dialogue between Scandinavian and Japanese design values. Expected to break ground later this year, the resort weaves through site like a ribbon, intentionally blending into the undulating landscape’s natural contours and aligning with existing roads and infrastructure. NOT A HOTEL Setouchi incorporates local materials like Japanese black slate, wood and rammed earth while promoting a connection to nature. “Our design approach for NOT A HOTEL Setouchi wasn’t about imposing our ideas on the site; instead, it involved exploring, observing and understanding the landscape. We envisioned how to best leverage this distinctive and remarkable terrain and fixed upon a design that mirrors the elegance of traditional Japanese architecture. Japan is one of the cultures in the world where commitment to craft and care for quality remains intact. The honesty and simplicity of the structure and careful choice of materials can be said to have greatly influenced the traditional architecture of Japan and the modern architecture of Denmark. Maybe that’s why when I go to Japan, I always feel like I’m coming home. NOT A HOTEL Setouchi will be an experiment in what happens when the sensibilities of both countries come together – the Danish desire for simplicity and the care and perfection of Japan.” – Bjarke Ingels, Founder & Creative Director, BIG