“Preserving a machiya takes a lot of effort. But we think keeping an existing structure for generations instead of tearing it down and rebuilding is much more sustainable.”—Yuki Shirato, homeowner in Kyoto As the editors of AD curated stories for this issue, themed around sustainability, we found that all the projects were, coincidentally, in some sense historic. Some homes were very old and had been sensitively renovated. Others were structures not intended for residential use but which had been cleverly repurposed, such as an industrial barge turned houseboat in Paris. Even the glorious Hudson Valley rose garden featured this month is part of a 120-acre estate that had previously been owned by a single family for five generations. Under the thoughtful stewardship of its current owners, the forested land is…
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Architectural Digest (Digital) - 1 Issue, April 2025