

It seems like every other day a Japanese architect is building up an innovative modern residence (or dental clinic or hair salon) that's got the utterly unadorned look of an Apple Store and the colorless sterility of a dystopian sci fi film. Yes, stripped-from-the-bone minimalism is austere enough to give one the spine-tinglings and, yes, one would probably miss having windows and, yes, having absolutely zero earthly possessions may not be totally sustainable, but it's hard to remember all that when looking at houses as pristine as an unopened Nordstrom's box. As previously demonstrated with residences that are essentially just big white boxes, aggressive minimalism is as unambiguously and inarguably cool as it is impractical. Below, 17 projects proving that, when it comes to minimalism at its most peeled, Japan is the supreme ruler.

· All Minimalism posts [Curbed National]

· All Japan posts [Curbed National]