Masayuki Nakaya Photographer Masayuki Nakaya began living in the mountains.
PROFILE
Born in 1976 in Ehime Prefecture. After graduating from the Faculty of Law at Matsuyama University, he studied design and photography while attending the evening course at Kuwasawa Design School. After graduation, he worked at a photography studio for three and a half years before setting up his own studio in 2008. Currently, he is active in a wide range of fields, including the magazine "BRUTUS," brand catalogs, and firm work for trading companies. She is a big cat lover.
At the end of a slope just barely passable in a compact car, is the mountain home of photographer Masayuki Nakaya, who in the spring of 2021 began a dual-location lifestyle between Tokyo and his mountain home.
I had lived in Nakameguro for more than 20 years before," Nakaya says, "but the timing of the Corona, my daughter's going to school, and various other things came together to buy this second-hand property. There was a plan to move the whole family here, but it was inconvenient for work, so they are now living in this house and an apartment in Tokyo. He says that he lives in Tokyo as his base and comes here whenever he has free time.
The first thing I built after moving in was the gate to my house. It was all handmade and took two weeks to complete using unfamiliar tools.
When he is at his mountain home, Mr. Nakaya is busy thinning out rotting trees in the hills behind his house, mowing the grass, and renovating the interior of his house. When I first came here, I was like, 'The countryside feels so nice,' but now that I'm living here, I'm interested in all sorts of things, and I'm always moving my body," he says. I never seem to run out of things to do. But at the moment, it's more of a playground than a home," he laughs.
Recently completed Holzhausen (German for "tree house") for drying firewood. From here, they will spend two years making high-quality firewood.
Holzhausen is good, right? (laughs). It looks difficult, but if you watch YouTube, there are detailed explanations on how to make it. This one uses about two 20-meter-long konara oak trees. And you have to cut down those trees yourself."
Mr. Nakaya was not a carpenter and had no experience in woodworking. However, he completed the gate and the Holzhausen without any help from anyone, just by watching and imitating. Everything he does is an extension of his play, and he enjoys the time he spends feeling the four seasons.
Now I spend my time doing the daily maintenance of the house, making a fire, lounging in the hammock, and reading a book. He spends his time quietly in the midst of nature with the bare minimum of necessities. Although he says, "I'm not conscious of being minimalist," it is in this lifestyle that he finds minimalism, both material and spiritual.
Such a longed-for "two-location life" sounds like a lot of work and money, and it may seem like a lot of hurdles, but listening to Mr. Nakaya's story, it is surprisingly not so.
I also have work to do, so if it takes me three hours to get to Tokyo, it's not for me. Here, I can get to Tokyo in an hour, and as soon as I get off the mountain, I'm in the city, so it's very convenient. Also, the rent is surprisingly cheap, so it's almost like renting a shared office in Tokyo."
Until now, the idea of living in a second location has been to "buy a mountain" or "own a vacation home," which are out of reach in terms of both sensibilities and money, and not easy to start, but Nakaya's mountain lifestyle is very realistic and realistic. But Mr. Nakaya's mountain lifestyle is very realistic and realistic. Indeed, it is not so bad if you can get such a minimalist lifestyle with a little investment.
