Melbourne-based architect and founder of Artefact Architects Steven Chu has won the Grand Prize in an international design competition to design a luxury villa on a Japanese island, with his winning proposal set to be realised and sold.
Open to architects and creators under 40 years of age, the Not a Hotel International Design Competition 2026 invited participants to design a luxury villa for Yakushima Island, a subtropical island off the southern coast of Kyushu in Japan. The competition attracted more than 1,000 international entries across 112 countries.
Titled Sound of Rain, Chu’s winning proposal harnesses Yakushima’s extraordinary rainfall – up to 10 metres annually – to create an atmospheric and sensory architectural experience. A low and slender roof plane channels rainfall downward before capturing, filtering and reusing it, doubling as a water feature. Internally, a central atrium features a glazed oculus over which water pools, casting rippling light patterns across main living spaces below.
According to Steven Chu, the project reflects Artefact Architects’ broader interest in creating spaces that are culturally resonant and expand the experience of belonging within the setting.
“I sought to create an architecture that could only belong on this site. And for the guests of this esteemed client of ours to inhabit rain and to inhabit the sound of rain,” said Chu.
The project is currently in design development in collaboration with competition organiser Not A Hotel, a Japanese hospitality company that commissions architects to design high-end residences and retreats.
Chu’s proposal was shortlisted alongside ten finalists before being presented in Tokyo to a jury that included internationally renowned architects Sou Fujimoto, Bjarke Ingels and interior designer Masamichi Katayama.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
